Thursday 14 January 2016

Adaptation B- Character and Prop Development (feedback would be great)

When designing the astrologer, I have to consider what his personality is like as well as his position in the world he lives in. So far I picture the astrologer living alone on top of a mountain, isolated from a settlement located at the base of it. The locals who live here don't take the astrologers predictions seriously, despite the fact he can indeed predict the future accurately.


What makes the locals mistrust the astrologer is the fact he has an obsessive nature when it comes to fortune telling. Although he may look cute, he can turn very quickly and has a tendency to lash out at objects and people if he gets frustrated. So to match his personality I made sure his physical appearance had a few features that compliment and illustrate the nature of his personalty.

Below I've drawn four examples of costume that the astrologer could wear. However I don't won't to choose one of these to go with, I was planning on picking different aspects from the costumes to use in the final design. This is where feedback comes in handy.

Firstly I felt like he should be small and stumpy. He looks like someone who would be overlooked by others, hence his obsessive compulsion to gain people's attention with matters of the future. His small build gives away the fact that he's physically weak, and so he longs to have power over others. Predicting the future gives him a feeling of strength that he normally lacks in.

The second thing I wanted to incorporate into this character's design is to reference from an animal. I felt basing him on an owl was appropriate, as they are wide eyed, nocturnal creatures. I feel this is fitting with the concept of astrology. Also the owl is an animal that is typically used to be the symbol of wisdom, this creates an irony because the astrologer is not as wise as he likes to believe.

Finally I need to dress this character with a descent costume design. This part I've found particularly difficult to grasp as it may be the one thing to turn this character into something generic.

These are a few very rough sketches of the props that may be used in the final outcome. I haven't fully established the environment yet, as I usually come up with that after the story board has been made. However to get the story board made, I need to have the main character designed.

2 comments:

  1. Hi Cat - I like the fortune teller... and just a presentational note: when you centralise your text, which is your default when you post, it makes everything you write look like either a quote or a verse in a poem. In truth, it looks a bit weird. Try justifying your text for a book or newspaper look.

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