Character Designer is a real job

MistaraMistara Posts: 38,675
edited January 2021 in Carrara Discussion

www.cgspectrum.com/career-pathways/character-designer

Feeling psyched that something could come of this hobby.angel

Character Designer Job Description
A Character Designer (or Character Artist) specializes in the conceptualization of characters for films, TV shows and games, often using a brief or script for inspiration.

The role of the Character Designer is to visualize and develop the look of animated characters for films and games. They work from the script or storyline to turn descriptions into images, to give form to personality and characteristics.

The average salary of a Character Designer ranges from USD $45,000 to USD $83,000

seems kinda low to me.  would expect royalties to be part of the deal.  considering a hit game character like Cloud Strife could be worth millions.

 

Looking at the industry standard list.  what the heck is ToonBoom Harmony

Post edited by Mistara on

Comments

  • MistaraMistara Posts: 38,675

    would think carrara has a much better chance of making the industry standard list than daz studio.  carrara has modeling tools.  wish  the corporate execs would wake up and see the potential.

  • Steve KSteve K Posts: 3,233

    Long ago I attended a presentation by a very experienced ZBrush user.  He went through a character creation process, explaining how much human anatomy he had studied to let him know what to sculpt.

    I also recall a video by a character clay sculptor working for a major production company, maybe Pixar.  It was pretty amazing, he could knock out a pretty detailed figure in a few minutes.

    The-Rolling-Stones-Richard-Austin-sculpture.jpg
    1409 x 795 - 154K
  • MistaraMistara Posts: 38,675

    cant remember if it was pixar, i was captivated by jack frost in 'rise of the guardians'.

  • TorquinoxTorquinox Posts: 3,301
    Looking at the industry standard list.  what the heck is ToonBoom Harmony

    https://www.toonboom.com/products/harmony

  • DiomedeDiomede Posts: 15,165

    Steve K said:

    Long ago I attended a presentation by a very experienced ZBrush user.  He went through a character creation process, explaining how much human anatomy he had studied to let him know what to sculpt.

    I also recall a video by a character clay sculptor working for a major production company, maybe Pixar.  It was pretty amazing, he could knock out a pretty detailed figure in a few minutes.

    I have been putting some time and effort in learning ZBrush.  I can believe that someone proficient in ZBrush and well versed in anatomy could create very detailed characters quickly.  For me, the learning curve is very steep.  The change in terminology and change in navigation is not only different from Carrara, it is different from other programs I have used.  But I am making progress.  The kinds of things that interest me can be textured to be compatible with Carrara.

  • MistaraMistara Posts: 38,675

    Diomede said:

    Steve K said:

    Long ago I attended a presentation by a very experienced ZBrush user.  He went through a character creation process, explaining how much human anatomy he had studied to let him know what to sculpt.

    I also recall a video by a character clay sculptor working for a major production company, maybe Pixar.  It was pretty amazing, he could knock out a pretty detailed figure in a few minutes.

    I have been putting some time and effort in learning ZBrush.  I can believe that someone proficient in ZBrush and well versed in anatomy could create very detailed characters quickly.  For me, the learning curve is very steep.  The change in terminology and change in navigation is not only different from Carrara, it is different from other programs I have used.  But I am making progress.  The kinds of things that interest me can be textured to be compatible with Carrara.

    iirc you do the 3d coat.  is 3d coat good for modelling human figures?  dragons? 

  • DiomedeDiomede Posts: 15,165

    Mystiarra said:

    Diomede said:

    Steve K said:

    Long ago I attended a presentation by a very experienced ZBrush user.  He went through a character creation process, explaining how much human anatomy he had studied to let him know what to sculpt.

    I also recall a video by a character clay sculptor working for a major production company, maybe Pixar.  It was pretty amazing, he could knock out a pretty detailed figure in a few minutes.

    I have been putting some time and effort in learning ZBrush.  I can believe that someone proficient in ZBrush and well versed in anatomy could create very detailed characters quickly.  For me, the learning curve is very steep.  The change in terminology and change in navigation is not only different from Carrara, it is different from other programs I have used.  But I am making progress.  The kinds of things that interest me can be textured to be compatible with Carrara.

    iirc you do the 3d coat.  is 3d coat good for modelling human figures?  dragons? 

    Yes, 3DCoat is an option for sculpting, retopology, uvmapping, texturing, etc.  Dragons be born! 

    I don't know how long my venture into ZBrush will last.  Similarly, I am paying the subscription for the Substance Suite.  I suspect that in both cases I will eventually stop the subscriptions and shift to programs that are either free like Blender or that one can own a permanent license.

    I am always interested in which programs other people find useful and various workflows that people use.  

  • DesertDudeDesertDude Posts: 1,235

    Diomede said:

    Mystiarra said:

    Diomede said:

    Steve K said:

    Long ago I attended a presentation by a very experienced ZBrush user.  He went through a character creation process, explaining how much human anatomy he had studied to let him know what to sculpt.

    I also recall a video by a character clay sculptor working for a major production company, maybe Pixar.  It was pretty amazing, he could knock out a pretty detailed figure in a few minutes.

    I have been putting some time and effort in learning ZBrush.  I can believe that someone proficient in ZBrush and well versed in anatomy could create very detailed characters quickly.  For me, the learning curve is very steep.  The change in terminology and change in navigation is not only different from Carrara, it is different from other programs I have used.  But I am making progress.  The kinds of things that interest me can be textured to be compatible with Carrara.

    iirc you do the 3d coat.  is 3d coat good for modelling human figures?  dragons? 

    Yes, 3DCoat is an option for sculpting, retopology, uvmapping, texturing, etc.  Dragons be born! 

    I don't know how long my venture into ZBrush will last.  Similarly, I am paying the subscription for the Substance Suite.  I suspect that in both cases I will eventually stop the subscriptions and shift to programs that are either free like Blender or that one can own a permanent license.

    I am always interested in which programs other people find useful and various workflows that people use.  

    I finally took the plunge last month with 3dCoat's annual sale after many years of temptation and..."do I really need that" , " will I use it?" "Not good enough"
    I jumped on board now because I speculated this may be the last chance to 'buy in' considering my hardware - my 2010 Imac is now obsolete to even upgrade to newest OS...so I'm on an island again, potentially cut off (understandably) from developers.
    A daunting, wonderful learning curve ahead to be used with Cararra

  • DartanbeckDartanbeck Posts: 21,533

    Steve K said:

    Long ago I attended a presentation by a very experienced ZBrush user.  He went through a character creation process, explaining how much human anatomy he had studied to let him know what to sculpt.

    Right. I think that's what made/makes Daz 3D so good at making humans. Although no longer part of the company, Dan and Chris used to make anatomical paintings for medical professionals before creating what has become Daz 3D, and I think their practices must still be carried on - even though now they have crazy-powerful tech, like life-to-3D scanning tech and all of that.

    I'm sure that there might be plenty of professional character designers that exceed th "average salary".

    But, yeah. Watching/reading behind-the-scenes material is a big part of my passtime when away from Carrara. One of your (Misty) favorite characters, Geralt of Rivia had several designers throughout his gaming history. They had book covers and other material to assist them, but they still had to nail him down for the game, along with Ciri and the rest of the cast, all the way down the line to the lowliest background people in the games.

    Then there's Lucas Arts, Weta Digital, Lightstorm, etc., and the movies they make. Conceptual Artists are involved even before the official writing takes place for the Star Wars movies, and continues until the very end of production. I love concept art!

    This is an excellent multi-artist interview regarding the conceptual art that went into making Star Wars Episode VII - The Force Awakens

  • DartanbeckDartanbeck Posts: 21,533

    Here's my "Inspirations" page on The Witcher. On it is an excellent set of videos on the history of making the series of games, where they talk in depth on the process and the art involved.

    When I first bought the first The Witcher game, I biught it For the Art that comes with it. I liked it so much I bought the rest of the series for the same thing - the incredible art and music that's included when you buy.

    I still haven't finished any of the games, but they're incredibly fun and beautiful. As well, Geralt is an amazing protagonist to play!

    FYI - there's a LOT of behind-the-scenes videos, etc., in the Gallery > Inspiration portion of my site - mostly for my own easy access, but also to share with anyone else who might like these sorts of things.

  • MistaraMistara Posts: 38,675

    behind every character is a creator.

    dudley do right , the mountie who always gets his man
    the go go gadget guy
    stewie

  • 3dCoat is a very capable and useful tool. I use it for uv mapping, texturing and ocassionally for retopology. I'm still trying to rap my head around sculpting, but it is full featured and regularly updated by the developer.

  • chickenmanchickenman Posts: 1,202

    My daughter is currently scuplting in 3DCoat inorder to increase her skills. She is just learning it but has been sucesssful at it sofar. You just need to figure out which modeling method you are more intue with vertex or Voxel. She does voxel modeling currently then Manually topologizes the teh mesh. Her intent currently is to make a character bring it into DAZ studio, rigg it and make it functional in DAZ Studio. After she has done That I will see if it still works in Carrara or if it needs work to function in Carrara.

  • DartanbeckDartanbeck Posts: 21,533

    chickenman said:

    My daughter is currently scuplting in 3DCoat inorder to increase her skills. She is just learning it but has been sucesssful at it sofar. You just need to figure out which modeling method you are more intue with vertex or Voxel. She does voxel modeling currently then Manually topologizes the teh mesh. Her intent currently is to make a character bring it into DAZ studio, rigg it and make it functional in DAZ Studio. After she has done That I will see if it still works in Carrara or if it needs work to function in Carrara.

    That is So Cool!

  • WendyLuvsCatzWendyLuvsCatz Posts: 38,198

    look no further than Stezza and his vertex room cubes yes

  • DartanbeckDartanbeck Posts: 21,533

    WendyLuvsCatz said:

    look no further than Stezza and his vertex room cubes yes

    yes

  • MistaraMistara Posts: 38,675

    they've turned sephiroth into a super villain.  i cant not love him.

     

    lol  witcher 3 dandelion.  his full name is impossible to remember.  he's a viscount.

    what is the difference of a lord to a duke?  and baron? 
    dukes marry the duchesses.  game of thrones had lots of lords but no dukes. 

  • MistaraMistara Posts: 38,675

    been dreaming about 3d coat. 

    dreaming of making a new terai yuki or an anime guy like cloud or sephiroth.  also love vincent valentine. the game was awful, but te character design was awesome

    not every character has to be beautiful  don corneo was sleazy.  and ole george certaitanly fit a niche

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