OUAN405 - Process & Production: Chris, The Simpsons Artist (Research)

Taking into account my research on the way Disney made his characters appealing in terms of mannerisms and attitudes/personalities, I then went on to create my very own character - or protagonist rather - to bring my animation to life. I started by jotting down the most bizarre of ideas for my "God"-like character. I can't even remember jotting down half of them!

I started with a naked figure of an emaciated male suggesting that God doesn't need lavish clothing to represent his benevolence, nor should he be the picture of health, he is one of us, he has flaws and so forth. Eventually, I thought about the comedic side of what God's potential appearance really could be...

After running through silly ideas of Morgan Freeman as God (a bit cliché!), Skrillex (definite no!), Snoop Dogg (Dog is God backwards, right?) and many other wacky ideas, I settled on a rather handsome looking African-American God dressed in hip-hop genre clothing, gold chain, basketball vest, the lot! However, I hadn't really settled on a style.

I knew what I wanted my God to look like, but how would I style his features? How big should his eyes be? Nose shape? Then, I was thankful one night as I was browsing through Facebook and came across one of my most loved artists(?), Chris, "The Simpsons Artist" - as he calls himself. On his website, Pictures That I Gone And Done, Chris shows off his extensive knowledge on creating abstract and (to be honest) terrifying characters which you can't help but laugh at! I thought styling my God with a few similar features to that of Chris' characters, I could recreate that same level of horror yet humour in my work...

http://picturesthatigoneanddone.bigcartel.com I recommend checking Chris out, his work is truly an inspiration!