#this is definitely just based on miyazaki's childhood isn't it

[rosorbus]

my thoughts on boy and the heron [no spoilers]

i enjoyed it overall, pacing was a little meh and the plot was a bit confusing to my stupid ass but they got their point across

animation was amazing (always is for ghibli movies but this one especially impressed me), they used 3D environments sparingly but i think it was done well

i ended up seeing the dub because i heard that karen fukahara was in it, needed kipo voice for my childish, cartoon-loving side

robert pattinson robert pattinson robert pattinson

miyazaki has created yet another army of little guys with a silly little name that i can't stop saying

warawarawarawarawarawarawarawara

[ag-silver]

Character Creation Tag!

@ragethewriter tagged me in a little game thing and I wanted to do it to one of my main characters Yvette!

Here she is here!: (the last one is actually by @ragethegemini who actually tagged me in this)

1. What was the first element of your OC that you remember considering (name, appearance, backstory, etc)?

Appearance was the first. The first thing I wanted was that I wanted her to be big and to be a honey golden colour. I had a general idea of what I wanted design wise and then next was her personality. Name was definitely last, it took me about 2 months to decide that I wanted to call her Yvette and I kept switching between last names.

2. Did you create them with any other characters/OCs from their universe in mind?

Mmmm nah not really. Yvette is just a gorgeous alien tailored to my specific taste in women, so I guess I had Ameliya in mind 😂

3. How did you choose their name?

Hooo boy. Yvette's name sounds very elegant and almost alien enough it's believable, although I know it is a French name. Her last name, Ahmadezia (ah-mad-eh-zai-yah) actually comes from a webcomic that I once read long ago and I can't remember the name of. I distinctly remember the character had a last name that I kept mispronouncing and so it became Yvette's last name. My friend pointed out to me that ‘Yvette Ahmadezia’ sounds like “Yvette is my desire” which was unintentional but very accurate. Ladrazian's with long last names are generally upper class.

4. In developing their backstory, what elements of their world they live in played the most influential parts?

Classism and poverty and what it can drive someone to do definitely played a huge part in Yvette's childhood and who she is today as a person as well as the issue of emotional abuse and corporal punishment which were prevalent throughout wartimes as the whole point of the war was to force the Ladrazian monarchy to fix these problems.

5. Is there any significance behind their hair colour?

Kiiinda. Yvette's design is very warm and soft looking, she looks approachable (but also gorgeous). The only significance that I say with no shred of shame is that she is my type of woman. Literally.

6. Is there any significance behind their eye colour?

Again her eyes are this gorgeous warm honey colour, like liquid gold and they're meant to make her look approachable and kind.

7. Is there any significance behind their height?

Shes 10 feet tall, she's so massive omg. However, in her society she is 2 feet below the average height of 12 feet tall! Meaning she’s actually quite small and nimble for someone of her species.

8. What, if anything, do you relate to within their character/story?

I relate mostly to that feeling of being trapped and having no where to go. That feeling of you've tried everything to escape a horrible situation and now everything is crumbling. That feeling of sheer panic and brutal dread that comes with thinking that you'd have to go back to an awful place you escaped from and Yvette's determination to be happy and to just… Make things work. Ameliya is similar to this but she's far more likely to give up and is someone who is extremely dependent on the kindness of others whereas Yvette is that kindness, or is trying to be. Yvette is a nice person who wants to help other people but fails a lot of the time because she has neglected to help herself.

9. Are they based off of you, in some way?

Kinda, really just what I explained above with her being in a shitty situation and all. Mainly Yvette is someone who I wish I had in my life which is one of the reasons why I wrote her in the first place.

10. Did you know what the OC’s sexuality would be at the time of their creation?

Oh yeah. 100%. She's a gay, and she likes humans.

11. What have you found to be most difficult about creating art for your OC (any form of art, writing, drawing, edits, etc)?

Her mother fucking antlers and the size difference between her and her tiny wife. Yvette is 10ft 4” and Ameliya is 4ft 9”, the size difference between them is just staggering and is extremely difficult to get just right.

12. How far past the canon events that take place in their world have you extended their story, if at all?

Her entire story of her life, even when she was born. She is a main character after all!

13. If you had to narrow it down to 2 things that you MUST keep in mind while working with your OC, what would those things be?

Yvette is a generous and empathetic person who really loves cuddles and hates overbearing authority.

Yvette is an impulsive idiot who sometimes needs a good ol’ slap.

14. What is something about your OC that can make you laugh?

Yvette is a romantic, daydreaming idiot who made secret plans to whisk Ameliya away on a romantic trip to the seaside town in Kiki’s Delivery Service until Ameliya had to tell her that Miyazaki movies weren't based on real life. Of course Yvette had never seen a movie before then, let alone an animated one.

15. What is something about your OC that can make you cry?

Yvette was whipped as a five year old because she couldn't balance em pointé properly with her tail and her ‘teacher’ had to ‘re-educate’ her. Yvette then comes face to face with this again accept in the future she has to heal Ameliya's torn up back and all of the memories of her big sister putting damp towels on her burning back come back to her and she has a breakdown in her hotel room while cuddling a very frightening and confused human. The sound of her sobs is something I can actively imagine and I know that at one point everyone has cried like her before.

16. Is there some element you regret adding to your OC or their story?

Mmm although its very necessary to the plot probably Yvette's sudden vast amount of wealth in book 2. It makes her seem just idk disconnected from who she is supposed to be and puts a lot of responsibility on her that I'd rather she just didn't have. She found a niche and got lucky but Yvette's dream was actually to become a starship captain and explore uncharted worlds (like a pirate) and to become an author and publish an autobiography. She never wanted to be involved with politics or business and she honestly hates it, Ameliya is her only reason for doing so because she feels as if she is obligated to change how humans are treated by her species, even though it isn't her responsibility and wasn't her fault, she still feels guilt by association and so abstains from chasing her dream even though no matter how much she fights it's not going to change anything.

17. What is the most recent thing you’ve discovered about your OC?

Probably why Yvette wanted to leave her homeworld so badly and her relationship with a particular character.

18. What is your favourite fact about your OC?

Yvette is a huge fucking dork who sees something interesting in everything and always wants to have fun and I love it! Although she's supposed to fit a particular role she strays away from it anyways for just the sake of having fun! Its a sort of metaphor(?) for how adults cant watch cartoons or collect figures or plush toys or hell play or do anything fun lest they be called ‘childish’ and ‘lazy’. The simple act of relaxing and enjoying a day as an adult is seen in modern society of something that is wrong and Yvette embodies my own desire to never end up like that as I go into adulthood.

I don't really know of anyone who I could tag but this was still fun ^^