Study Task 5: Practical Approaches

What do you intend to investigate and why?

I want to investigate modern cartoon characters with mental illness, how they are created, are they represented well in the media and why they are a necessity.

I want to investigate this because I believe it will help me create better thought-out character designs and to convey a particular feeling with just a visual message. 

There is also a personal aspect to this project, as someone who suffers from mental illness, I want to create characters that help children and young adults understand, identify and seek help with mental illness by making characters based on facts and real situations to help the audience relate to them. 

How can the research help as a starting point?

Having a good understanding of basic character design will help me make compelling characters. Also learning about shape and colour theory will help me establish the right message I want to get across to my audience. Comparing and analysing existing characters with particular designs will help in my investigation and understanding as well.

What do you envisage the end product being?

I want to create at least to well-rounded characters that have meticulously thought out to convey the visual message that they are suffering from a mental illness.

If I have time I would also like to create a looping gif for each of my characters.