bought at gumroad.

com/mitchleeuwe
ebook packed with
How
How to
to create
create aa tips and tricks to create

portfolio
your own character
portfolio

by mitch leeuwe
bought at gumroad.com/mitchleeuwe
Copyright © 2021 by Mitch Leeuwe
how to create a
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof
may not be reselled, reproduced or used in any manner
whatsoever without the express written permission of
portfolio
the publisher. For personal use only

mitchleeuwe.nl
by mitch leeuwe
Printed in the Netherlands
First Printing, 2021

Graphic design: Harmke Leeuwe

harmke.com

2 3
 Hi there!
Let me introduce myself. I’m Mitch Leeuwe and am an illustrator from the Netherlands. I always drew a lot as a kid. I
even had the childhood dream to become an animator at Disney. During my teenage years, I lost that dream. Luckily, I
slowly started drawing more and more. When I was 19, I began to do some freelance work as a graphic designer, which
made me consider picking up drawing again. I attended several drawing programs at schools but I learned most from
online resources. Now, I’m a freelance artist working on visual development. This means I design characters, props
and backgrounds for games, animation and toys. However, you probably know me from my Instagram where I release
tutorials and more. My goal is to create a place where people can learn the things I wanted to learn when I started out.

4 5
about this ebook
As an artist, your portfolio tells more than a thousand I started drawing a lot, but when I had to choose my What you see on online platforms is just the tip of the makes the difference is: development of talent, also
words. It shows your art style and skills. It reflects who career path, I decided to study Graphic Design instead of iceberg. Every artist started somewhere and has been known as ‘hard work’. You can be born with a certain
you are as an artist. Because it’s so personal, there Illustration or Animation. I simply found it hard to believe insecure (or still is) if they could make it. Behind the art gut feeling for aesthetics, but if you never develop this
is no step-by-step guide for this, nor is this ebook. In that I would ever work in the animation industry. As a you see are many hours of dedication to master the further, you are behind on someone who does. Never
this ebook, I’ll share everything I know about building a graphic designer, I created my first portfolio, and I shared skills they have nowadays and will achieve in the future. stop learning.
portfolio, tell you about all the lessons I’ve learned over my work online to receive feedback to develop my skills. Don’t let this stop you from sharing your work because
the years, and give you tips on starting your career. I got my first job at an advertisement agency by showing putting yourself out there will let you grow as an artist. I hope you will enjoy this ebook and that it helps you
my work and putting myself out there, even when I wasn’t create a portfolio that reflects who you are as an artist.
When I saw The Lion King as a kid, I started to dream sure I would meet the required skill level. My online Another misconception about artists is that you need
about working at Disney. At the time, I didn’t know what appearance showed others my skills, that I was eager to to be talented. In my opinion, talent is an abstract term
that meant and what I needed to do to get there, but it got learn and that I was open for feedback. This is what got and unmeasurable; The opinion about how talented
me inspired! me the job, not only my skills. you are can depend on who you talk to. For me, what

6 7
 practical tips

8 9
 Get yourself some awesome
business cards and make
bonus tip! sure you have them with you

how to network wherever you go!

You can have a fantastic portfolio(website), but it I met more people in this industry by working at Netherlands, it's only possible to get an internship
how to network

doesn't matter how good it is when nobody sees this agency. They even recommended me for when you're in school, but that could differ for
it, right? The people who matter for getting a job freelance projects later. Meeting people, being your country. On an internship, there is a big
need to see and know your work. This is where a friendly colleague, putting myself (and art) chance you have to do something to assist the
networking comes in. out there, and working on my skills, created a artists working there. My first internship was first
foundation for my personal art network. to organize all the files. But by being an assistant,
Back in 2008, I frequently posted personal artwork people get to know you. So even when your task
on a Dutch forum. By receiving feedback on my Another place to network is (art) school. I didn't is just to get coffee for the art director, you can
artwork and replying to others' artwork, people go to an art school, but there were many graphic learn and watch from seeing what the art director
started to know me and notice my work. I even designers, video editors, game designers, and does day by day and get to know people in the
became digital friends with some of them. One other creative people at my university. Keep in industry.
of the guys I often talked with worked at an mind that all these fellow students will work at
advertisement agency. He told me they needed an some agency or studio someday and possibly I also reached out to some companies to show
animator who was also able to illustrate. He asked recommend you for a project or job. them my portfolio and ask if they'd like to drink a
me if I was interested in this job. I was over the cup of coffee together to get to know each other.
moon! He recommended me and long story short: Internships are maybe one of the best ways to Because The Netherlands is a tiny but crowded
I got the job. network when you're starting out. Here in the country, the companies are pretty accessible, and

10 11
 some were open for this. This could be different for recruiter again, she recognized me, and we had a
your country, but you could give it a shot, right? It good conversation.
helped me a lot to grow my network and to become
less shy. The first time I sent this kind of email, In recent years things have started to get more
how to network

I found it very exciting, and also when I had my digital. Some art conferences that were usually
first coffee meeting. But when I kept practicing in real life are now beginning to do more digital
this, it became more regular. Keep in mind that it's events. You can get a video call with a recruiter;
nothing personal when the company doesn't like to this is perfect for when you live in a country without
meet you or even doesn't reply to your email. Just art conferences or a big industry.
keep working on your skills; maybe they'd like to
meet you when you've grown. I wanted to end this chapter to say that it's always
important to stay humble. Like I said before, it's
We haven't talked about art events or conferences okay to ask, but don't always expect a reply.
yet! This helped me so much in meeting my People can be just too busy or have another
heroes. When I got to my first international art reason to not reply. Don't take it personally and
conference in Amsterdam, I saw people from move on. Also, when you're at an art event, it's
Disney and Pixar walking around. The recruiter good to reach out to people who you want to talk
told in a talk that it was okay to reach out to her to. But don't be pushy and try to find the right
for questions. So, that was the first time I talked to moment.
a recruiter from that level. Years later, I met that

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 ways of working
ways of working

Most artists find it hard to choose their specialization and/or to These designs can be used for feature animation or tv shows, commercials,
decide whether they should specialize at all. If you don't want to games, toys, and so much more. It can be wise to look for jobs in these
specialize and like to do a bit over everything, becoming an all- different industries, especially when you are starting out. In my case, I started
round artist might be the path for you. As a generalist, you are my first job in advertising. Although it was my dream to work on a feature
very valuable for smaller companies or companies with smaller animation, a position in advertising is/was an excellent stepping stone to gain
budgets because they can't afford to hire multiple specialists. experience and knowledge.

I was an all-round artist for almost 10 years at multiple You can work as a freelancer or in-house artist. My first jobs were freelance,
companies. I've explored different disciplines during this period and later I got hired to work at different companies as an in-house artist. There
to determine what suited me best. Maybe you always dreamt of is a lot of difference between being a freelance or an in-house artist. It's not
becoming a character artist. Still, by exploring other disciplines, always something you can choose, but I think it's good to consider what suits
you find out that storyboarding (or something else) is your you best. The best way to find this out is by trying. I'll share my experiences
dream job. You can only discover that by trying it out. with both with you.

This ebook is about character design portfolios, so let's focus

on that! As a character artist, you will be designing characters.

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 Inhouse
Working inside a studio can be a great
experience. When you love working in a team or
like to experience this, this is an excellent place
ways of working

for you. You'll get to know people from different

departments, gain experience with hierarchy,
and in some cases, you can learn a lot from
other/senior artists. Working inside a studio will
also help you work together with studios when
you decide to freelance later in your career. For For me, the biggest disadvantage was that you Freelance working with clients, etc. This can be a bit overwhelming
example, you know how the process and workflow don't always get the assignments/tasks you like the The freedom you get as a freelancer is fantastic. You can in the beginning. Having a lot of freedom as a freelancer
inside the studio work, so you understand these most or want to grow in as an artist. This was also choose what to work on, how to spend your time, when is fantastic, but that can also be tricky and daunting,
kinds of things better. So, I recommend all artists to the main reason I went freelance; I had set my goal you're working, and when you have weekend. When I was because of the responsibilities.
work in-house at least once in their career. to become a visual development artist. In my full- working in-house, I occasionally had some small freelance
time job as a game artist, I couldn't focus on this projects. I can really recommend this because you start You don't have control over everything, but I would
One of the most significant advantages of being an enough. As soon as I noticed I could get enough learning how the freelance business works: How to talk to recommend making a plan when you want to go freelance.
in-house artist over a freelance artist is having a freelance work and had saved some money, I clients, create an invoice, manage your time, etc. Talk with some freelancers about that plan for a reality
fixed income and some social security and benefits decided to take the jump and quit my job. I found check. It's impossible to define when it is your time to go
depending on where you live. it hard to give up the security of a steady job and When you are a freelancer, you also need to manage full-time freelance; I think this depends on your personality
income, but it was the right time for me to go for it. things like invoices, administration, taxes, finding and and situation.

16 17
 getting paid
I wish money wasn't important and that we could focus all our time on art. But we need to make a living,
and how great is it that we can make that as an artist?! Unfortunately, I often see an artist being taken How much should you ask? From this rate, you need to buy your a hard-earned vacation. I hear and
getting paid

advantage of. There are many examples of this, to name a few: when a client says they can give you This is very different for every own hardware, software, pay your see that many artists do not take this
exposure instead of paying you, or when the client says you should do something for way too little country. The best way of finding accountant, maybe insurances, into account and perhaps even think
money. Artists are working from their passion, and for some reason, some people think this means they out is by asking freelance artists taxes, but also your food and they don't need it. However, I really
are allowed to take advantage of this. from your own country or looking up standard personal life stuff. To get believe that to become a good artist,
the rate of freelancers where you an overview of this, try to write down you also need time to relax.
When you are starting out as an artist, it can be tough finding a job or projects that pay you enough to live. Try using the internet search your monthly/yearly costs. Be sure to
provide for your living costs. Another scenario can be that you work at a company that doesn't bring you engine and look for "freelance rate reserve some budget for unexpected I took the Netherlands as an example
closer to your goals. For example, you work at a company where you only design interfaces, but you'd (your country)". For example, in expenses, or to save money to because that's where I live. The
like to grow as a character artist. In both cases, a side job can help you out. There are many variations the Netherlands, it starts with 35 replace your pc for example, too. rate for your country depends on
for this solution, one of them is to look for a job that takes less time but the same amount of income, euros excluding VAT an hour, and the general rate in your country and
so you can do freelance projects on the side. Or you ask your boss if it's possible to work fewer hours more experienced artists earn more. Besides that, you also need to what the costs of a general living
so you can spend some extra free time in developing the skills you prefer. Key is: Know your goal and Maybe this sounds like a lot to you, enjoy a normal, fun life. So don't are there.I believe artists should
find a balance for yourself between having enough time and energy to work on the skills you'd like to but I believe this is a good minimum forget the money you need for your earn what they deserve. Do some
develop and the money you earn. for freelancers here. free time and maybe for going on research to know what you're worth.

18 19
 My process of creating
a portfolio project

20 21
 How I create
a portfolio project
Just start drawing I started drawing these kids. I think I'd like to
When I started this project, I had no particular make something around two kids from about 12
idea in mind. I started with an open mind and years old. I don't have any idea yet who they
just followed where the process brought me. To are, where they live, or where they'll go. I leave
get this going, I prefer to make many sketches, it as open as possible.
start brainstorming, and develop ideas while
drawing. I don't like to start with a blank sheet of
paper, so I just draw something to not have to
stare at an empty sheet of paper.

22 23
After making the sketches on the previous page, I realized I had already gone into too
many details. So, I took a step back and made some rougher sketches to get the ideas
flowing. Don’t lose yourself in details too soon.

It’s never too late to take a step back. However, don’t keep
bonus tip! walking in circles; your project needs to move forward to get
finished some day!

24 25
 Another traditional weapon would be the shield
and sword. This makes the character totally
different. The archer feels more like a character
that sneaks; that's why I also drew the cape
over its head. The sword and shield are for
more close combat. Try thinking about what you
want to tell with your character and what kind of
weapon would help to tell that story.

Explore some themes

Let's explore a fantasy setting, like an archer
with a cape. This is still very generic, and my
first go. When I would like to add some more
research, I could push this idea more. The bow
and arrow are important for this setting, but they
could also be another object.

26 27
Characters that interact
I could also go for a character with a robot. It could also be a robot dog. Maybe
Maybe the boy made it himself. Or it found it, or the robot dog has some powers;
perhaps it's a toy. I find the idea of a robot pet maybe it came out of space. A lot
funny. of things that can be explored if I
decide to continue with it.
I liked the idea of a spider bot; I think it would
be cool to see those little legs to be animated.
Maybe it can run up the ceiling!

28 29
 Maybe instead of a tiny sidekick, I can add a hefty
sidekick. This one could be an alien, or maybe it's
a creature living in the sea that needs the help of
this boy.

Contrast between characters

It could also be a smaller sea creature that
looks goofy. For this one, I thought it would be
funny to make the lead character longer. When I
would decide to continue with this idea, I would
tweak the main character more to create some
contrast or connection with the sidekick.

30 31
The concept of a forest friend could also be fun There are many possibilities and ways to apply these
to work on. Maybe there is a hidden forest the characters. Try to define how you could link your character
main character accidentally discovers! concepts to different target audiences and media. Pick the one
you would love to work for and continue with that goal in mind.

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 Instead of a dinosaur as a friend, it could also be a dragon. There are many ways to elaborate on this concept.

Think about how it could be applied

What if a kid finds a triceratops in the garden?! I think this her power. The possibilities are endless and something
idea could work very well for a children's book or short that is fun to explore more. My first thought is that this
story. would be fun to make for a children's book but would also
be suited for other applications like toys or a tv show. See how rough my drawings are. You don't have to show anyone these sketches. These are for yourself to help you
I could also do a story about a little witch and her forest explore your ideas and decide what you want to make later on.
friends. Maybe she created these characters themself with

34 35
After drawing the previous drawings, I got the idea about a boy that What’s the relationship between the characters?
meets a dragon that travels with him to a medieval time, where the Here is another version of the idea of a dragon and a young boy. The dragon teaches could teach the boy magic? Or
characters from the line-up live. maybe the boy accidentally conjures himself to medieval times, and the dragon will help him get back to his own time.
I'm looking for an interesting connection between the two characters.
Rough sketch
Here you can see how my sketch for this looks.
It was accidentally quite clean already.

Clean up
I decided to clean it up a bit more. While Here you can see my sketch for this. How
cleaning it up, I consider whether this is what I'm a sketch looks depends on your own style
looking for or not and what I'd like to change. and preferences. It can look rougher or
cleaner; there are no rules for this.

36 37
Character line-ups
Here I drew some cliché fantasy characters. I find it hard not to spend too much time improving the drawing in this
exploration phase. So, I draw them until I think they are clean enough. You should decide this for yourself. In this
example, I wanted to explore some more versions first, so if I want to improve and clean them up, I can always pick
them up later.

For things like the harness, I usually need more time to research. But at this phase, I'm okay with that it's not perfect. If I
decide to continue with this line-up, I'll do some more research, and will find out how I can make it less generic, later.

38 39
After finishing the fantasy line-up, I liked to explore start with something cliché. After that, you can always In sci-fi, the possibilities are endless. Helmets, boots, this line-up, but it's good to move on and look at some
the sci-fi theme. The hardest part is always putting look at it and see if you can develop something more creatures, special effects, weird plants, you can go as other themes for now.
something on paper. So, I would recommend being not creative and original. crazy as you like. I can keep adding more characters to
too critical to yourself and just getting started. Maybe

40 41
A theme is not required!
You don't necessarily need to draw something with a specific theme. You can also draw something like an 'ordinary
family like I did here for your portfolio. You could give it a twist to make it less ordinary if you'd like to.

I started by drawing the

parents, and I drew them a
bit more "realistic" than the
others. When I drew the kid
in the middle of the line-up, I
noticed that the kid looked a bit
more stylistic than the parents.
At that moment, I decided to
go for a more stylistic route.
So, don't be afraid to change
some stuff while working on
it. Creativity is an ongoing
process, and when you'll
finalize the line-up, you'll make
it more consistent. Here I went for a more stylistic approach. This family is from a more mythical world. I could add more characters to this
line-up, like the grandmother and -father, the aunt and uncle. Or maybe a pet. Can you come up with more?

42 43
 Here you can see his family. His
sister, mom, and dad. Some robots
hide in his room. The alien the sister
is holding pretends to be a toy but
secretly is a real alien. I focused on
the lines and colors. I could also add
some shadow and light to make it
more appealing, but this would be
Choosing a direction enough for this phase.
At one point, you want and
need to move forward. This
is hard with personal projects
because nobody tells you
when to stop. So, I flipped
through my sketches and
picked the ones I like the most I liked the idea of a boy traveling through space and meeting friends in different
and combined them to make galaxies. He has built his own astronaut suit, so I gave him a suit that looks like a
the line-up you see here on mix between self-made and fantasy. Next to him, you see different kinds of aliens
this and the next page. he met along his journey.

44 45
Choose a style
Try to think about the style you want to apply to finish the I made the lines as clean as possible. Here I didn't use The first one is cell-shaded. This is commonly seen in 2D shading. This is what I often use for concept art for games.
line-up. Here I picked this alien character to showcase line variety; almost all lines are the same width. When I cartoons. It's suited for animation because it's a very basic Or when I propose a character to a client. In the third
some different styles. I took the rough sketch and cleaned do apply variety, I usually draw the important shapes with style, but with a lot of charm. I added a 1 tone shadow, but image, you see a painted character. This would be great
it up (second image). It's still a sketch, but it's a cleaned- thicker lines and the small shapes lighter. you could decide to for no shadows at all to make it even as a reference for how a character might look in 3D. For a
up version of the rougher one. The third image is cleaner; more straightforward. The second one still has line-art, game, 3D animation, or maybe a toy! This style takes the
but the lines are colored. The shapes also have some most time to draw, so it's less suited for 2D animation.

46 47
 I went for a 3D style for this one, as if it's made
What would you love to work on? for an animated movie. If you want to work
Here I went for a children's book style. When for the feature animation movies, consider
you're making a portfolio, think about what learning how to paint in 3D and "render" your
your goal is. Is it getting a job at a game drawings. This gives the illustration a look like
studio, an animation studio, or would you like it's from the movie. Try to find someone who
to make children's book illustrations? Try to has the job you want; they often have public
add projects and designs to your portfolio you portfolios. Look at their portfolio to see what
would like to work on. they put in their portfolio.

48 49
 Although I think it's good to show some story and characters. I don't think it's wrong to stay a little bit with the clichés. Of
course, it would be better to have an original idea, but you're going to be hired to translate someone else ideas. So, the
most important thing is that you show you can translate those ideas on paper.

Here I inked and colored the sketches I made earlier. It's not necessary to really render everything perfectly. If you show
a couple of drawings fully rendered, you can choose to leave some pages with flat colors. You've already proven you
can paint!

50 51
Combine characters to tell a story Also, show you can draw different kinds of characters. Characters that would team up perfectly with the animal
Don’t only think about working for the biggest studios! You could also find a job working on a children's show. Or characters. I haven't thought of a story for this one, but we can add this later. I just like to have fun and go with the flow
maybe this is for a toy line-up. Think about what you really like to draw. Even when it's a dream for me to work on a big, when I'm drawing. After setting up these characters, I l could choose to add a scene or theme. Maybe these animals and
animated feature, working on smaller productions can be just as fun and rewarding. kids live on a farm or a zoo. If it's a zoo, you can give these kids some clothing and props that fit that theme.

52 53
 I liked the previous line-up, but I thought I could do more Once I have made that rough sketch, and I'm happy with
with it. That's why I made this line-up. I tried adding more it, I start cleaning it up. I didn't make many corrections; I
personality to all the characters and giving it a more just took the rough sketch and brought all the characters
defined theme. I started with the idea of a pre-school kids more towards their final versions. Basically, I'm making
show about a farm that is taken care of by children. With decisions here for the final result.
that simple idea, I started to sketch very rough this idea,
using the characters I previously drew.

54 55
Here is the final drawing. It's cleaned up and colored. It's not an illustration that will be used for anything; it's more probably spend more time on this drawing to sell it. I personally would put something like this in my portfolio because I
supposed to get an idea for the style of a show. This could be for a pitch for a show. Maybe I would render them (paint really enjoy making drawings like this; Just putting down an idea and not spending hours and hours finishing it. Fill your
them 3D) or clean them up more, depending on where it's for. If it's for in-house with maybe a director that can see portfolio with work you'd love to do because they will probably ask you to do that kind of work.
through a rough sketch, this would be enough. If it's for someone who really doesn't know much about drawing, I would

56 57
 Ask for feedback!
In these sketches, you can see a little bit of my his power was, so I added the boulder to show he
process. I started with my first ideas; these tend to is powerful. I also added the longer arm for the girl,
be weak. I showed these to a friend, who gave me so you could see her superpower clearly as well.
some new ideas. So, I decided to add some things to Because in the final illustration, I want to make it as
make the characters stronger. See the second row. clear as possible what these characters are all about.
For example, for the boy, it was hard to see what

58 59
 Here is the final line-up. Didn't really change that
much anymore from the previous sketch. I chose
colors that would add more to the character. And
also that they all have their own color, so they feel
distinctive.

60 61
 I picked the funkiest robots to create a fun line-up with. Also changed
them a bit to make the designs work better together and added
colors. I gave every robot its own color. I believe that adds to the
personality, and it also makes it even easier to distinguish them from
each other.

Explore variations
Doodles I made when I wanted to do something with robots! I didn't have a big idea; I just wanted to make a line-up for
robots that would be appealing for young kids. So, I tried to come up with a bunch of ideas for robots. I like to add these
kinds of sketches to my portfolio because they show you can develop different designs. It also shows you can make
quick doodles for ideas.

62 63
Don’t be afraid to experiment
Some more examples of coming up with ideas for a line-up. Here I wanted to do
something influenced by nature, spirits, and fantasy. I'm thinking of my favorite movies
in that genre and looking a bit on the internet for inspiration. Eventually making my
own versions of it. I make these kinds of sketches to see if I'm interested in spending
more time on the project. Looking if it gets me excited. Try to find something you find
interesting by experimenting and doing stuff.

64 65
 Go as far as you’d like
When I made this drawing, it was almost Halloween, so I decided to make a
Halloween line-up. It can be this simple to start with an idea; just start generic.
Maybe after this generic line-up, you could think of ideas to make it more fun
and unique. Perhaps you want to take one of these characters and make a
whole family out of it. With children, grandma, and grandpa, and more. Or
maybe push these characters more! For example, make the witch crazier or the
zombie falling apart, etc.

66 67
 Projects from my
portFolio

68 69
 In the first image, you can see a turnaround and some
poses. This shows you know how to participate in the
production, like making a technical turnaround of a
character and drawing the character consistently in different
poses. I also drew his boat to show I can draw props and
environments and show some story for the puffin.

The puffin
I've created this project when I
worked at a game company but
wanted to get into the animation
industry. To do that I bought a
ticket to a conference where you
could meet professional artists and
recruiters from animation studios.
So, I designed this personal project
to get a job as a character artist
for animation production. The lead
character is a Puffin.

70 71
Here is the character line-up. It shows all his friends, fellow villagers, and other characters that Act as if you already work for the studio and create not one character but the whole line-up as
play a role in his life. This image helps bringing the idea to life. I would recommend everyone they would do for a movie. You could look at movie art books for more inspiration. Pick your
to focus their portfolio on 1 or 2 projects like this because it shows you can do everything favorite animated movie and see if you can find the art of book. Get inspired by the drawings
needed in production. It's also easier to talk about projects like this and be excited by them. they make for productions; learn from them to create your own portfolio piece.
This is something that is often appreciated by recruiters.

72 73
 good, because this magazine is being published
worldwide.

To get started, I picked a theme and made some

doodles. When I was hesitant, I shoved it off and
just continued making sketches and looking for
things I would like to draw. During this project, I
had a lot of negative thoughts; I didn't ignore them
but gave them a place, so they didn't bother me
too much. The deadline really helped me with that.
Without the deadline, I would probably have started
over five times. It can even help when you just give
Imagine FX yourself an imaginary deadline. Write it down and
Sometimes I find it challenging to pick a theme or to start on stick to it!
projects for my portfolio. I was asked by Imagine FX to create
a tutorial for them. So, that was an excellent opportunity to See the final design on the next page and check
create a new character line-up and talk about that in the out the magazine of Imagine FX issue July 2019 for
magazine. It helped me a lot that they gave me a deadline, so the full article with more drawings and explanations
I could not spend too much time on it, and it also needed to be about this project.

74 75
76 77
3D Total
Later 3D Total asked me to make a portfolio project for I started with the lead character. I thought of an old
their magazine Character Design Quarterly. The cool woman who lost her husband and ship on the sea.
thing was that, besides a deadline, they also gave me From that moment, she lives in the ocean. I started by
three synopsizes to pick from. I chose the Deepsea villain searching for a head and face that fits her personality. I
with a sidekick. Every idea could turn into something cool, did this in my sketchbook by doodling a lot and, after that,
so don't worry too much about the actual idea. It's all made these designs to explore.
about what you're going to do with it.

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 Once I made some heads, I didn't stick to only one design. I began drawing the whole figure, starting with some simple
doodles first and drawing some more detailed versions after it. In the end, I mixed the designs and found something that
I liked. I picked a design and decided to continue with it. Don't be satisfied with your first drawings; keep exploring. Since
these are sketches, it's still easy to make a lot of different versions. And explore without losing too much time.

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 I thought about making some backstory adds a lot. Finally, I chose
illustrations of the sea witch and to add a robot. And that brought
her minion together. So, I started me on the idea that she sank her
doodling some story ideas. 3D boat years ago and transformed the
total didn't ask for this, but it helps wreckage into a robot, which makes
me flashing out the character her able to live under the sea.
more. What is her relationship
with the minion? It doesn't have
to be super complex, but a bit of a

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 These are the final illustrations. I always
find it hard to choose the final design;
sometimes, you just must make a
choice. And you can always show the
other versions. So, in my mind, it doesn't
matter too much which you choose as a
final result. I chose the painted one as
the final design, but I also liked the one
walking on the octopus’ arms. This page
could be a page out of my portfolio.

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 conclusion
& thank you

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 different for everyone, but I like to begin very relaxed. at various interviews of other artists to learn how they work
pick up your sketchbook That way, it’s easier for me to be creative and not listen and see if that could work for you. In these images, you
too much to those negative voices in my head telling me can see a bunch of my doodles. I always draw neatly, but
Before spending a lot of time on a design, I make doodles. my art sucks, etcetera. Find something that works for it’s maybe even better to be very rough in this stage. This
And I like to do that in my sketchbook. I can take my you. I can only tell what works for me; for some people, stage is all about the ideas and less about the result. That
sketchbook wherever I want. I can sit on the couch it works better to put some pressure on them and say to comes later.
watching tv and start doodling something in it. I like to take themselves, like: “in the next 2 hours, I’m going to make
it easy in the beginning. Not too much pressure. This is 50 doodles of character x”. Again, try different ways. Look

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 Build your portfolio!
step is to come up with a concept for a movie and write
I thought it's helpful to end this book with an example or shortly down what's it about. See the projects I made
list what you could do to start your own project. in this book as an example; it doesn't have to be super
First of all: Think about what your goal is. Don't be afraid original or complex.
that it is too ambitious. I believe we should aim high,
mainly to bring out the best in us. At the same time, watch The next step is to create the content. When your dream
out for working too hard; I don't want you to get burned job is to work as a character designer on movies for
out. But when you speak something out loud, for me, that studios, go create the characters as if you are already
was "I want to work for Disney", things start to get moving. working there. Start making a character line-up, draw the
You can find out what you need to do to achieve that. You characters in different poses, draw the whole family, draw
can speak to people and have a clear goal. So, just write the lead character in different ages, draw the character
down that goal! It can never be too crazy or ambitious. maybe in other essential memories of its life, and come
up with as much stuff as you can. Look at the art books of
Now when you have written down that goal, you can start your favorite movies, or look at the examples in this ebook
thinking about what you would do at that dream job. That for inspiration and ideas about what you can do.
could be creating all the characters for a movie. The next Now it's time to create a portfolio with all the content you

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 made. I think 10 pages is perfect for a portfolio. Around design process goes and that you can come up and enjoy drawing backgrounds), you could also do
5 images on each page, but be careful to make it too with ideas this by creating a story beat (a storyboard drawing of
crowded. I believe a portfolio contains your best work; • Turnaround of the lead character; Show that you an important moment in the movie), or the character
showing different skills is stronger than a portfolio with 100 can create a turnaround, and this also showcases interacting with an important prop, and so on. A great
weak pieces. Also, only add stuff in the portfolio you would your technical abilities to make a turnaround way to show you can also do different things than
like to work on. • Optional: All above with a secondary character; character design without putting the attention away
The villain, the love interest, the minion, etcetera. from character design
Here is an example list of what I think would be a good Whatever you think could be cool to show more of. • Figure drawing skills; showing your best figure
portfolio. I would maybe focus my portfolio on 1 or 2 own • Pick a character and make a line-up of it with drawings on 1 or 2 pages. Just to show your drawing
story ideas. different ages; It could be the main character, but skills.
• Character line-up; I like to start with this to talk about maybe it's better for the variation to do it with a very
the project. different character
• Model sheet of the lead character; On one page in • Show more rough sketches with ideas from
not more than five poses. If you want, you could do two different characters; To show you can quickly
pages with a total of 10 poses. I think this is worth it doodle characters and ideas
because the lead character is very important. • Optional: draw the character in a background;
• Doodles of the lead character; Show the versions you This is a subtle way of showing you can draw
made before you got the final design. To show how your backgrounds. (Only do this when you are confident

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 that's it!
Thanks for reading this ebook. I hope it helped you to closer to my goal. Even if you eventually change your this around into believing in myself
get started with your own character portfolio, no matter mind or don’t achieve this goal completely, you’ll always and daring to share my ambition with
at what point you are in your career. Having a portfolio have grown as an artist in many ways. Make sure this others opened more doors for awesome
representing you and your work is a powerful tool to get goal is something that excites you. It should motivate and projects and jobs.
hired as an artist. inspire you along your way.
So, don’t be afraid to show yourself.
Besides your work, your mindset is very important too. Believe in yourself and in your art style. You can settle Your work may be seen! Go for it.
Don’t be afraid to aim for what you dream of. When I for something popular, but in the end, working on what
started out, I felt insecure about my skills, but by setting you like the most will be most satisfying. I used to be Best,
a goal for myself, I knew what I needed to develop to get driven by fear and doubting my skills all the time. Turning Mitch Leeuwe

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