#but i don't often draw a lot of characters together so putting them to scale is. difficult.

[braisedhoney]

for research purposes how tall would you say Narry is....

ooh i've been asked this before! my answer hasn't really changed (mostly because i'm still painfully indecisive): it's still something i feel like he can and does change whenever he wants to bolster his ego. he makes himself subtly taller depending on if he's trying to appear intimidating. that doesn't change with the scarf-arms either, he just raises himself up more dramatically now. to his credit it does look kinda cool.

but if i were to give him a spectrum of common heights, maybe... around 180 to 185 cm (or 5"11 to 6"1 in ft)? and then whatever he does to become a looming vaguely eldritch entity, but that's probably ridiculous and impractical for small spaces ;; lmao

[dreameroftheblue]

Hold my head inside your hands I need someone who understands I need someone, someone who hears For you, I've waited all these years For you I'd wait 'til kingdom come Until my day, my day is done And say you'll come and set me free Just say you'll wait, you'll wait for me

~*~*~

holy hell I think it's done? I don't normally do much fanart but my brother and I wanted to understand why all the tumblr girlies are so obsessed with these day old men so we binged this show which immediately grabbed me by the throat and hurled me into the gay old men fervor and wouldn't let me do anything else until I finished some kind of tribute ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ

few more process shots+thoughts beneath the cut ♥

okay so I know you have to be kinda careful about making someone's face all black... but I usually dislike clearly human halves on most monster designs, and red wouldn't work either, so I just kind of tried to lighten it closer to the orangey scales on his snake face and hope it worked out?

you can see the other design ideas I had for naga!crowley in the thumbnail sketch but it diverged enough that actually I'm gonna probably just keep that as a separate design for perhaps a future character, like a tiefling/salamander npc for the next campaign perhaps 🤔

this one took a lot longer than usual due to trying to actually somewhat accurately capture an existing person's face, trying to put more effort into detailing the scales, and a style of hair I don't draw as often haha. wahoo @ being able to rather fittingly apply my monsterpeople habits to some fanart for once :)

I immediately threw together a playlist for them that I keep listening to on repeat and "til kingdom come" is the last song on there, which has been giving me blorbo heart hurty for over a decade now

genuinely felt a tangible kind of relief like 'ahhhh...' when I finished the lines cause this art was all-consuming til I let it out 8') I really really wanna keep drawing these two but feel like a week or two is all I can reasonably take away from commissions at the moment... but if I can power through another real quick maybe I'll allow myself some smorching doodles heehee

[skulkingfoxes]

hi, i bought your comic "twigs" and loved it, i was wondering if you had any willingness to share the process of making it?

im an artist whos trying to start doing comics but i find the idea of starting a larger scale comic (such as kingfisher) wildly intimidating in terms of art direction. im trying to start small, such as a 30 page comic (ive done 5-10 page comics before) but i still find the art direction so scary lol

(Oh god this sent is was much longer ago than I thought I'm so sorry I took so long)

First off, thank you so much! I'm glad you liked Twigs, it's a project that still holds special place in my heart.

Okay, SO- the Twigs you know today was made originally for Shortbox, a digital comic fair for debuting short comics.

The concept of what would become Twigs was one developing in my brain for a while. Or, rather, the concept of a changeling trying to figure out where they belong after the person they were meant to replace comes home. At that point though, the changeling was just a cute fairy boy, because who wouldn’t want that. It was playing with the idea of choosing your own family and where you belong. But it was only a vague half idea, I didn’t really have a good sense of how long it could be or even what the point was. I remember musing that it was a story that I would probably never make. These are the only sketches I made for it.

It wasn’t till I remembered another variant of the changeling, one where the creature was just an enchanted bale of hay or twigs and thrown into the fire once they’re discovered. I wondered what it was like to realize that you are in fact completely disposable, destined to fall apart and be forgotten. I thought this was far too depressing of a concept and that I would never use it.

If you’ve read the story, then you know that I changed my mind. The idea just stuck around in my brain too much, it gave such a bittersweetness to the story. It was then the story began to come together. I ended up writing the whole first draft of the outline in a phone-tapping frenzy at 1 am. It's almost stream of conscious prose, where I write out how I imagine the scene going. I'm a very visual thinker.

You mostly asked this in terms of how I figured things out visually. Something that helped me out when I first started was making a pinterest board. It was very useful to put together a visual library to help gestate my ideas and vision for the story.

The inspiration of the witch was the folk tale character Baba Yaga, so that was a starting place for her and, since her home is an extension of her, figuring out the cottage. Down to earth, practical, with an agelessness to them. The Witch doesn't share her home with others so everything in it is suited to her. But it's also warm and cozy, since the cottage serves as a safe space for the characters to talk and rest. Getting reference photos helped a lot in imagining the home and making it feel lived-in.

You can also see me finding a couple of photos that helped my picture the character Tristan and his big feather cloak and other illustrations/photos reflect the world I wanted to create. A dark ancient setting with strangeness and sense of whimsy. Like a sad fairytale.

Don't be afraid to look at movies, books, paintings, etc when finding visual inspiration! For another project, a colored comic based in the Salem Witch trials, I was taking screenshots from the movie VVitch to copy the palette lol. Be a scavenger! Do studies! Take pieces of everything around you to make something unique!

After that, I admit, a lot of it was a lot of sketching, Drawing out ideas, figuring out vibes, I took a pen to cheap sketchbook and just brainstormed. This is how I often bang out design- just keep drawing them until it feels right. It feels a bit like carving away at clay to find the statue underneath. I like designing with a pen because it keeps me from getting too precious with the drawings. These sketches are meant for exploring, not for drawing anything nice yet.

(I know there was a lot more than this but I can't find those files now rip)

I also say- you don't have to figure everything out before you start drawing. It's great to get used to drawing your characters and maybe a blue layout of certain rooms, but it's not 100% needed.

I've seen comic artists obsess over perfecting character sheets and concept art and never actually starting the comic. I've never made a character sheet unless a job demanded I did.

I'm sure there is some pithy quote here I could use, but I find so much of comics to be improv based on what a scene needs lol. If the characters go to the other side of a room that I didn't design, I will probably just find a decent reference (thank you pinterest) sketch it out, and use that.

This really is a great representation of my process 80% of the time.

Whew that ended up being long lol. Sorry about that. But I hope it was helpful at all!

[capybaraonabicycle]

Hiya! For the writers truth & dare ask game, I'd love to know about..

🕯️On a scale from 1 to 10, how much do you enjoy editing? Why is that?

🍄Share a headcanon for one of your favourite ships or pairings

❄️What's a dream theme/plot for a fic, and who would write it best? (also, which character would be involved)

🌿Give some advice on writer's block and low creativity (or energy⚡if you like)

🏜️What's your favourite type of comment to receive on your work?

🌸Do you have any pets? If you do, post some pictures of them

I'm btw planning on reading more Righting Reflex in the evening, I just really need to get at least one and a half more tasks done today for my portfolio. Sending you much love 💚🦎

Thank you, love!! This is way too long, so I will put it under a 'read more'

🕯️On a scale from 1 to 10, how much do you enjoy editing? Why is that?

Maybe a 3? Like, I don't hate it but I'm not too fond of it either. I enjoy reading what I have written more often than not and I like putting [GERMAN WORD] or [TBD - WRITE SMTH ABOUT XY] ever so often while writing, but I don't enjoy changing the story afterwards much. I rarely change big things, usually only a scene or two and a few expressions. That said, I have to read every scene like 15 times before posting to scour for errors - and I am certain I am missing so many anyway.

🍄Share a headcanon for one of your favourite ships or pairings

Okay, let's go with fugitive Doctor/River. (Did you expect this by any chance? ;) )

You know this bit:

source

[ID: two gifs from The Husbands of River Song of River saying "Do you know who you remind me of? My second wife!". end ID]

People have been speculating that she is talking about 13, which I get, definitely. But I want to argue that it is the superior interpretation that she would be talking about the fugitive Doctor (or another incarnation the Doctor has forgotten about but where would be the fun in that?). For the following reasons:

Vibes. This is the important point. River says 12 reminds her of the wife, so they have to be alike-ish. And I feel like 12 and the fugitive Doctor have a certain similarity in their demeanour. I think a big thing is how they hold themselves upright, actually, but also the whole Danny calling 12 an officer when the fugitive Doctor actually is one. Also the underlying kindness both of them possess and the end-life-crisis. They both lose all of their companions (Clara, Bill and Nardole vs Karvanista, Gat and Lee - one lives on but they can never see them again/forget about them, the other two die (or that's what they believe at least) and it is their fault) and I would argue they both are thinking about not regenerating this time. (I reckon the fugitive Doctor does not have a choice though.)

Loss. See the last point. The Doctor loses everything in fotj. Give her her wife, at least, please. Let River bring her some love and companionship <3 13 loses a lot as well but she's got Yaz. Which also leads us to:

Thasmin. Like, you know, if River had been tangibly in the 13th Doctor's life in any way, thasmin would have kissed. 100%. They didn't, so River didn't marry 13, simple as that.

Timelines. River does not know about more faces of the Doctor and well, 13 is older than 12. Of course, she could lie to her and yes, River gets married a little carelessly, so she might have married some John Smith!13. But if she met the fugitive Doctor - who seems very different from the timelord she knows and has no recollection of the Doctor's life, it would be easy for her to draw the conclusion that the Doctor is just some other person going by that name. And the fugitive Doctor would forget about her, of course. There's also a good possibility, River isn't actually married to the Doctor but to Ruth.

Time, Doctor's side. Honestly, 13 just doesn't have enough time to get married to River. Am I still hoping we will get those two on screen (or audio) together? Of course! But 13 is kinda busy, most of the time we either see her with the fam (who don't know River, see lotsd) or very occupied with stuff (like apocalypses or prison).

So, yeah, headcanon: The fugitive Doctor is River's second wife.

(The first is Cleopatra, right? Like Idk if there is canon confirmation but it feels true.)

❄️What's a dream theme/plot for a fic, and who would write it best? (also, which character would be involved)

Okay, when I read this question, I thought I wouldn't have any idea. But I have. Several. Lets start. Fics I would will into existence if I could:

Full-length Little VVomen.

I know we won't get the movie, but I'll gladly take it as a novel fic. Just for an explanation: Little VVomen is a parody trailer for a crossover of Louisa May Alcott's Little Women and the horror movie VVitch (I assume, I don't actually know VVitch). And it is glorious. Just -

- If it's about a girl, make sure she's married by the end. - Does it have to be to a man?

lives in my head rent free. I want a full story of Jo March saying gay rights, writing spells and sacrificing innocent men, pretty please <3 And I really, really want to know what's up with the Sean!devil.

This is the trailer btw:

Anyone write this please? (If I could choose, I'd ask Sean and Sinead who wrote the trailer, but I fear, I am already stretching the definition of fic here and using the authors of the og trailer probably defeats the purpose of this question.)

2. Strax fairytale!! written by you :)

Strax as a fairytale protagonist is SUCH an inspired idea and I am hoping very much that you will get round to it some day. But I can't really tell you anything about that that you don't know better yourself.

Or, maybe, I can: I have become kinda enarmoured with the 'Strax as the faithful Johannes' idea, I have always adored that tale, mainly for the tragedy and extremely strong friendship theme. Like, it is so clear that the king's most important relationship is his friendship to his servant. The princess is lovely but they barely know each other, yet. And I think there is SO much potential to improve the abduction scene and the ending. So, yeah, I have been turning that around in my head a bit.

But no matter which tale you will pick, if you ever write a fic for him, I am sure I will absolutely love it!

(also, like, I could mention any of the fairytale ideas you have told me about, here)

3. Heather is an integral part of s10 by @marvellouspinecone

You remember that genius powerpoint Pine made, I assume? Wouldn't it be spectacular if someone wrote that as a fic for me to read? I would choose Pine as the author because she understands the vision best, of course. But, like, I am so grateful already that the powerpoint exists for me to read and dream about :)

(Hi, Pine, not sure you want to read the whole post, but you might see the tag. This is not a request, please don't understand it as such, because that would be incredibly impudent on my part. This is just fancy ideas of mine and a praise to your vision <3)

4. Tenteen is played by Jo Martin by DiscipleOfBrad

So, I actually enjoyed the 60th anniversary (at least wild blue yonder, that much very much had a premise of my type of dw ep) but I still believe we could have done better than bringing back dt for the umpteenth time. (Listen, he is lovely, don't get me wrong, and I liked '14' too, but just - )

I have written a post about why I think making the fugitive Doctor's face return would have been a more interesting choice and I would still love to read it as a fic.

I don't really care whether it would be a simple retelling of the three eps with her instead of tenteen or a completely different tale. I WOULD like to see Donna though (because can you imagine?? Also that scene where Donna just acts like she knows the Doctor all of a sudden? When the Doctor doesn't even really know herself but feels like she should?) and if we could spring for some Karvanista on top, that'd be ace <3

I would give this one to DiscipleOfBrad because I trust them to write a convincing fugitive Doctor. I really enjoyed her in The Cul-de-Sac (which btw I can highly recommend if you'd like some soft thasmin and an intriguing premise. There is a heavy side of whouffaldi, though, I'm not sure whether that is your thing?).

🌿Give some advice on writer's block and low creativity (or energy⚡if you like)

I feel like it always helps me to get myself into a 'I can't do anything else now anyway' situation? That's why trainrides are so good for writing. I just need to be in a situation where I can't take care of more pressing matters, so it won't feel overwhelming if I don't take care of them?

Like, I will rather scroll tumblr than work on my thesis but I won't write. But if I am away from wifi, I might not be able to work on the thesis anyway, so I will easier find the peace of mind (and hence energy and creativity) to write?

Idk maybe that's just me. Maybe it's not working at all either. Honestly, I don't quite know where energy, creativity or motivation to write come from. They just knock and then they're there.

🏜️What's your favourite type of comment to receive on your work?

Well, obviously, I adore long comments, who doesn't? But just saying 'long' feels both greedy and like cheating, so let's talk content.

I think, what excites me most in a comment is when I can sense the enthousiasm? It doesn't necessarily have to be for the content of my fic, I had someone write 'YOU MADE A CROSSOVER FOR THESE TWO FANDOMS?? THEY'RE MY FAVOURITE!!" and it made me smile for a day. Just, I write those things because I love the characters and themes and if someone shows that they share this passion? That's community, that's what we're searching for, isn't it?

But also I got a comment today that was just a bunch of predictions about the next chapter of my current fic and that felt amazing! Generally, when people notice things or I feel they have been paying attention, that is SO GOOD. That's probably also why we love long comments. I mean, generally, every second you spend reading the comment is gold, so the longer the comment the more seconds there are, but also a long comment will usually go into detail. Make predictions. Notice things. Talk about how they perceive the characters and why something made sense/surprised them. Quote your fic back to you. And like, all of that is so much fun. It's like reading your story again, remembering why you wrote it. It's the best feeling in the world.

I very dearly love comments.

🌸Do you have any pets? If you do, post some pictures of them

I don't 😭 The place where I live doesn't allow pets and besides, I am away a lot and not planning on staying in this town much longer anyway. So, yeah, it'd be difficult to have a pet. I really, really want to though. Preferably a cat but I'd be so happy with a dog as well. Or a turtle? Or bunny? Or a lizard? I think you could make me happy with almost any mammal and many types of reptiles <3 (not much into insects or fish though. And I feel weird about birds in cages.)

[glimfag]

Hi I freaking loves your arts I'm trying to start drawing people that aren't just standing static but I have no clue where to find references may I please have some guidance? Also thank you and you are so slays sincerely 🌹

Hello and thank you 🌹! I'll preface this with the fact that I am by no means a professional or expert on the subject, but I can tell you some little tips that I find helpful (also - I really like giving critique! So, if you wanna get REAL personal advice, feel free to DM me your work and I can give you more specific pointers :3) I'll put this under a readmore bc I'm gonna include pics.

So! When I'm trying to break out of boring poses, there's a couple things I consider.

Character Personality factors a LOT into posing. When getting more stylized and cartoonier, you can REAAALLY push a character into being energetic or sad or what have you - but this totally applies to more realistically proportioned art as well. The amount of space a character takes up, how exaggerated their motions are, and their body language in general can all speak to their personality. I include these drawings because they're all basic character art - but the variations in posing differentiate them. I once read somewhere in some post about how characters hands should always both have a purpose and it still nags at the back of my mind while I draw even plain poses LOL

Give your character something to do. This also helps you break into larger-scale drawings. Drawing backgrounds, props, angles, all practices that will better your art immensely over time. Ofc, you don't have to do full-blown illustrations all the time if that's not what you want to do, but I'd highly recommend pushing your skills and learning new things. And this doesn't have to be an intense action scene, but just thinking about an environment/situation and how that would affect said character! This goes double for multi-character drawings; characters standing and smiling at eachother? Nice, but boring... Characters doing any activity together? Better! Here's some sketches that are still heavily character focused, but have just a bit of environment and implied story to them that make them more lively.

Now for references! There's hundreds of ways that you can find reference pictures for different scenarios, but often it can be discouraging to not be able to find one that fits your exact vision. I personally prefer just Google image searching whatever I need, but many people use pinterest as well. I also like using 3D model posers to get a more exact reference and understanding of how the body is positioned. My main tip would be that you do NOT have to follow a reference exactly. Feel free to edit a picture and rearrange a models body parts, to combine multiple pictures, to disregard half of the image, edit your sketch, make a new one on top, so on and so forth, THE POINT BEING: a reference picture is a tool, not a law. Don't feel restricted by it. Go nuts.

And as much as I hate to have to recommend it, do the boring practice stuff. Do traditional figure sketching (bonus points if it's timed!), learn about anatomy and line of action and gesture drawing. I unfortunately don't have any video recommendations on it, but I KNOW they're out there for free on YouTube so do some searching! If you wanna jump on in, try out Line Of Action and do some practices there (I HIGHLY recommend doing this on physical paper, not digitally, it just Works Better I swear), but if you've never done figure drawing before, you may need to read up on it. It's more technical and less fun than drawing furries and cartoon fanart, but it's useful and enjoyable in its own right!

I think that's all I've got for you... Hopefully my ramblings here are helpful! I've had about Half a semester of art school so really I'm still learning too LOL but this is the stuff that I found helpful as a beginner :) LMK if you have other questions at all!

[the-technorats]

"good grief, ferb, i know what we're gonna do today,"

or my thoughts on how phineas and ferb is a timely adaptation of peanuts, and what it means that snoopy is trending again

so i had this thought a while ago and never had the time to elaborate upon it in my head, but Phineas and Ferb is modern day/21st century Peanuts, not only in media and character archetype, but in theme and message.

as for visually/technically, both are obviously 2D illustrations with very brief, episodic stories that are usually stand-alone but occasionally follow a broader arc, which is ofc true of many/most comics/cartoons. they both have pretty stylized character designs and super strong shape language (though in peanuts, the shape language is for the characters overall, while in p&f, the shape language is for the individual characters). anyway these are not very specific to the integrity of the media themselves, just common similarities. onto the real meat and potatoes:

both are media made for younger audiences but still funny for older ones, featuring a gang of kids who get up to shenanigans and are rarely/never in school or subject to their parents' or teachers' wills. the characters mostly function as adults though they are depicted as children, which is extremely important to the content overall. both feature a seemingly average kid (charlie brown/phineas) and another kid with whom he has a fraternal relationship (linus/ferb); they face the world together while their aggressive, violent older sister (lucy/candace) antagonizes them. that sister (lucy/candace) has a crush on a blonde dude who doesn't really give much of a fuck (schroeder/jeremy), so she spends her time talking about personal issues with other people (the psychiatrist is IN/talking to stacy on the phone). they have a dopey-looking, unassuming pet whom they think does nothing but lie around and eat all day but who actually gets up to crime-fighting shenanigans in a world the rest of the characters don't know they're living in (fighting the red baron//o.w.c.a./the agency/"agent p.").

there are obviously some p big differences; p&f has an overarching villain and the stakes are much higher for the kids (getting caught by parents, the law, etc) which ofc stems from the fact that the kids are simply doing larger scale things than playing baseball and chatting existentialism on a brick wall, but that has much to do with the time period; charles schultz drawing peanuts in the 50s and onwards reflects the nihilism of the post-war era, and p&f reflects the y2k end-of-the-world-via-technology sentiment as well as the changes in domestic life/security post-9/11. however, i think the similarity lies in the way that the artists chose to react to the time period and its sociopolitics - with abstract/whimsical absurdist themes told through the lens of children who express their childhood and adulthood in different ways but make similar arguments.

there is also, beyond the characters and logistics, the sweet overarching theme of growing up; charlie brown and the gang are very much adult-minded children who think and say a lot and seldom act like children or experience childhood. rerun, linus and lucy van pelt's little brother who makes more of an appearance in the later Peanuts comics, (and putting aside that utterly devastating name - being a product of the silent generation is a cruel joke) spends most of his time on the back of his mom's bicycle contemplating his own existence. him and the the rest of the peanuts characters being children, however, allows them to largely exist outside of societal norms: lucy does not face the drawbacks of being a woman in the 1950's and instead is a little girl who expresses her feminine rage as a big sister who threatens her brother and his friends, and more often than not, follows through. wonderfully, it is possible for her to be feared by peers, funny to audiences, and respected by both, all while maintaining her femininity. (she is expressly not a tomboy and instead to be considered a lady, ever the contrast to peppermint patty, the obvious tomboy, who is depicted as funny and boyish as a girl without any sexism or toxic masculinity.) moreover, and to return to the general point, none of the children face responsibility - from their parents or from school; even the act of taking of care of a dog, which charlie brown does, is offset by snoopy's own clear independence and autonomy - he could ostensibly live on his own, but it is his choice, because of the companionship, because of home, to stay with charlie brown and the kids.

p&f, though similar in theme, has a much more slapstick approach where, though the kids are subject to their parents' generous, unaware limitations as well as city laws and ordinances, they truly exercise - and push - the extent of their free rein by inexplicably building anything as small as a goofy contraption to anything as large-scale as a roller coaster, all while evading candace's attempts to sabotage their fun by getting the parents involved. candace's continued failure proves the importance of the kids' freedom to the message of the show - while phineas and ferb may be 'getting away with it,' they are supposed to, you are supposed to want them to. just like in peanuts, at no point is one of the themes or morals to abide by rules or even to do the right thing - the apparent time they have to spend and how they choose to spend it is always the priority. lucy will never get in trouble for pulling away the football or decking her brother; phineas and ferb will not face actionable consequences from the city or their parents, especially not because of candace. candace, who, in fact, could be having much more valuable experiences with her friends or her crush were she not so hellbent on "busting" her brothers (and who, also, must be suffering big-time from being the tragic eldest daughter, but that's a different essay).

-

peanuts experiences time in something of a limbo. the children are clearly children, yet are ageless, though some are clearly younger than others. (their vocabularies are far too extensive for being as young as one might assume, and therefore indicate nothing.) school exists in certain strips, but not in others, and the changing of the seasons is apparent though this only serves to change the atmosphere of the kids' given activity and not to depict the passage of time in any meaningful way. time is endless. the characters are jaded, melancholy, existential adults in kid bodies representing the desire for self-awareness within the innocence and freedom of childhood. (and this might be a different essay, but vince guaraldi's jazz being the theme and score of the peanuts animation adaptations of the comics matches the dichotomy of the characters' youth and improvisation with the pensive sophistication of maturity.)

phineas and ferb experiences time in much the opposite manner - unlike the quiet peanuts panels of autumn leaves blowing by, or gracefully gliding over a frozen pond, p&f episodes fly by in a frenzy of creation and destruction - the ambition to do, see, and become everything running rampant over the course of a hundred and four days. however, phineas and ferb may be juxtaposed with charlie brown and linus as they do engage in the world around them; instead of escaping from a cruel world with wars and injustice to a smaller bubble where, with childhood, comes freedom and escape from the adult world, phineas and ferb want to escape the monotony of the smaller bubble where, with childhood, comes the confines of parents and rules and instead bring their childhood to the freedom and autonomy of being an adult.

so what's the point? i'm not exactly sure. (my major is lit analysis and not culture/media analysis, for reasons becoming increasingly unclear.) but with the resurgence of snoopy's popularity and what i think i personally have been witnessing of the youth's disillusionment with the world around them, perhaps the pensive melancholy of a generation being overexposed to death, genocide - violence overall - would be creeping back up over the ambitious enthusiasm and desire that preceded it, since that generation has witnessed and continues to witness the aftermath of an appetite for technology and progression left unchecked and used for personal gain. we've seen people try to phineas-and-ferb a better future, and we've seen that fail so utterly and catastrophically - and fail upward, nonetheless. it makes sense to need to resort back to reminding ourselves of the quiet intimacies. to reconnect with ourselves and think about what it really means to be here, existing, if everything real, in the world around us that we're intentionally shutting out, is miserable and corrupt and lost (and far too fucking expensive to live in).

phineas and ferb gives me hope, though. (one, that disney can write shows that are creative and funny with appropriate and positive messaging for children (and adults!) that actively discourage being a nark.) and for, more importantly, the kids watching, who will hopefully learn that their creative and passion-driven endeavors are important to the world that they are helping to shape, like it or not, and that the empathy and whimsy and desire for goodness (moral goodness, but also creating a quality of life that is good, where creation for the sake of the community is valued over creation for the sake of profit generation, (fucking obviously)) they possess as children need to be a part of their adulthood - and that maybe, the delineation between the two need not exist at all. maybe, that generations prior to ours created adult problems for their own children - that those children as a result did not get to experience their own childhoods, and that in trying to grow up too fast, they couldn't grow up at all - that there should be less of a distinction between childhood and adulthood now than ever before - that we lose the complete honesty and bald-headed truth of being a child when we think we are lost to adulthood - that we need joy and self-awareness and creativity and autonomy and community and best friends and security blankets - and that none of those are exclusive to childhood or adulthood - maybe that is the point.

[1ore]

Hey, sorry if this is a bit out of the blue, but can I ask what programs/brushes you use? I've been trying to learn how to paint digitally, but it often feels so sterile, and I really struggle with it. I envy how well you are able to achieve a traditional look with digital tools, and would love to learn your secret.

I'd love to see a tutorial/process video by you too honestly, but that's more just wishful thinking - I know you probably have a lot going on.

Cheers, either way! (And wish me luck)

oh my god. I went and did all that organizing and almost forgot to let you know! I put together a tag containing all of my resources/materials/art process stuff. It also has every timelapse video I've done. Each video has process rambling + lists of brushes / materials used in their YT descriptions.

I have a hard time talking about my process like I'm any kind of authority, but I tried to think about it a little and share whatever i've found helpful, answer questions I've been asked in the past or struggled with myself, etc.

Re: emulating traditional media specifically:

ok, first of all. Disclaimer: it's not all about the tools.

but if you're a hack like me it sure feels that way!!!!

When I moved from Photoshop to Clip Studio Paint, a big growing pain for me was finding real media tools that felt good to use. It's pretty obvious in the art I made during that time. Both the tools that ship with the program and the tools made by the community felt like they for completely different styles/workflows than mine. It was a struggle to adjust, and I'm still feeling it-- I don't feel like I have *my* sketch brush, or *my* workhorse painting brush. I miss my brick shithouse lineart every day ):

BUT. but. I've found some keepers along the way. Even the ones that aren't perfect analogs are still pretty great at what they're meant to do. If you're thinking about using Photoshop or Clip Studio Paint, then I can share those toolsets-- I list a few of them in my 'about', and I talk about them in more detail on those timelapse vids. I'm very picky about how my tools handle so they're probably not for everyone, but maybe you'll find something that makes digital art a little more bearable in there.

There's also a lot to be said for the little things, like slapping a paper texture on that bad boy and calling it a day. Even just applying textures to the canvas before you draw does a lot to make the drawing experience feel like it has... idk... warmth, dynamism. Tooth. It's cozier in there when I can see the paper. Admittedly it's been so long since I last looked at my sketchbook that the harsh fluorescent lights of the blank canvas no longer faze me, but it's still good for the eyes and the soul.

Other tools/programs:

Apart from the stuff I use(d) in my main workflow, I've also played with some other programs that are specifically geared towards emulating traditional media.

Realistic Paint Studio - Reasonably priced real media art program that has a decently beginner-friendly interface. This is probably the one program that came with brushes I genuinely liked, right out of the box. They feel good to use + the engine does a pretty nice job of emulating wet media in particular.

Some draws:

^^^ This was a style emulation of the wonderful Fiachmara's art, and also a gift to her, featuring her character Gealach. Didn't originally intend on sharing this publicly, but I think it illustrates this program's knack for inks.

It can also do most of the digital art cheats that I need to do in Clip-- it has analogs for the selection tool, layers, clipping masks, etc. It does not have a brush editor, so you need to be sure that you like the brushes it ships with. I also find that none of the brushes scale up large enough to accommodate absurdly large canvases (5000x5000px+ ) so you'll be stuck working at... well... normal canvas sizes. (Gealach above was about 2000 px wide before resizing-- pretty reasonable LOL)

My only real complaint is you can't export your art without the canvas texture applied to it. One time the textures bugged out on me, and I couldn't get them to fix themselves (you can see the carnage here, RIP.) I've been scared that it'll do that again to me someday, but it's been completely stable apart from this one random flub.

And hey, it's got an Actually Good Pencil Brush, so. There's that.

Rebelle 5 - hoo boy this is big $$$$$, but the brush engine in this one is just. bonkers yonkers cool for emulating real media, especially oil, acrylic, and watercolor. (I'm admittedly lukewarm on its charcoal and pencil brushes. You can create your own brushes, but there's not a huge community that's into making custom brushes yet.)

It's a mighty little art program as far as I can tell. Has most of the bells and whistles Clip does, which is a lot of things that programs like Realistic generally won't have, but are kinda necessary if you want to get into the weeds with like... Advanced Digital Art Skullduggery. (things like gradient maps and tools for ripping lineart from scanned drawings. I think that's honestly it, as far as things I do in clip that are clip-exclusive.)

Doodles:

Rebelle asks you to think like a traditional artist when you're using its tools, particularly its watercolors. Ironically, I Do Not Like This! I want to have my cake (real media tools) and eat it too (dont want to use my brain). But I think it might appeal to you for bringing some of the process into the digital space. If nothing else, it's novel to watch the paint dry.

(thats a real mechanic in rebelle)

((its fantastic, but I am allergic to it (see point one) (((dont want to use my brain ): )))))

if you play with the demo and find that it scratches that real media itch for you, might be worth reaching out for a student discount or something like that. They have educator licenses and student licenses and generally seem like a pretty accommodating lot.

Another disclaimer: these are just the tools that I've played with recently and have used enough times to talk about. There's lots of other stuff out there that I've tried but didn't like, and it could very well be that I didn't like them for the same reasons that you'll love them. There's a ton of really good free/open source programs in particular that I feel like I would be using if I didn't already have my workspace carved out. Krita and MyPaint stick out in my mind. (MyPaint was my main program for a Long time in highschool. come remember my baby art with me. )

ok its 3 am I need to close this out:

I'm tapping my other disclaimer again. Tools are not the end-all-be-all of making digital art that emulates traditional media. Pieces like No Dominion and this pic of Dia and co. required some actual neurons to fire when I was figuring out how to tackle them. But for me, finding the right tools and creating the right workspace for myself was a stupidly big part of getting comfortable with digital art. I have to take care of the little QOL things like that before I can even begin to worry about the big things OTL

[maxwell-grant]

So, you've stated that, contrary to popular opinion, you don't think Batman counts as a Pulp Hero. Which then begets the question, what superheroes DO you think count?

I don’t think “Batman is a pulp hero” is that much of a popular opinion, since the popular opinion regarding pulp heroes is largely that they are just the guys that came before Batman and after Sherlock, which is a very simple and not really inaccurate way of looking at it, even if that obviously leaves out a lot and isn’t how I or others use the term. Batman’s primarily a superhero, the 2nd biggest figurehead of the superhero as a concept, and DC’s even published at least two stories that exist largely to demonstrate that Batman isn’t one but is also totally better than all of them put together, which is part of why I get a little iffed when Batman’s called a pulp hero like he doesn’t have enough going on for him already.

I think Batman (and Superman), James Bond and Star Wars are three very clear examples of fiction that’s inspired by pulp, clearly exists in reference to it, but also clearly belongs to different forms of storytelling and have grown into separate cultural institutions. There’s a very clear point where Batman stopped being a Shadow knock-off and grew into his own character, like there’s a clear point where the pulp sci-fi influence on Star Wars ends, and the paperback heroes were part of what killed the pulps to begin with.

I’ve said before that there isn’t that much of a difference between a superhero and a pulp hero besides the medium they were made for and what the terms imply and the central conceits across the two, and part of that is because, while superhero is a vague term, it still operates by certain rules and definitions and molds, where as pulp hero, when you get down to it, is kinda of a non-sequitur term that only really exists to try and frame the characters of the pulps (from the 1900s to the 1950s) and the like into a similar frame as the superheroes, and that in itself doesn’t really hold up the more you start to pick at it (if we stuck to pulp magazines only, like we should in theory, Green Hornet, Rocketeer, The Spirit, The Phantom, Dick Tracy, Indiana Jones and countless others would not be pulp heroes, for starters, and yet clearly they are popularly considered such).

Still, we have to draw the line at some point, and Batman is one of those points where I think a line needs to be drawn. I don’t think pulp heroes and superheroes are mutually exclusive, but they are not the same thing, and I’d argue much of what truly defines pulp heroes is the ways in which they are not like superheroes, or the heroes that came before them. 

In that regard, the first character to really be both a pulp hero as well as a true superhero, is clearly The Phantom. 

The Phantom’s status is a complicated one, and the question of whether or not he is the first superhero probably deserves a separate post. The Phantom is essentially a combination of the archetypes embodied by The Shadow and Tarzan, who broke from tradition by wearing a colorful costume and by having adventures in comic strips instead of literature. There’s no standard that defines Batman as a superhero that The Phantom does not meet and then some, and if The Phantom had been created by DC Comics shortly after Superman, if he switched places historically with Batman, he'd be considered just as integral to the whole superhero concept as Batman is, and it probably wouldn't even be that different. Batman was just lucky he got to be there at Superman's side when the superhero was born (well, repackaged and given a fancy new name, mostly)

Sometimes a character’s status in history has less to do with how innovative or popular they were, and more with just being at the right/wrong place at the right/wrong time. Like Golden Bat, the forerunner of all sentai heroes. If he'd been created in America, and was as popular in it as he was in Japan, if he was as instrumental to spawning the existence of a superhero genre and superhero characters as Superman was, he would be pretty indisputably the first superhero. 

But putting that aside, The Phantom provides a very clean, very clear look at what it looks like when you combine pulp heroes and superheroes. He is a pulp hero at his core, but with unique traits that break from tradition and have become common place in superhero stories, who lives in comic strips that are closer to comic books than the pulps that inspired him. You can almost tell exactly where The Shadow and Tarzan end with him, and where Batman and Superman begin. He’s a pure transitional fossil, and that particular combination of Dark Avenger, Jungle Hero and Super Hero rolled into one wouldn’t be seen again until Black Panther.

There’s a lot of characters across the superhero landscape who tend to be much closer to the pulp heroes than their contemporary superheroes, usually because they are directly referencing the pulps or pulp-adjacent time periods, more often than not specifically because they are referencing The Shadow or Shadow-influenced characters. A lot of public domain superheroes tend to inhabit the same spaces as pulp heroes. There’s a weird line where these characters have so much in common with pulp heroes that they barely even resemble superheroes, but because they live in superhero universes, they cross those lines as well. The Question, for example, is an almost textbook pulp detective, with his mask and odd gadgetry not even being that much more super than something a character like Moon Man or Green Hornet would have, but The Question also sometimes hangs out with the Justice League and gets into multiverse shenanigans.

Marvel’s Night Raven is for all intents and purposes their take on The Shadow as an urban icon of grim justice, except he’s a Marvel character, so naturally he leans heavily on horror and people’s moral failings. And on that note, a lot of Alan Moore’s work on America’s Best Comics, like Tom Strong and Top 10, as well as some of his other projects like V For Vendetta (he named The Shadow as one of the major inspirations for the central character) and League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, also goes strongly into pulp material as well as his work on superheroes. DC’s Wild Dog was literally conceived by his creator as a modern Shadow, with the caveat, in his own words, being “today, if you want to strike fear into people's hearts, don't dress like the Shadow, dress like Jason!”. And Spider-Man Noir has gradually become Marvel’s most popular equivalent to a pulp hero, with Into The Spiderverse going fully into the idea by giving him a trenchcoat and fedora and over-the-top dark mannerisms and lines courtesy of Nick Cage. 

One character I think serves as one of the most prominent examples of a true combination between a pulp hero and a super hero is Moon Knight, a character that used to be derogatorily known as Marvel’s Batman but thankfully has been receiving greater appreciation recently, partially thanks to dedicated memes and a greater usage in comics. Doug Moench infused Moon Knight with a lot of similarities to The Shadow, as @orionstarb0y lists here, and one time he even tried out ripping one of The Shadow’s catchphrases 

Moon Knight is a character who has sort of straddled lines as the years went by, from his first appearence as an antagonist in Werewolf by Night, to solo outings trying to carve out a niche for himself, to brief and lame attempts to really make him Marvel’s Batman, to excellent runs that took the character down to the gritty bones of his archetype, and everything in between. Moon Knight’s superpower is that his brain is supernaturally batshit, and just how batshit and supernatural he is varies depending on the story. Sometimes he’s just a guy with too much money and training who has to contend with his own demons, and sometimes the moon god he serves gives him enough superpowers to fight an Avenger for a week. Sometimes he rips people’s nipples off, sometimes he practices poses in front of the mirror, and sometimes he goes fishing with his split personalities. It’s that kind of variety show weirdness that ultimately makes me consider Moon Knight a pulp hero-super hero hybrid, traits from both remixed together in a interesting, if inconsistent, new package. 

Superheroes have become such an omnipresent aspect of pop culture over the past decades that pretty much every modern character that could reasonably be considered a pulp hero also has aspects that cross over into superheroics, with the few examples that are more “true-to-text” consisting of smaller scale characters like Lavender Jack or Grendel. I’d argue it’s not so much the definitions themselves that matter, so much as whether interesting things are done when playing around with the archetypes. That’s ultimately what’s always going to be what makes or break a successful example of pulp hero or superhero, or everything in between. 

[daughterofzagreus]

The Astrological Signs of "Avatar: The Last Airbender" characters

Part 1 - Team Avatar

♎ Aang - Libra

Libra is an air sign and Aang is an airbender. More than that, though, Libra (represented by the scales) is the sign of harmony and balance. As the Avatar, restoring and maintaining balance is Aang's primary duty. Aside from all that symbolism though, Aang's personality is a lot like a Libra.

Libra is the opposite compliment to Aries, a war sign. Libra don't really like discord (at least, they don't like to be IN the discord and chaos). They're lovers, not fighters, so they tend to be peacekeepers. This is Aang to a T. Aang is not only one of the youngest characters in the show (and therefore, the most likely to be uncomfortable with violence), but he is also a monk, raised by other peaceful monks.

He values peace and all life. Even his fighting styles are evasive and are more about using an opponent's strength against them, rather than attacking. It's something that is brought up in the Book 2 episode "Bitter Work", when Aang has trouble learning earthbending from Toph. Libras (depending on the rest of their chart, of course) often tend to respond to conflict in a similar manner, by being avoidant.

You see the pacifist in Aang anytime he needs to mediate a conflict. Examples include "The Great Divide" in Book 1, where Aang has to mediate between the two tribes (as well as Sokka and Katara). He does so by telling them that "Harsh words won't solve anything. Action will". Of course, when that doesn't work, he just lies and makes up the alternative story of WeiJin and JinWei. I don't think Aang is a big fan of lies, but it was for the sake of peace, a means to an end. Very Libra.

Another thing that makes Aang a Libra is the fact that 1) Libra is ruled by Venus and 2) Libra rules the 7th house, which is essentially relationships. Aang's relationships (platonic and romantic) mean EVERYTHING to him, and there's a reason why putting one of his loved ones in danger is initially the only way to activate the Avatar state. He's a very friendly, charming and loving kid (like most Libras) and he's the first one from team Avatar who believes they can make it through the secret tunnel, because of how strongly he believes in his love for Katara. The final point is Aang's reluctance (or sometimes downright refusal) to cause harm to others unless absolutely necessary. While others use violence, Aang is more likely to want to befriend his enemies, and that's actually a good thing. It's Libra's superpower.

♋ Katara - Cancer

Cancer is a water sign that is ruled by the moon, and Katara is a (very powerful) waterbender who draws her powers from the moon. In astrology, water signs are known for being on the emotional side. And with Cancer's ruling planet being the moon (the planet of emotions and also the celestial body that pushes and pulls the tides), Cancers are known to be so emotional, that they're often just archetyped by it. Katara is similarly emotional (see the Book 3 episode "Ember Island Players"). However, Katara being so in touch with her emotions also makes her extremely emotionally intelligent. Like Cancers and most other water signs, her heightened sensitivity allows her to almost psychically sense how others are feeling, and to know how exactly to respond to and comfort them. There's a reason why Katara has such great chemistry (when it comes to her one-on-one conversations) with so many people (Aang, Haru, Jet, Zuko, Toph). Her emotional intelligence also makes her very mature for her age and allow her to see things clearer than others, or to foresee things that others don't.

Cancers are often either family oriented, or they love and value their home (this can either be their childhood home, current home, or the city, country or culture that they came from). This applies with Katara. As a waterbender, being from the water tribes is a big part of who she is, and she has a deep love for her culture. We see how being the only waterbender in the South Pole and having no one to show her the ways of waterbending saddens her, and how happy she is to hear that Hama is willing to teach her (the only other waterbender from the Southern water tribes that Katara has ever met).

With regards to Katara being mature for her age, she's also very motherly. The Book 3 episode "The Runaway" (as well as most of her interactions with Toph) demonstrates this. The moon (which rules Cancer) is The Mother in astrology, and so most Cancers have a significant relationship with motherhood. Katara was very close to her late mother and her death still affects her.

Following the death of her mother, Katara has basically had to become everyone else's mother and hold things together. You see this as well (in a more positive light) in the Book 2 episode "The Desert". In this episode, Appa is missing, Aang is too upset to think or act clearly, Toph can't see properly because of the sand and Sokka is high off cactus juice. Katara is the one that is keeping everything together in this episode.

On the downside, Katara's mothering can turn to nagging sometimes, but I don't blame her. She's a child that's had to grow up way too fast. She has a lot of pressure on her. With water, that pressure can build up, until it bursts like a dam wall (which it's likely to do). It's the combination of this, as well as Katara's strong and fearless sense of right and wrong that lead to those cataclysmic outbursts that both Katara and water signs are sometimes known for.

♋♐Sokka - Cancer sun, but with a lot of Sagittarius aspects in the birth chart

Okay, let's start with the Sagittarius side of things. There are a lot of elements of the Sag personality in Sokka. For one thing, luck. Not only does he manage to survive (and thrive) in the entire series WITHOUT any bending powers, but that boomerang ALWAYS comes back! That's some Jupiter-luck energy if I've ever seen it.

Sokka was originally going to be a more serious character, but the voice actor decided to improvise and add some of his own humor to the role, which created the Sokka that we know and love now. I mention this because the voice actor (Jack De Sena) is a Sagittarius. Sokka has the kind of personality that provides humor in difficult times and can lighten up the sometimes very heavy atmosphere in the group. He doesn't just make people laugh, he likes to laugh as well (at his own jokes and even at his enemy's jokes). In the book 3 episode "The Ember Island Players", heeven goes to the effort of getting Suki to sneak him backstage, so he could give the actor playing himself some tips and extra jokes (and low and behold, the crowd actually laughs at them). In his words, he's "just a guy who loves comedy". In fact, I think he's one of the only ones there who just decides to kick his feet up and enjoy the show (by basically turning the situation into a date night for him and Suki). Sagittarians love to laugh and make people laugh. They're optimists who like to have a good time, and are likely to be the make-lemonade-out-of-lemons type.

He's also one of the smartest and most competent characters on the show. He has excellent problem solving skills, and isn't afraid to look at things through a different angle and try new things to expand his worldview and knowledge. This is relevant, as Sag rules the 9th house which includes, amoung other things, higher learning, truth and knowledge. He can be a bit tactless and insensitive...a little slick at the mouth, but it's largely ignored by others, as he is likeable and funny enough for others to let it go. That's quite a Sag trait.

The Cancerian part of Sokka's personality is less pronounced, but it's there. He's VERY protective of his loved ones, even before the situation with Princess Yue. He is family oriented in that he admires his dad and the traditions and customs of the water tribes. He loves and is just as proud of his culture and home life as Katara is, but just in a different way. He also always looks out for the other members of team Avatar. He can tell when a member of the team needs support and immediately jumps to action (for example, the way he immediately grabs Toph's hand to guide her in "The Serpent's Pass", in "The Desert" and on the air ships during the final battle in the series finale). He's also very loving and protective of his sister, despite how often they fight. Also, quiet as it's kept, Cancers are one of the funniest signs in the zodiac.

♉♈Toph - Taurus sun, but with a lot of Aries aspects in the birth chart

Let's start with the Taurus aspects. Taurus is not just an earth sign, it's FIXED earth. It embodies the firm stance and hardheadness of not just Toph, but earthbenders in general. Tauruses are very stubborn and like to do things their own way at their own pace. Combine that with the independence and confrontational nature of an Aries, and you've got Toph.

Aries value their independence, sometimes to the point of being selfish, which is what we get with Toph in the Book 2 episode "The Chase". In this episode, it's Toph's first time riding with the group, but it's also her first taste of freedom. Like an Aries, she hates the idea of seeming weak or helpless, and has to learn that freedom doesn't mean that she has to do everything alone.

As Toph shows us, there is, however, power and strength in valuing independence, so long as you're not insecure about independence or projecting. Toph is a wealthy, sheltered child who is blind, which, in most cases, would make her vulnerable. But it's not the case. Toph ran away once before when she was little, and that's where she learned earthbending from the giant blind moles. She learned earthbending not just as a martial art, but as an extension of herself and her senses, and as a way to see. She would have never been able to master doing that (nor would shehave gone on to do even greater things like train the avatar and discover metal bending), if she didn't have the will, bravery and self assurance to run away in the first place. That little pilgrimage (her life changing adventure, if you will...but still not with Zuko, I'm afraid😔) showed the value of independence. Of going out on your own journey of self-discovery. Much like how Zuko needed to be be alone for a while during Book 2 for his own journey of self-discovery.

Oh, speaking of "Zuko Alone"...

♈Zuko - Aries

Zuko's arc in the show shows us the transition from a dark-sided, low vibrational Aries, to a high-vibrational Aries at it's best: passionate, brave, protective, strong, innovative, a good leader, driven, energetic and independent. Zuko embodies many Aries (and general fire sign) traits, both good and bad. He can be impulsive, and doesn't always think things all the way through. Aries is cardinal fire, so it's about getting up and going, just DOING something. Zuko is known for never giving up. These are things that that Iroh, Sokka and Ursa have mentioned. Zuko is an impatient person and is very fiery, hot headed and reactionary even for a firebender.

His reactionary nature makes him prone to a bit of melodrama (and I imagine that's why it's so fun for Azula or even Iroh to get a rise out of him). This is definitely the case with Aries. They're not the only sign with a temper, but they are the most likey to cause a scene and storm off in a huff about it. Or challenge you to a fight. Zuko can't refuse a fight for the life of him. At least not until he evolves and figures out his ✨true destiny✨.

One the other hand, he also keeps that same fiery energy when it comes to defending those who can't defend themselves and fighting for what he believes is right. In these cases, he refuses to back down. Even if his chances of winning are low, he'll still keep pushing forward. That's the will, energy and drive of cardinal fire. Zuko just needs to chanel all that power into something useful and constructive, like creating change for the greater good, and not distraction. Like with fire in general, Aries (and Zuko) is useful and powerful, but requires direction, guidance and purpose, so as to not risk letting the fire run wild to cause destruction and devastation.

[kaydeeartworks]

IFY Project 1 Week 3 - Drawing

Overview

This week was very vague but the main focus was to experiment and understand the importance drawing has in our roles. For me, this was a chance to try some different aesthetics and combinations in order to experiment.

I also wanted to do one more bit of collaborative work to ensure I was getting to work in groups and being able to co-operate on a piece together, so I worked with Mat Levent to make an animatic. I had started to fall sick at this point - something which came to a head during week 4 - so Mat was an absolute lifesaver in keeping everything together.

Inspiration Gathering

So we had both started out agreeing to do something we don't usually do, so character design was right out the window. We agreed on environmental, as we both don't tend to do that often. I'm usually looking to do character and conceptual and they prefer to do character animation, so it was new territory for all of us.

From top to bottom, left to right: SOUS LES 72 (2015, acrylic), Le Petit Palais (2014, acrylic), Trafalgar Celebration (2018, acrylic) by Didier Graffet

Mat, whilst we were talking about our plan to maybe do an animatic of someone passing through a steampunk town to view nature, came across the works of Didier Graffet, an acrylic artist who makes

A paper called "The Machine Anxieties of Steampunk: Contemporary Philosophy, Neo-Victorian Aesthetics, and Futurism" written by Kathe Hicks Albrecht, 2016.

They had also discovered a paper of academic research whilst we were talking too, which had mentioned of a lot of Victorian-era nostalgia. Page 12 hits upon a lot of important key aspects of the visuals of steampunk, "We will also consider steampunk as both an intellectual and visual rejection of Modernism, as an escape from that enterprise’s minimalism and self-absorbed isolationism." is a main excerpt I took note of as steampunk tends to be quite overabundant in intricate, grand designs that prefer to get even more complicated rather than sanding itself down.

Process & Creation

I had discussed with Mat about how we'd do this. They were interested in doing a rolling film feel about it whilst we were discussing who would take what workload. We discussed the layout of the path the woman would walk on and how it might interfere with the way the film rolls with some light sketching.

Some more sketches of me trying to figure out my half of the project. I also started to discuss the design of the character we'd have in our project, wanted to go with something simple. So we put her in a cloak and had a very regal dress, where I offered to add some layers to it to make it more visually interesting, whilst Mat said we should give her a sort of corset. I think it allows for a very strange but appealing look, harkening back to the frilly dresses of the Victorian era.

Our finished product had pulled upon Graffet's works in trying to involve airships as well as a lot of grandiose buildings in scale, with some gears used as motifs for circles for a more cutesy aesthetic. I tried to mess around with the idea of shifting around pane patterns on windows to show a bit more of an advanced society who're a bit more vanity-focused considering the clock-focused aesthetics of Mat's set pieces.

I then took over to attempt to animate it, starting with stitching them fully together. My lines were a lot thinner and lighter but I feel we had a cohesive product. However, I was out of my skill range to attempt the film reel scroll in Premiere whilst moving our character cut-outs along the view. This was the effect I had made, a slow, natural scroll.

Mat had managed to achieve it in Procreate, for the intended effect.

Final Thoughts

It was really rough, to be honest, but we managed to figure out what we were doing at the end - which was a nice change of pace to have done an animatic with someone to full completion compared to having to scrap it, like the one I had to ditch within the Eden week.

I really like the aesthetic we went for. I've never really touched steampunk nor really focused in on environments so while it felt a bit rough to make overall, I'm still glad the attempt turned out as well as it did.

[single-malt-scotch]

hrmmm hrmm thinking about minecraft and roleplaying and d&d.

i mentioned it before i think in a post but i DO love roleplay actually, i love roleplaying overall- my lack of appeal w recent rp in things like hermitcraft more so comes from the fact theyre aimed at being family friendly/for kids (and that they dont really make "characters" to separate from themselves) buut also i kinda wonder how much any folk doing this stuff thinks of their role as a 'dm' of sorts. this isnt to say everyone needs to take such a organized role, but as the interest in minecraft SMP storytelling increases, i do wonder more if anyone would tackle this with more organization, bc I often feel like it lacks that and it's why I don't hold interest in it.

honestly i cannot deny that i would looove to be in charge of story telling in a setting like a minecraft server. if i had people to play with id get so into the idea of directing a general story. but thats the one thing i realize- many SMPs that i see that are popular dont have much direction in this regard, and theres many times where story pops up and fizzles out with no ending because... there was no goal in mind.

RPing is complicated while it is improv, in setting like D&D and other group settings, its likely someone is in charge of the overall direction. or its what would be recommended, because without proper planning for the long term, you lose the plot unless everyone involved is capable of winging it very very well.

personally id love to see someone tackle an SMP with the same intention as tackling a normal D&D campaign... not to say they need dice roles or NPCs planned out but, i think theres a big lack of management in some SMPs that reach for very ambitious ideas and that can often be their downfall/what causes stories to stay unfinished or forgotten.

not everyone needs to make an SMP like that, im just saying id enjoy seeing someone use minecraft as a D&D sandbox tbh. and i think of LOM because i think thats what Rob kinda went for before deciding minecraft wasnt the platform he wanted. he went on to DM multiple campaigns of D&D with his friends and they were all very well done-- if hed done it in minecraft too i wouldnt been all over it still! funny enough the only other thing that came to mind while writing this was Shadow of Israphel which felt very D&D-ish with the fact there were NPCs, but it was also heavily scripted- still, it hits a lot of the marks when it comes to storytelling in minecraft.

its hard to draw the line though, since RPing can get quite intense on a certain scale. i wouldnt want to see heavily scripted super serious plot all the time. but i do feel like one issue i have had is seeing improv RP from random players can really deviate the tone across the server and videos. Like, to see some people engaging in the Hermitcraft s8 plot while some are just... not at all? kinda awkward. it feels like im watching someone put on a crazy LARP constume while other people are just sitting in casual wear minding their own business. and i have to decide one of those doesnt exist - and i feel like the same is kinda happening with hermitcraft s9 too now with ren being king and all. its also why i completely ignore some players on the Life series bc i was immediately slapped with them putting on a roleplay-ish persona that just did not feel along side the people i watched. even some bits in the middle of videos i skipped past just to not see it lol.

so yeah idk what im saying here other than.... RP is cool, love it! would love to see more RP focused SMP where perhaps... 1) everyone was actually into it so it didnt feel awkward between different tones of playing 2) there was more organization, perhaps treated more like D&D dming, in order to not lose plot lines when they do happen. it would be great too, as it would help keep everyone tied together, having a proper dm figure would help so no one gets left out tbh. 3) i also just hate the family friendly vibes sorry thats what im missing most.

and admittedly i loved dming a 20-30 member RP when i did it on discord. kinda wanna run a rp focused smp now, whoops

[saintgale]

Hey, if you don't mind me asking, what materials did you use to make your Starscream cosplay? My friend and I want to do a transformers cosplay and it'll be my first time working on armor-like pieces.

Hi there! :D I don’t mind at all, thank you for asking and for your interest in the costume! He’s mostly made out of craft foam (sheets of various thicknesses depending on the part of the armor–also sometimes several pieces layered on top of each other for really thick parts or to help shape things), foam board (wings), canvas, and paper (that has been layered together and sealed). The colors are done with mostly spray paint, and the detailing/wear done with silver sharpie markers.

I wish you and your friend good luck with your Transformers costumes, I’ll also include here some tips for TF cosplay in general or things throughout the process that I learned that I think might be useful? They may or may not be relevant to your interests, but just in case! ♥I hope you both have fun! And if you have any questions about anything else or need clarification on something, please feel free to ask!

(Disclaimer: I don’t claim to be an expert on this, and this certainly isn’t an end-all-be-all guide or anything like that! These are just some things I had to think about in the making and wearing phases and thought would be worth sharing! They are in no particular order, under the cut~)

1) Plan in advance–this goes from everything big and small!

For example, if you want some particular part to move/be able to move with you as you walk around, you need to draft this from the beginning. If you want a particular part to be very solid and/or used as a place to anchor stuff or as a base, same thing. You’ll want to think about each part of your costume in the long run: for example: can I go up and down stairs, or will I need to use an escalator/elevator? Will I be able to see? Will I be able to sit down? How many pieces am I able to take on/off myself, or will I need assistance getting in and out of my costume? (Think: restroom breaks, eating food, drinking water, etc.) Something you really want to consider is how heavy the entire thing is going to be, and how you are going to transport it/how the pieces can be taken apart and put back together again. To carry mine, it took two large laundry bags for all the armor pieces, a grocery-kind of plastic bag for the shoes and mask (and the wings wouldn’t fit in anything and had to be carried on their own).

I spent a lot of time trying to re-proportion the character to fit my body–I would highly recommend doing this before you start working on any physical pieces, just so that you can try to match things the way you want to fit yourself! Transformers in general have humanoid body shapes, but definitely not exactly human in their proportions–ex: really small heads, exaggerated limbs and features. Some things are going to require extra work to try to scale to something that is wearable; for example, I’m 5′4″ and weigh around 104 lbs, something that presented a bigger problem was the shoulders, since they had to be built up a lot on either side to be more accurate. Starscream’s also very thin and has a much longer torso, so trying to fit the chest plate and all the pieces between there and his waist into a human shape was also a challenge.

To try to re-scale things to fit my body, I just took some pictures of myself in a mirror (front-facing, profile view, from the back), and then washed out the image a lot (you can do this by just loading the pictures into Microsoft Word or a similar software and just upping the brightness a lot and playing with the contrast, or using a photo editing software like Photoshop), printing out pictures (or using a tablet to draw directly ontop of them is fine too), and then drawing over top of them with pencil. I also made color-coded reference sheets on Photoshop for all of the armor pieces (views from each angle, etc.) as a jumping-off point, to give a starting place and rough idea.

Give yourself plenty of time to do this if you can! From start to finish, Starscream took about 6 months, all the way from the drafting stages to the finished product. It not might take you as long (I’d never done something like this before and had generally no idea how to go about it), but I wouldn’t suggest leaving anything until the last moment! (This becomes particularly important if you want to have time to try things on/get a feel for your costume.)

I would definitely recommend that if you are going to make a mask/helmet, that you make it easy to take on and off by yourself. They can get hot/stuffy really quickly, and you want to be able to breathe and to be able to get a sense of your surroundings/check up on what’s around you! Just a quick flip up of the mask or taking it partially off and having a look around can help a ton with your spacial awareness, and also if you need to take a break to catch some fresh air.

And of course, be safe and take the necessary precautions when making your costume, including but not limited to: cutting away from yourself if you’re using something like a knife to slice up materials, not breathing in fumes from paint and glue, etc. (Speaking of glue, my costume has a variety of glues depending on what was being glued together and how: hot glue gun, rubber cement, wood glue, gorilla glue were all in there somewhere. The hot glue gun was the hero of the costume hands-down–it’s strong, it has good mass and hold all on it’s own, and it dries really quickly and sets in place so you can continue working, rather than having to wait long periods of time for the glue to dry.)

2) Create a mock-up if you can.

I’d suggest this just to get an idea for how many pieces you’ll have/how it’s all going to fit together. You can just cardboard boxes and cartons and things that were going to be recycled/thrown away, even like milk/juice boxes and stuff like that (if you can find cheap rolls of parchment paper or that throw-away stuff for spreading over tables, that can work too, and is especially helpful for bendy bits/pieces that have to curve–my costume ended up using this stuff in the final version too) and made a rough draft of the armor. You don’t need to do all the details at this point, it’s just to see what goes where and how it fits and if it works or not. Some pieces may take more work or trial-and-error than others (for Starscream, the shoulder pads were really hard to try to figure out how to balance with the rest of the costume).

The sky is the limit when picking your materials! Stuff like warbla was far too expensive for me, so again my costume is mostly made up of craft foam (lots of the armor) and foam board (wings), canvas, and that throw-away paper stuff. I again recommend a mock-up before hand so that you don’t end up wasting or messing up the actual materials you’re going to be working with, especially if you have the time and resources (stuff you’re going to throw away anyway is a really good bet, it helps keep the costs down and is easy to dispose of/recycle afterwards).

3) Practice your poses.

In the long-run, you aren’t going to be able to control what angles people take your picture from and that’s fine, but it’s nice to have a few poses in mind and an idea of how to position yourself initially regardless. You’ll want to know your costume, what angles look good, what angles don’t look so good, and how to really showcase the detail and different parts. Also it’ll help you get a sense of how mobile you are, how far you can raise your arms, if you can cross them, how much you can bend your knee, if you can bend over, etc.

This is not only useful for really bringing out your character in pictures, but knowing how much room you need for photos. You don’t want to accidentally bump into someone or create a safety hazard for the people around you.

I had one primary pose that I used when stopped for pictures, and several other poses I’d practiced for my character as go-tos, including if I had to change poses or if people wanted multiple poses. Holding one pose, especially for a long period of time or over and over again, is not such a good idea (especially in heavy armor, even moreso for this one because I was also in heels)–my knee actually nearly gave out on me the first day because of the weight and strain I was putting on it. Changing up poses every so often or cycling through might be a good idea to try to avoid over-stressing certain parts of your body.

I wasn’t able to practice my poses in full costume because of spacial restraints (even having the shoulders on made my maneuvering room very tight in front of the mirror), but was still able to get a good idea of how to pose. Even if you can practice with some key pieces of your costume, it can be very beneficial for photoshoots or for that extra wow factor when posing!

4) Get a feel for your costume before-hand.

I really can’t stress this enough, especially for safety reasons! These things can be big and bulky, and it’s hard to get a grasp for your surroundings, especially if you are wearing a mask or have lots of bits and pieces sticking out from your costume or blocking your periphery vision. Know where your blind spots are, know your general range of motion for your head, your arms, legs, etc., and how much room your costume takes up. (For example, I know I am not able to see that well to either side of myself because of the mask and the shoulder pads, and cannot see about ¼ to 1/3 of the area below me, including from my chest down to my feet, when my head is held straight in my Starscream costume. If I want to look down, I have to bend over and turn my head sideways–doing this requires pitching forward, so I have to recognize that the wing tips are going to move down and forward, and that the pointy bits in the back/my elbows could very well change position when I do this. One of the reasons knowing this is really important is because sometimes, little kids would want a photo with me, and oftentimes they would stand next to me in one of, or be walking through, my blind spots, and I didn’t want to accidentally bump into them. Also if I was using an escalator or going up and down stairs!)

Try not to make any sudden movements–this is for your safety, and for the safety of those around you. Motions which would generally be okay out of costume can cover a much larger space and swing bits of the costume that other people aren’t necessarily looking out for/going to consider/might be hard to see and avoid (ex: wings, claws, doors, horns, etc.).

Blunt the edges of any of these pointy things. Even then, you still might want to cover them or make sure extra precautions are in place. For example, I put rubber caps on the ends of the elbows of my costume even after they were blunted (there are long, slender, pointy bits that stick far out from Starscream’s elbows that kind of resemble pile-bunkers). You can use the rubber ends of coat hangars, putty, hot glue, etc. to make edges and points softer. You might be able to take stuff like this (ex: rubber caps) off for photoshoots but I really value safety over any kind of aesthetic appearance, so I left them on the whole time. Check behind/around you (slowly) when you stop and start walking, are asked for pictures, and before you pose. A lot of conventions have rules about props/costumes too that involve sharp edges or anything that could potentially cut/poke someone, so if you are planning on wearing your cosplays to events like this, check the rules and guidelines so you know how to incorporate that into making things like armor.

Re: you want to know how heavy it is–if at all possible you want to spend at least a consecutive hour in your costume before the convention/wearing it for a long period of time, walk around, try to do some basic tasks, etc. I did a “trial” like this for three consecutive days before Otakon itself, wearing the costume for about an hour each time, and walking around outside in the summer. Having on something heavy/restricting your movement or ability to walk, see, etc., may be fine for a little while, but you will want to know how it affects you and what it feels like for a long period of time. Other things to consider–are you going to be in stilts, heels, or any other sort of non-typical footwear? (I already have experience being in heels all day, am comfortable walking/standing in them, etc., but if there is any aspect of your costume similar to this, you are going to want to practice.) Are you wearing gloves/finger extensions? (Can you pick things up and hold them such as a convention badge, can you write with a pen or pencil, can you pull/push open or hold open doors? Remember to be aware of these extensions especially when pointing, waving, etc., you don’t want to poke someone in the face by accident!)

5) If possible, travel with a handler.

This person can not only help you in and out of costume, but will be invaluable for helping you get around! Your handler can guide you from place to place and give you a heads-up if you are about to collide with an obstacle or person! Even if you have practiced walking around in your costume and have a good sense of spacial awareness, you can’t control what other people around you are going to do. I had several cases where someone would try to short-cut behind me or dash really quickly by, probably way too close for comfort (conventions can be packed spaces!). Sometimes, I caught them out of the corner of my eye and could freeze/move out of their way, but sometimes I couldn’t see them coming at all, and my handler could tell me to move, and where to move to.

For this reason, among others, I recommend having callouts (or signals) with your handler. Things like “clear,” and “freeze” are quick and easy to say/hear, or if you need to, you can coordinate hand signals or something of the like for the both of you. (Just be careful if you have your own signals that you aren’t going to accidentally stab/run into someone).

Again, you want to be wary of your surroundings and the people around you. If you have large pieces sticking up on your back, out the side, etc, or any sharp/pointy bits, you need to be careful about where you are, and who and what is around you. Move slowly, give yourself space away from objects and people when at all possible, and if someone stops you for a photo at a convention or something, move out of the way of traffic/getting in the way of others. You may want to practice or have a brief discussion with your handler about how to approach situations like this, and how you are going to get around.

Be honest with yourself and with your handler about how you are feeling! If you need to take a break, if you need water or a few minutes to cool down, if you need to remove part of the costume, etc. Walking around when your skin isn’t able to breathe and your body is under stress is not a good idea.

6) Keep yourself hydrated, cool, and safe!

I also really want to stress this one for safety reasons. I got pretty hot in mine pretty fast, and the time frame shortens if walking around and the temperature/humidity is high. To prevent yourself from overheating, take breaks and allow your body to rest and cool down. There’s no shame in taking off a mask (especially if you have trouble breathing) or parts of the costume (even the whole thing, if you need to–I had to do this at various stages throughout the convention).

I would highly recommend bringing one of those portable battery-powered fans (with the soft, non-hazardous blades–you can get them for pretty cheap), especially if you are wearing a mask/helmet/something that’s covering your head. I’ve upgraded my mask so that there is a small cooling fan on the inside (I did not have this initially), which will help with keeping my face/head comfortable and with fogging up of the mask/stop it from getting too sweaty and gross.

A very nice individual I met at the convention suggested to me that investing in a zentai suit to wear underneath your costume rather than regular clothing (I was wearing leggings and a long-sleeve shirt) can help tremendously with the overheating problem, and that the suits help to pull the sweat off your body. I haven’t tried this myself yet but I feel it’s an important piece of advice to include!