Sketchin Thoughts: The Art of Melissa van der Paardt

Charmeleon

2012-01-24T01:42:00.000-08:00

Society6 Shop

2011-12-29T14:16:00.000-08:00

Hello!

Lately I have been thinking of a solution for creating and selling prints of my work. I tried Etsy, but it's proved to be too much when it comes to time during the school year. Therefore, I've decided to give Society 6 a try. It takes the weight of printing and shipping without me having to organize everything. If you're interested in any prints, I've changed the link in my sidebar, or you can just click below!

http://society6.com/MelissavanderPaardt

Thanks for reading!
-Melissa

Playing in Puddles

2011-12-29T09:25:00.000-08:00

Don't normally upload commissions here, but I really love how this one turned out.

-Melissa

Lion

2011-12-09T11:53:00.000-08:00

Wanted to draw something before the big end of the year rush.

-Melissa

Third Year Film Concept Art

2011-12-08T01:00:00.000-08:00

A piece of concept art for my third year film.

I've been jumping around to a lot of concepts for a good story. My original idea didn't sit well when presented at my mid-residence review, so I ended up taking a break from thinking about my film at all. For a few weeks I focused solely on my portfolio and eventually developed a story around the caribou I continually doodled.

I hope to really nail the story and designs over winter break so that I can start animation soon! Saving up for TV Paint on my Eee Slate. =)

-Melissa

Caribou

2011-12-02T03:12:00.000-08:00

Lately I've been drawing quite a few caribou. Perhaps its the season? Their horns are so much fun to draw.

-Melissa

Orange Huskies

2011-11-26T04:43:00.000-08:00

This is my first time using Paint Tool Sai. I instantly fell in love with the program and how easy it was to use. As much as I love Photoshop, painting in this program is completely refreshing and fun.

Now, why I chose to draw an orange husky? Can't really say, I honestly have no idea.

Design Thoughts: A Character's Environment

2011-11-14T17:12:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone,

I made a post about a year ago concerning thoughts about design, and thought it was about time I make another.

There are so many things to talk about which affect how we view a character. It isn't as simple as big versus little- there needs to be a reason for that conflict, a definition for what makes it extraordinary instead of ordinary. I decided for this post I would focus on one aspect of design and expand on it.

In nature, everything is constructed for function. It does not design simply to make something look beautiful- there's a purpose for everything, and any feature that lacks a use becomes a burden.

The greatest difference between natural selection and character design is what side each approaches from. Nature approaches all things from the outside and selects features based on outward situations. Everything depends on environment- the more harsh the atmosphere, the more specialized the organism. Personality, though present, is not of importance unless it serves a benefit to the organism's survival.

Character design takes the opposite approach. As artists, we enjoy working from the inside out. We ask ourselves "Who is this character?", and based on the answer we begin drawing. The character's psychology is what determines their anatomy instead of the physical situation.

Both methods produce successful characters for their reasons. However, the best character designers are able to take both elements and use them to play off each other.

I will continue this thought later, but I wanted to end this post with a question: When drawing, do you start with the shape first, or the personality/story for the character?

For myself, I tend to work with shapes first. I look for something that looks interesting and enjoy creating a world based on that character's quirks and shapes. These shapes tell me exactly what the character is thinking and what he/she has gone through.

Thanks for reading,
-Melissa

Brazillian Tapir

2011-11-09T17:42:00.001-08:00

Ethiopian Wolf

2011-10-28T05:11:00.000-07:00

African Buffalo

2011-10-25T02:46:00.000-07:00

Improvement

2011-10-22T13:59:00.000-07:00

I am so amazed at how much I've changed as an artist over just a year. I can't wait to see where I'll be in 2012.

Daily Design: Peregrine Falcon

2011-10-22T11:13:00.000-07:00

Trying to bring back daily designs. =)

Doctor Who

2011-10-20T22:04:00.000-07:00

Galapagos Tortoise

2011-10-20T01:25:00.000-07:00

Hatbox Ghost

2011-10-14T20:41:00.001-07:00

Croc Run Cycle - Second Pass

2011-10-14T13:38:00.001-07:00

Here's the second pass for a run cycle for my film character. I tried to imitate a similar cycle to the Jesus Christ lizard.

Pumpkins

2011-10-13T22:20:00.000-07:00

Since we're nearing halloween. ;)

Also I wanted to thank everyone for the critiques they sent for the run cycle post.

I'm working on a second pass that will hopefully be more successful!

-Melissa

Animation Test - Croc Run Cycle

2011-10-13T14:56:00.000-07:00

Red

2011-10-08T01:21:00.001-07:00

About This Blog

2011-10-07T21:50:00.000-07:00

Hello,

I've been considering what to post here in terms of content. Currently the big issue is that what I post on blogger isn't any different than what I post on my other galleries, and since this blog is the most personal of my accounts, I feel like it should have a little something more.

That being said, I think I'm going to make weekly posts on character design. I think this would definitely help with not only posting better and more unique content, but also help me to clarify my thoughts in writing. I hope also that it will make a more interesting read overall than just posting designs.

-Melissa

Green

2011-10-06T22:47:00.000-07:00

In case you couldn't tell, I can't seem to stop drawing these guys.

Yellow and Blue

2011-10-06T11:36:00.000-07:00

Film Idea

2011-10-05T19:05:00.000-07:00

Black Wolf

2011-10-03T01:04:00.000-07:00

Just a doodle I decided to color. There's definitely something bothering me about this one, so I may redo it soon.

Tree Frog

2011-09-30T01:44:00.000-07:00

Plum Headed Parakeet

2011-09-29T12:46:00.000-07:00

Crocodile Sketches

2011-09-19T23:41:00.001-07:00

Daily Design: Secretary Bird

2011-09-13T23:51:00.001-07:00

Daily Design: Gerenuk

2011-09-11T23:28:00.000-07:00

Kicking off the new school year with a Gerenuk, the first of this year's daily designs. =)

Orange Stegosaurus

2011-09-10T10:35:00.000-07:00

Pug

2011-08-31T23:08:00.001-07:00

Plushed Animation

2011-08-29T13:03:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!

I'm excited that I can finally post this. It's my first animation job, to animate an iPhone game that is a sequel to "Plushed". I did all of the character animation. Check out the trailer!

Creature Sketches

2011-08-28T18:42:00.000-07:00

Prints Now Available

2011-08-26T21:18:00.000-07:00

I have officially listed two of my pictures as prints at Etsy:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/SketchinThoughts?ref=seller_info

Feel free to check it out if you're interested! =)

-Melissa

New Graphic Design Blog

2011-08-21T21:43:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

I came to the realization that I've done way more graphic design work this summer than animation, so I made a blog for it. I'll be uploading my portfolio soon, so anyone interested in graphic design feel free to head over!

http://vdpdesign.blogspot.com/

Thanks for reading,
Melissa

Process - Gengar

2011-08-21T11:20:00.000-07:00

Gengar

2011-08-20T19:50:00.000-07:00

Coloring the Tiger

2011-08-18T17:55:00.000-07:00

Tiger sketch

2011-08-18T12:56:00.001-07:00

Chell

2011-08-16T15:06:00.000-07:00

Come on. I couldn't draw Gordon Freeman and not draw Chell.

Gordon Freeman

2011-08-14T18:26:00.001-07:00

I don't know why he's so fat.

Rhino

2011-08-07T00:22:00.000-07:00

I was selling prints last weekend at a booth and someone saw the elephant picture I did a few months back. They asked if I would be willing to draw a rhino. I tried to mimic the same style.

Shark week: Saw Shark

2011-08-04T21:00:00.000-07:00

Very late with this one! My apologies, I've been very busy.

Pelagic Thrasher

2011-08-02T16:16:00.000-07:00

Man did this guy put up a fight. I must have drawn him 20 times until finally landing on this one. I didn't even clean it up because I'm afraid I'll mess it up. xD

Anyways, the Pelagic Thrasher for Day Two of Shark Week!

Shark Jam: Hammerhead

2011-08-01T17:27:00.000-07:00

Every year there is a weeklong shark jam held by the talented Kristen Campbell for drawing a new species every day. I'm very excited to be participating this year. Today's shark: a hammerhead!

Life Drawings

2011-07-28T19:02:00.000-07:00

More practice with the Eee Slate. One is a life drawing of someone I saw

at Starbucks, the other of my dog.

Headcrab Zombie

2011-07-27T22:22:00.000-07:00

More practicing! This one was done in about 30 minutes.

German Shepherd

2011-07-26T22:14:00.001-07:00

Second doodle done on my tablet.

Bird doodle

2011-07-25T22:10:00.000-07:00

A doodle on my new PC tablet the Asus Eee Slate. So far it's been amazing for drawing, I'll probably be uploading more studies to this blog as I get more used to using the tablet.

Macaw listed in Etsy Shop!

2011-07-13T07:37:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!

Just wanted to let you know that the macaw drawing I did earlier is now listed in the Etsy shop! If you're interested in wall decals, make sure to check it out! I'll be making more pictures for the shop soon.

http://www.etsy.com/shop/CollectiveCreation

Red Macaw

2011-07-07T11:14:00.000-07:00

A red macaw!

This piece will soon be available in an Etsy shop called, "Collective Creation". It is an account shared by a few other artists to create wall decals for children's rooms. Here is a link to the shop for now, and

later once the drawing is posted for sale I will update this blog post!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/CollectiveCreation?ref=ss_profile

Here Comes the Squirtle Squad

2011-07-02T08:23:00.000-07:00

Nostalgia is the best cure for artist's block!

Creature Page 3

2011-06-17T20:40:00.000-07:00

Creature Designs 2

2011-06-17T16:26:00.000-07:00

More creature designs. Decided one a certain shape for the head and on a more griffon-like structure for these.

-Melissa

Creature Design

2011-06-17T13:22:00.000-07:00

These are sketches for a project I'm doing with someone on DeviantArt. I'm helping with designing a creature for animation.

What I had in mind for these designs was that it was a type of flying squirrel type of animal but with fins instead of flaps since it lives in water. It also has a long tongue for catching prey.

While this is not the final design, I do like how these sketches came out.

Tiger sketch

2011-06-09T10:34:00.000-07:00

Rufous Hummingbirds

2011-06-07T14:40:00.000-07:00

Griffons

2011-06-05T12:47:00.000-07:00

Wolf Design

2011-06-04T15:15:00.000-07:00

Iguana

2011-06-02T18:56:00.000-07:00

You know those doodles that start our as something you sort of like and end up as something you're quite proud of?

This is one of those times.

This is a 50/50 mixture of digital and traditional. My uncle came by and gave me some old oil pastels he found lying around in his house and I decided to draw an iguana for some reason. The colors are all oil pastel, and all the shapes were digitally added after it was scanned.

Bighorn Ram

2011-06-01T14:41:00.001-07:00

Daily Design: Red-Eyed Tree Frog

2011-05-28T21:20:00.000-07:00

Deku Link

2011-05-17T22:38:00.000-07:00

Vulture Sketch

2011-05-16T23:57:00.001-07:00

I always feel like I should post sketches more often. They're always such mutants though- I swear all of my finished designs are just connected appendages from the ones that I wasn't satisfied with.

Delivery

2011-05-14T01:49:00.000-07:00

Apparently kangaroos work at the post office now.

Daily Design: Possum

2011-05-09T15:39:00.001-07:00

Trying to get back into the groove of doing daily designs.

Happy Mother's Day

2011-05-08T19:15:00.000-07:00

Thanks for always dealing with me!

Red Panda Color Sketches

2011-05-05T22:24:00.001-07:00

Wheatley Portal 2

2011-05-03T14:43:00.001-07:00

And now Wheatley from Portal 2!

Turret

2011-05-02T23:03:00.001-07:00

I just beat Portal 2 a few days ago. Absolutely amazing game!

I've been wanting to draw a turret for a long time now.

Underground

2011-05-01T17:02:00.000-07:00

Done with my film!

2011-04-24T04:59:00.000-07:00

Screenshot from my film!

Well, it was a very long road but I'm finally done with my second year film titled "Underground". This film was a bit weird in the sense that I didn't even feel like I was making a film while animating it. I'm happy everything came together in the end.

Finishing my film also means I can start doing daily designs again. So excited! More blog posts in the future. =)

Cheetah

2011-04-15T19:24:00.001-07:00

Tiger Sketch

2011-04-12T19:28:00.000-07:00

Job Fair!

2011-04-07T00:45:00.000-07:00

Times have been incredibly busy. Yesterday was the job fair at CalArts and I ended up getting callbacks for Pixar, Disney, Sideshow Collectibles, and Acme Filmworks! Everyone seemed to really enjoy my designs so I'm really really happy right now. =)

I'm also seeing Wicked on Saturday! It will be nice to take some time off from CalArts work.

There's a link to my portfolio now in my sidebar if you'de like to take a look.

Thank you for reading!
-Melissa

It's that time of year...

2011-04-03T21:36:00.000-07:00

....when I almost completely become dead online so that I can sprint for finishing my film. I regret to say that I won't be able to post designs nearly as frequently (they may be weekly or even in the extreme case, none). Films are due April 25 at 4pm and I still have a good sized amount of animation to complete, color and composite.

On the positive side, my portfolio is complete. I've currently applied to Pixar and Disney, and hopefully I'll get a callback at the job fair. The one post you guys may see is my portfolio for the job fair.

See you all in a month!

*goes into hermit mode*

-Melissa

Daily Design: African Wild Dog

2011-04-01T16:02:00.000-07:00

More messing around with brushes.

Daily Design: Elephant

2011-03-31T05:21:00.000-07:00

More experimenting with styles of coloring.

Daily Design: Porcupine

2011-03-30T05:55:00.000-07:00

Daily Design: Piglett

2011-03-29T03:42:00.000-07:00

More experimenting. Lots of fun to draw this guy!

Daily Design: Hippopotamus

2011-03-27T20:07:00.000-07:00

More experimenting with digital painting.

Daily Design: Rooster

2011-03-26T23:25:00.000-07:00

I didn't mean to spend so much time on this guy, but there was something

really enjoyable about painting these colors. I'm trying to learn

some new Photoshop painting techniques.

Daily Design: Okapi

2011-03-25T21:08:00.001-07:00

Daily Design: Tiger

2011-03-24T13:29:00.001-07:00

Daily designs are back!

10 Second "Underground" Preview

2011-03-17T14:30:00.000-07:00

Here's a 10 second preview to my second year CalArts film titled, "Underground".

Lute Hero

2011-03-10T14:09:00.000-08:00

For Robert Lence's story class this year we had a project to take two random words and create a story idea out of it. After brainstorming we pitched the idea in class along with a possible movie poster.

I was paired with my good friend Brittany McCarthy and ended up with the words, "Medieval Life" and "Battle". This resulted in a story about a lute player who strives to be heard at a jousting match. The is the poster we worked on. Brittany drew the lute player and I drew the knights and colored it.

I might be posting more visual development for this project in the future. =)

Thinking in Shapes

2011-03-01T23:08:00.000-08:00

Mr. Fuzzems

2011-02-19T20:37:00.000-08:00

A couple years ago my parents who are music teachers realized that there was a mouse living in the bandroom. Ever since they discovered he was there he became the "band mascot", named "Mr. Fuzzems". There was even a point when my mother caught him and tried to bring him home- but since mice are tiny little things, he escaped through the bars.

I made this for my dad's business card, since he's going to start giving trumpet lessons. It was a lot of fun to draw and a nice break from film and portfolio work.

Chewy Sketches

2011-02-10T02:16:00.000-08:00

Film Time

2011-02-09T12:16:00.000-08:00

Well, CalArts is pretty officially into film semester. I started animation last week and I currently have around 10 shots animated and colored. There will be little to no blog posts since I'm hoping to keep portfolio stuff a surprise until the job fair as well as my film. I will however be consistently drawing on live stream so that I don't spend too much time on work for school.

Just as a small preview here's some boards from my work schedule:

Owls

2011-02-07T00:10:00.000-08:00

Livestream!

2011-02-06T17:32:00.000-08:00

Hey guys!

I signed up for a livestream account to try out the program. I'd love to stream on a regular basis once film time starts to die down a bit. I'll be drawing tonight at 7:00pm Pacific time, come by if your free to watch some drawing and listen to music! =)

http://www.livestream.com/sketchinthoughts

Skull Kid Doodle

2011-02-04T19:09:00.000-08:00

Quick doodle of Skull Kid before starting animation for the day. =) I was also trying out a new brush.

Animatedbuzz.com

2011-01-27T13:40:00.000-08:00

I was unaware animatedbuzz.com had undergone such a huge change until a few people referred me to the site. For anyone who wants to get connected in the world of animation, I would highly suggest joining! The layout is equivalent to that of Facebook, only it focuses on the animation industry alone.

Check it out!

http://animatedbuzz.com/

I'm also on animatedbuzz.com is anyone is interested in friending me!

http://animatedbuzz.com/profile/MelissaVDP

Reptile Doodle

2011-01-26T22:17:00.001-08:00

A Few Thoughts on Character Design

2011-01-19T03:01:00.000-08:00

I don't normally make posts containing thoughts about design, but lately I've been pondering about what to put in my portfolio and what, overall, makes a good character design. I thought perhaps, since this is a blog after all, that now would be a good opportunity to share thoughts.

If you have any thoughts feel free to post in the comments. I would love to hear other people's theories about what makes a good character design.

This is definitely one of the first times I've ever attempted to put to words what, in my opinion, makes a good character design, and believe me I still have a lot to learn. These are just the thoughts of a hopeful 19-year-old student that likes to draw pictures.

I've observed what a lot of people seem to gravitate towards and also seen what they don't seem to notice. Have you ever gone to a movie where you were able to pinpoint that you liked a certain character? And when you thought of that character, you didn't think of the design specifically- you thought of how the whole thing fit together. Like how a character's habits, experiences, and sayings are all one thing- no one thing overpowers another.

This is something that I've noticed isn't achieved often, but when it is seen it is fantastic. And to this day I can't put my finger on what exactly makes a design so powerful that you get lost in the character- all I can really say that it's a perfect blend of design, acting, and backstory. When these three elements are handled and balanced against each other, they create an extremely powerful character. Essentially these should all be the same thing, but interestingly they are often handled separately.

One of the first things taught in every design class I've taken is the importance of shapes. They immediately let the audience know what they should expect from the character. A fantastic example of this is displayed in The Incredibles. Every character looks and reflects their superpower. This extends to their acting as well and how the characters carry themselves. Story is constantly present in every moment these characters are on screen- a good example would be Violet. During the beginning of the film she is constantly slouching and trying to hide her face.

Her design constantly supports her habits- her body is incredibly thin and "invisible", while her hair further obstructs any comfortable contact with the outside world. Her design completely merges with her personality: one that wishes to be normal by attempting to hide her powers and, in a deeper sense, her own personality.

As said before the design should reflect the acting of the character, along with the backstory in terms of why he or she is acting the way that they are. Animation, story and design are all elements that should work together to create a single entity. No one thing should be stronger than another.

Which has led me to a different question that I have been pondering for quite some time. Is a design more effective when you don't notice the design, or when you do? This is an interesting dilemma, since we as artists would like to believe that a design is strong when we recognize it, but is it really effective as a character at that point?

I remember something Mark Walsh said way back during my CSSSA days. It was something along the lines of, "An animation is good when it looks like someone animated it, but it's great when it looks like no one animated it." At the time I had no idea what that meant, but I feel like now I understand a little better. A character should be its own entity- it has its own experiences, habits, etc. A good design doesn't directly compliment the designer- instead it boosts the story and character to heights it couldn't of been otherwise. A good design psychologically stimulates the mind to look at the character and immediately understand what that character has been through.

Too often I see people only relying on shapes for their designs, with no real reasoning other than experimenting with how things look. While this is a vital part of the design process, it is not the only one- I encourage all designers to look as far into your characters as possible and draw based on that.

A great example of this was displayed in Ratatouille. I remember reading one of the interviews in the art book that explained how Remy's nose was turned downward so that he could smell different foods and scents. Though subtle, it subconsciously made Remy different from the other rats. Brad Bird also mentioned that, during scenes when Remy was defeated or discouraged, he would walk on all fours as a rat normally does- however, when he is inspired he would walk as a human, on two legs.

Character design is a fusion of multiple disciplines in the animation industry- shapes, acting, and story. The shapes need to be strong enough to tell you exactly what the character is about at first sight- however it cannot overpower acting, which are the character's reactions to the story being told. It's an extremely important balance that may determine whether or not a character is believable in his or her role.

Film Progress

2011-01-18T19:34:00.000-08:00

Hey guys!

Its been a while since my last update, and I realized I haven't really updated on my film since before the break. I reboarded the entire thing and am currently working on the animatic (hopefully finished tonight!). I don't know whether I'll post it or not- it's definitely good to show the progress but I'm almost tempted to keep it so that it's a surprise when it's finished. Still, I really want feedback before getting into heavy production time so there's a 50/50 chance I'll post it.

In the meantime I made a model sheet for one of the main characters in my film! I didn't figure out his coloring until now- he was originally just a white terrier-mix. But since dogs can be just about any coloration I just went ahead and gave him a brown gradient to keep some interest. Plus now he matches my homeless guy's nose!

Roly Poly

2011-01-06T22:47:00.001-08:00

Reindeer Page

2011-01-03T20:25:00.001-08:00

Some old reindeer designs.