The responsibilities of a character artist spans across the front end of the production pipe line and varies from studio to studio. A seasoned character artist’s contribution can include concept art in pre-production, modeling, texturing and rigging in production and, in some cases, technical animation and or simulations. To carry the title of character artist one must demonstrate their proficiency in at least one of these production phases as it relates to character development.
I propose that beyond technical knowledge a character artist should possess an in-depth knowledge of character design principals that includes ethnic attribute recognition and racial makeup fundamentals. A character artist, having an in-depth knowledge of these character design principals and various pipelines, is an invaluable asset to a production team. It’s time character artists develop the knowledge of and the ability to observe traits that make up different ethnicities as a design tool. Building this fundamental knowledge base will enable character artists to design diverse and appealing characters without intent but with integrity.
There is an overwhelmingly underrepresented population when it comes to mainstream gaming, to be more specific Hispanic and Latino main characters statistically don’t exist. Unfortunately, characters with darker skin tend to be cast into tertiary roles or, cameo appearances that don’t require a lot of character development. When Latinos are represented most characters consist of stereotypes that serve the single purpose of forwarding the white male hero’s journey.