Visual Arts - Illustration 358
Spring Semester 2011
Instructor: Jake Parker
Cell Phone: 469.426.6919
Email: Jake@agent44.com
Course Information
COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES
Students will develop the fundamental techniques and a creative process for designing a character for illustration or animation.
Students learn to visually explore character descriptions either given to them verbally or in written format.
Students will demonstrate proficiency in constructing believable characters that have weight and appeal.
Students work on creating unique and memorable characters that elicit an emotional response from the viewer.
Students become familiar with other professional character designers and how they work
Students complete 10 different lessons that train them how to achieve these goals as a character designer.
GRADING SCALE
A 350-400 B 300-350 C 250-300 D 200-250 E 199 and lower
Grading Policies
In preparation for BFA review, and ultimately a profession, it is of primary importance that your work be as good as possible. That being said, any project that has been submitted on time COMPLETED may be redone for a better grade at any point in the term. It may be improved or solved in an entirely different manner as long as it still fulfills the assignment. A late project may be redone but the final grade will be no more than 70%. If redos are done poorly, the grade received will count. Projects should be reworked based on the critique comments until they are as strong as possible. Doing this is a very important way to improve your skills, focus your creativity, and resolve visual problems. It is also the reality of the creative industry.
When grading projects, my personal experience and aesthetic preferences influence my response.
When I review students projects, I consider the following:
Creativity
Ordinary solutions are not only dull, but they are not competitive. They do not challenge nor improve the students skill. Solutions should be exciting, innovative and interesting.
Design/Composition
Regardless of your discipline, skillful and creative use of design principles and elements are essential to communication with an audience, remember we are visual communicators. While most viewers cannot identify what may be right or wrong with an image, they sense when something isn’t communicating well due to poor design. Design is important as content in the process of communication.
Craftsmanship
Skill with media is necessary to success. A good idea fails to communicate if worked poorly. I realize most of you have limited media experience, and I will take that into account. Work that we do in class is designed to develop some degree of comfort with the medium.
Appropriateness
All projects have goals and specifications that need to be accomplished and followed. It is expected that these will be met through your solutions. The industry requires this, as will I.
ATTENDANCE EXPECTATIONS
Most of the work will be done in class and our time is extremely limited. So attendance during the semester is critical and required. Attendance and promptness is also an essential professional attribute. After three absences I feel it will be impossible to “catch up” the lost time and you will fail the course. Attendance is worth 75 points.
DEADLINES
Projects will be due at a specific date and time. Work will be presented and critiqued during class whether completed or not. Late projects will automatically lose 30% of the total points. Late projects not in by the beginning of the next class period will not be accepted. A late project is anything presented to myself or the class 10 min. or later on the date due in class.
MATERIALS NEEDED:
Sketchbooks and whatever you use to draw in your sketchbooks. Pen and ink. Pencil and paper. Working digitally for color is recommended.
RECOMMENDED BOOKS AND WEBSITES:
Cartoon Animation by Preston Blair
Any of the “The Art of (insert movie title here)” books.
Walt Disney Animation Studios The Archive Series: Animation by Disney Editions
http://theartcenter.blogspot.com/
SUBMITTING AND PRESENTING WORK:
All work must be submitted and presented digitally on the class blog.
ASSIGNMENTS:
- Designing a character – In this assignment you will practice designing a character from a written description. 25 Points
- The importance of silhouette – This assignment will help you strip away details of a character allowing you to focus on what is essential to your character’s design. 25 Points
- Shaping up and building characters – This assignment will give you a foundation on how shapes construct a character. 25 Points
- The head and face – This assignment will help you familiarize yourself with head and facial construction. 25 Points
- Never underestimate the power of hands – This assignment will strengthen your ability at drawing one of the character’s most expressive features. 25 Points
- Designing a character 2 – Using the knowledge from assignments 1-5 you will design another character based off a written description. 25 Points
- Animals and anthropomorphism – This assignment will help you understand the basics of animal construction and how to apply human features to animals and vice versa. 25 Points
- Expressions – This assignment will give you a better understanding of how expressions can enhance the visual language of your character. 25 Points
- Rendering and polishing – This assignment will teach you that there’s more than one way to take a design to final. 50 Points
- Character line-up – Working from a description of a set of characters you will design a character line up. 75 Points
Course Schedule
Date Topics Assignments
08-30 Introduction, Class Work Assignment 1 given 09-01 Class Work
09-06 Assignment 1 due, Lecture Assignment 2 given
09-08 Class Work
09-13 Assignment 2 due, Lecture Assignment 3 given
09-15 Class Work
09-20 Class Work
09-22 Assignment 3 due, Lecture Assignment 4 given
09-27 Class work
09-29 Assignment 4 due, Lecture Assignment 5 given
10-04 Class Work
10-06 Assignment 5 due, Lecture Assignment 6 given
10-11 Class Work
10-13 Class Work
10-18 Assignment 6 due, Lecture Assignment 7 given
10-20 Class Work
10-25 Class Work
10-27 Assignment 7 due, Lecture Assignment 8 given
11-01 Class Work
11-03 Assignment 8 due, Lecture Assignment 9 given
11-08 Class Work
11-10 Class Work
11-15 Class Work
11-17 Assignment 9 due, Lecture Assignment 10 given
11-22 Thanksgiving
11-24 Class Work
11-29 Work In Progress due, Class Work
12-01 Class Work
12-06 Class Work
12-08 Assignment 10 due
12-15 Revisions, Redos, and Make Up due
University Policies
BYU Honor Code
In keeping with the principles of the BYU Honor Code, students are expected to be honest in all of their academic work. Academic honesty means, most fundamentally, that any work you present as your own must in fact be your own work and not that of another. Violations of this principle may result in a failing grade in the course and additional disciplinary action by the university. Students are also expected to adhere to the Dress and Grooming Standards. Adherence demonstrates respect for yourself and others and ensures an effective learning and working environment. It is the university's expectation, and my own expectation in class, that each student will abide by all Honor Code standards. Please call the Honor Code Office at 422-2847 if you have questions about those standards.
Preventing Sexual Discrimination and Harassment
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 prohibits sex discrimination against any participant in an educational program or activity that receives federal funds. The act is intended to eliminate sex discrimination in education. Title IX covers discrimination in programs, admissions, activities, and student-to-student sexual harassment. BYU's policy against sexual harassment extends not only to employees of the university, but to students as well. If you encounter unlawful sexual harassment or gender-based discrimination, please talk to your professor; contact the Equal Employment Office at 422-5895 or 367-5689 (24-hours); or contact the Honor Code Office at 422- 2847.
Students with Disabilities
Brigham Young University is committed to providing a working and learning atmosphere that reasonably accommodates qualified persons with disabilities. If you have any disability which may impair your ability to complete this course successfully, please contact the Services for Students with Disabilities Office (422-2767). Reasonable academic accommodations are reviewed for all students who have qualified, documented disabilities. Services are coordinated with the student and instructor by the SSD Office. If you need assistance or if you feel you have been unlawfully discriminated against on the basis of disability, you may seek resolution through established grievance policy and procedures by contacting the Equal Employment Office at 422-5895, D-285 ASB.
Academic Honesty Policy
The first injunction of the BYU Honor Code is the call to be honest. Students come to the university not only to improve their minds, gain knowledge, and develop skills that will assist them in their life's work, but also to build character. President David O. McKay taught that 'character is the highest aim of education' (The Aims of a BYU Education, p. 6). It is the purpose of the BYU Academic Honesty Policy to assist in fulfilling that aim. BYU students should seek to be totally honest in their dealings with others. They should complete their own work and be evaluated based upon that work. They should avoid academic dishonesty and misconduct in all its forms, including but not limited to plagiarism, fabrication or falsification, cheating, and other academic misconduct.
