The Master Guide to Drawing Cartoons

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Nothing brings anime artists more satisfaction than creating their own original characters.

In this indispensable guide, bestselling how-to-draw author Christopher Hart that by shows how to do just of breaking down the basics creating engaging and imaginative anime characters. as a Using simple templates learn starting point, artists will how to make a wide range of wholly original anime characters emerge.

In The Master Guide to Drawing Anime, Christopher Hart gives artists: • Head and body templates most for characters from anime’s popular genres

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world's author of how-to-draw best-selling books.

Learning to draw in the style of the cartoons you love has never been easier.

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Drawing Cartoons

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Nothing brings anime artists more satisfaction than creating their own original characters.

In this indispensable guide, bestselling how-to-draw author Christopher Hart shows how to do just that by breaking down the basics of creating engaging and imaginative anime characters.

Using simple templates as a starting point, artists will learn how to make a wide range of wholly original anime characters emerge.

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THE THE MASTER MASTER GUIDE GUIDE TO TO

Many aspiring cartoonists and animators want to create original characters.

That’s the fun of cartooning. This beginner’s guide shows you how to make DRAWING THE MASTER GUIDE TO adjustments to basic forms and shapes in order to come up with unique DRAWING ANIME characters you can call your own. The book focuses on several key areas, ANIME including head and body types, personality types, exaggeration, poses, and costumes. If you’ve always wanted to invent original characters but didn’t know where to start, you’ll find the answers in this complete and accessible guide to cartooning like a pro!

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THE MASTER GUIDE TO

Drawing Cartoons How To Draw Amazing Characters From Simple Templates In his mega-best-selling Master Guide to Drawing Anime series, author Christopher Hart has taught thousands of artists to easily and confidently draw anime characters. The Master Guide to Drawing Cartoons brings a similar approach to cartoon characters. Learn how to: • Create original characters based on simple templates • Draw the nine key cartoon personality types • Exaggerate body proportions for humor and variety • Bring characters to life by putting them in must-know poses • Create variations through hair, clothes, and poses Hundreds of illustrations, clear step-bystep instruction, and plenty of helpful tips ensure success.

THE THE MASTER MASTER GUIDE GUIDE TO TO

DRAWING CARTOONS

THE THE MASTER MASTER GUIDE GUIDE TO TO

DRAWING CARTOONS How To Draw Amazing Characters From Simple Templates

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An imprint of Get Creative 6 19 West 21st Street, Suite 601, New York, NY 10010 sixthandspringbooks.com Senior Editor MICHELLE BREDESON Art Director IRENE LEDWITH Coloring ROMULO FAJARDO _____________________ Chief Executive Officer CAROLINE KILMER President ART JOINNIDES Chairman JAY STEIN

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Hart, Christopher, 1957- author.

Title: The master guide to drawing cartoons : how to draw amazing characters from simple templates / Christopher Hart.

Description: New York, NY : Drawing with Christopher Hart, [2022] | Includes index.

The written instructions, photographs, designs, projects, and patterns are intended for the personal, noncommercial use of the retail purchaser and are under federal copyright laws; they are not to be reproduced in any form for commercial use. Permission is granted to photocopy content for the personal use of the retail purchaser.

Identifiers: LCCN 2021052654 | ISBN 9781684620395 (paperback)

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Subjects: LCSH: Cartoon characters. | Cartooning-Technique.

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For my four inspirations: Maria, Isabella, Francesca, and the naughtiest dog in the world, Spencer.

Contents Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

8

Inventing Original Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Templates for the Head . . .

Templates for the Body . . .

Little Kid. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Middle Schooler. . . . . . . . .

Popular Guy. . . . . . . . . . . .

Cheerful Girl. . . . . . . . . . . .

Characters with Attitude . .

The Chinless Wonder. . . . .

Genre Characters. . . . . . . .

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12 16 . 18 20 21 22 24 26 28

Modifying Your Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Changing Shapes. . . . . . . . . . .

Creating Angles. . . . . . . . . . . .

Flat Planes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Creating Two Planes. . . . . . . . .

Softening the Contours . . . . . .

Exaggerated Curves. . . . . . . . .

Compound Shapes. . . . . . . . . .

Creating a Point of Emphasis. .

Accessories and Hair . . . . . . . .

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34 36 38 40 41 42 44 46 50

The Nine Cartoon Personality Types . . . . . . . . . . . 52 CHARACTER TYPE #1: CHARACTER TYPE #2: CHARACTER TYPE #3: CHARACTER TYPE #4: CHARACTER TYPE #5: CHARACTER TYPE #6: CHARACTER TYPE #7: CHARACTER TYPE #8: CHARACTER TYPE #9:

The Unlikely Hero . . . . . . . . . .

Villain Type A (Con Artist). . . .

Villain Type B (Wickedly Evil). .

Amateur Detective . . . . . . . . .

Daydreamer . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Short Fuse. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Indecisive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Fearful. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Can’t Resist Temptation . . . . .

. . . . . . . . .

54 55 56 58 60 61 62 64 66

Cartoon Bodies: Simplify & Exaggerate . . . . . . . . 68

Super-Simplified Bodies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

Charming Proportions . . . .

Big Head, Little Body. . . . .

Skinny Guy. . . . . . . . . . . . .

Narrow and Tall . . . . . . . . .

Oddball Characters . . . . . .

The “Average” Kid Body . .

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74 75 76 78 80 81

Modifying Cartoon Bodies . . . . . 82

Basic Body Construction. . . . . . . .

Simplified vs. Flexible Bodies. . . .

Adding a Waistline. . . . . . . . . . . .

Exaggerating the Normal Body . .

Visual Rhythm. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The Three Foundation Poses . . . .

Good Posture in the Side Angle. .

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Must-Know Poses for Every Cartoonist . . . . . . . .

On the Phone. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Dumb Dad Jokes . . . . . . . . . . . .

The Downside to Having a Pet. .

Hands on Hips . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Crossed Legs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The Famous Shoulder Shrug. . . .

The Accidental Pose. . . . . . . . . .

Walking Poses . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Friendly Pose. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sitting Poses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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84 85 86 88 89 90 96

98

100 102 104 106 107 108 110 111 116 118

The Master Chapter: Creating Variations . . . . . . . . . 122 Hairstyle Variations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Hair and Glasses. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Changing Expressions . . . . . . . . . . . .

Clothes Make the Character. . . . . . . .

Fun with Costumes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Poses: Creating Alternatives. . . . . . .

Change the Proportions, Change the Bend and Flex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ........

Character. . . . . . . . .

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124 127 128 130 132 .136 138 142

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144

8

Introduction

I’m excited to introduce a new approach to drawing cartoons using simple templates as a starting point. A template is a basic version of a character that includes all the elements that are essential to the character.

You’ll learn to draw attractive characters, teen types, funny kids, goofy dads, and other grown-ups, as well as unlikely heroes and villains. You’ll also learn techniques for modifying characters, which you can use to invent your own.

I’ve also included essential techniques that demonstrate how to build original characters with cartoon proportions and how to pose them.

This book focuses on drawing characters in one of the most popular styles: movie animation. Animated characters are built logically, which is why you rarely see movie characters with two eyes on the same side of the head. The characters need to appear round so they can be turned at different angles. And roundness translates into an engaging look.

If you’re ready to draw super-appealing cartoon characters, then you’re right where you should be.

9

Middle Schooler

This in-between age makes for entertaining characters.

Neither children nor teenagers, they’re mini adults. The key is to match a simplified head shape with simplified expressions.

As with all youngsters, the features are close together, which intensifies the expression.

There is a softness to the outline of the face.

The hair wraps around the head.

The three words every cartoon character needs in his repertoire are “He did it!”

20

Draw bold, straight eyebrows.

The small, bottom lip doesn’t need to do much to create a convincing expression.

Popular types have balanced features. But the audience won’t remember your character if you don’t find something to highlight. Therefore, let’s create a block of hair that flops over the eyes.

Change the back of the head to a straight line.

The top of the head is round.

Flop the hair well past the forehead.

Draw a sharp angle at which the hair ascends.

The chin is flat.

The hairline is drawn straight across the forehead.

Draw a few lines on the hair for a natural look.

On this popular type, the sizable chin extends beyond the neck.

21

inventing original CHARACTERS

Popular Guy

Modifying Your Characters Don’t stop at your first attempt at a drawing. There may be a better way to draw it, and it only takes a few changes to find it. The variations in this chapter will give you insights into the possibilities, which you can use in your own artwork. Ready to give it a try?

We’ll go step by step.

Changing Shapes

How do you know what to modify? By experimenting!

Look for an intuitive feeling that a drawing needs something. Start with small changes. Here’s a tip: It’s easier to modify a character if you begin with the shape of the head. That’s where we’ll put our focus.

Start with a wide and balanced head and eyes that are almost perfectly round.

Modify the head so that it widens out. We’ve left the original shape of the head behind and are creating something new—with only two lines!

TIP

A round head is predictable. By flattening the sides, you add a fresh approach.

Although the hair appears to flop in a random manner, it’s quite symmetrical: split down the middle, with the left and right sides evenly weighted.

34

Modifying Your CHARACTERS

The modifications become the final form. The underlying form we began with is gone!

SHAPE SHIFTING

You don’t need to change all aspects of a character to create a new design. Just making one modification can change the whole look.

Making the face shorter and wider gives him a younger look.

Narrowing the face makes him look older and a little goofy.

35

Creating Angles

To create a dramatic character, there’s no better way than to add dramatic angles. The sharper the angle, the more intense the character will be. It only takes one or two changes to make a big difference. Follow along or improvise!

In this threequarter view (the character is turned slightly to the right), the far edge of the face is fairly straight while the near side is rounded.

36

Heavy eyebrows contribute to a dramatic character.

Before we make any modifications, let’s give him a thick neck, which creates a sturdy look.

Rather than changing everything, let’s try to bring out the character with an economy of linework.

Scoop out a curve at the far side of the eye. This modification is typical in turned angles, even on realistically drawn people.

Draw a short vertical line from the top of the ear to the point of the jaw.

Slash a straight line from the top of the cheekbone to the tip of the chin for a dramatic look.

A short haircut makes the forehead look small and the jaw sizable.

With the face lean and narrow, the character takes on a powerful look.

His oversized pupils and rounded nose suggest that he’s a good-guy type.

Like the bangs, the goatee is uneven and rough.

With his goatee and classic features, he could easily become any number of characters, such as a medieval knight, a vampire, or a tough guy. His costume will define his role.

37

Modifying Your CHARACTERS

Draw irregular bangs.

Flat Planes

Sometimes, flattening a curve is just the thing to give a drawing a stylish look. But this approach can be abrupt, and therefore needs something to soften the look. And that’s exactly what we’re going to do with this hairstyle.

Draw a line straight across the top of the head.

Draw an egg-shaped head that tapers quickly to a tiny chin.

I know, I know. It looks weird at this step, but we’re not done. Everything is a work in progress until you’re finished.

38

Draw some hair shooting off the neck.

TIP

When one area of a character is flat, counterbalance it with another area that’s curved, like the line that runs down the front of her face.

With a stylish character, color is strategic, so decide which you want to stand out—the eyes or the hairstyle.

39

Modifying Your CHARACTERS

Lively bangs, which extend past the forehead, soften the construction.

Add a little mass to the back of the head.

Starting to look more natural, right?

Creating Two Planes

Now we’ll add a second plane to the outline of a character’s face. Interestingly, when you create two planes, they tend to cancel each other out, so the result is less extreme and more balanced than a character with only one pronounced plane.

Start with a generic outline of the head, with the features in the center. Be careful not to crowd them.

Lop off the top and bottom of the head.

I often like to draw the neck slightly offcenter, which suggests movement or attitude.

Instead of building more hair on top of the head, allow the hair to dip at the center of the forehead.

Even though the top and bottom of the head are flat, it has a rounded appearance due to the outline of the face.

40

TIP

By drawing a flat top and a flat chin, you bookend the face.

Modifying Your CHARACTERS

Softening the Contours

We’ve been creating dramatic changes to the heads by using straight lines. But modifications can also be used to enhance the curves of the face, which will make the character more lifelike. This creates a pleasing effect, which is attractive, friendly, and engaging.

Very round on top

Hair follows the form of the head.

Draw the eyebrows high for a cheerful expression.

The neck widens to become the shoulder.

Pointed at the bottom (good for contrast)

Draw a second line behind the head to indicate a hairband.

Oversized earrings add to the character design.

Exaggerate the curves.

You can change the look of a face without even changing the expression.

All it takes is a little modification to the outline of the head.

41

Exaggerated Curves

We tend to think that the body has all the curves. But the face, especially on young characters, has curves that are even more pronounced. Curves are both outward (convex) and inward (concave). This combination creates a charming personality—and a popular character type.

The head starts out like a beach ball that’s losing air.

Draw an exaggerated curved line that dips in the middle. This highlights the cheek area.

Giant pupils make her look startled.

Place the nose at the bottom of the face, at the intersection of the guidelines.

The curved line at the front of the face makes the forehead look bigger.

42

The Nine Cartoon Personality Types In this chapter, we’ll draw some of the most recognizable character types in cartoons. The nine basic cartoon personality types are popular and enduring. Audiences love them because they’re fun and relatable. You can draw them just as they are in this chapter, or combine them to design new types and variations. They each have their own proportions, features, and expressions, which give them a unique look.

Let’s try a few—or all of them.

Cartoon Bodies: Simplify & Exaggerate Cartoon bodies are known for being simplified and exaggerated. You might be tempted to correct for the exaggeration, but your cartoons will be more entertaining if you overdo it than if you underdo it. Here are a few tips to keep in mind as we begin: • Proportions need to look wrong to be funny.

• Something looks exaggerated only if it’s next to something that isn’t exaggerated.

• You can exaggerate something by making it smaller or bigger.

Let’s see these tips in action!

modifying cartoon bodies Characters with heavily exaggerated bodies are fun to draw and popular as well. But they’re also limited in how we can pose them. Poses require flexibility, which simplified characters usually don’t have, so we’ll need to normalize the figure. Without the modifications I’ll introduce in this chapter, our characters would not have enough flexibility to strike interesting poses, which is what we’re building up to.

Basic Body Construction Slightly more realistic proportions give us the clues to draw cartoons based on a logical construction rather than relying solely on exaggeration.

FEMALE PROPORTIONS

The collarbone runs across both shoulders.

MALE PROPORTIONS

Classic Proportions

His chest and collarbone are wide.

The female’s waistline is higher than the male’s.

The elbows are drawn at the level of the midsection.

The hips are wide.

84

The waistline is low, and the hips are narrow.

The average cartoon body has a small torso and long legs. This is reversed on character types such as villains, who often have large upper bodies (for power) and short legs.

modifying cartoon bodies

Simplified Vs. Flexible Bodies Poses are effective for simplified characters—if the poses are humorous and stiff. However, if you’d like to show more natural gestures or emotions with some subtlety, you’ll need a body type that can move.

STIFF BODY TYPE The thing that makes the body stiff is the lack of a movable midsection, as shown in the blue area. There is none. Therefore, the sections of the body don’t move or twist independently.

Torso is one shape.

Twist and Turn Separate midsection

FLEXIBLE BODY TYPE Once we create a midsection, the body can twist, stretch, turn, and bend. Now there are many more possibilities for poses and gestures.

This type of movement is hard to achieve with the simplified body type, which we covered in the previous chapter.

However, if we simply add a waistline, the body is able to twist and bend.

85

Must-Know Poses for Every Cartoonist Now that you’re well on your way to learning to draw a variety of cartoon characters and even invent your own, it’s time to bring your characters to life by drawing them in different poses. In this chapter, we’ll explore a range of appealing poses, actions, and gestures, from talking on the phone, to classic standing poses, to several different styles of walking.

Let’s give them a try.

THE SHUFFLE The shuffle is like a shrug, slump, and stroll mixed together. It’s used when your character isn’t excited to get where he’s going.

Maybe he’s going to meet his girlfriend’s brother for the first time.

By the way, he’s a cage fighter. The key is his back foot, which drags along, slowing his pace—on purpose!

He’s got that “I’d-rather-beanyplace-buthere” look.

Slumped shoulders This posture leads with the hips.

Unlike in other walking poses, the back foot is in constant contact with the ground as it slides along.

Draw the shoes slightly back from the center of the torso.

114

Must-Know Poses for Every cartoonist

Fixing the drywall in the garage is looking like a fun project right now.

His tummy pushes forward as his chest sinks.

115

The Master Chapter: Creating Variations This is a very important and useful chapter. Creating variations of characters is how cartoonists give themselves choices. It’s also how we create stylistically related characters, such as a group of friends. But mainly, character designers and animators create variations to refine their ideas.

Get ready to add some new techniques to your skill set.

INDEX A

accessories 50 angles, creating 36–37 angry personality 61 arms crossed 137 down 136–137 gestures 140–141 attitude 24–25

B

back, stiff 142 bodies construction, basic 84 exaggerating normal 88 hyperextended 143 kids 75, 80 modifying 82–97 narrow and tall 78–79 oddball characters 80 simplified vs. flexible 85 simplifying and exaggerating 68–81 super-simplified 70–73 templates 16–17 boys. See guys

C

cheerful expression 129 cheerful girl 22–23 chin emphasizing 48 lack of 26–27 clothes 130–131. See also costumes con artist 55 contours, softening 41 costumes. See also clothes knight 134–135 princess 132–133 curves, exaggerated 42–43

D

dad 102–103 daydreamer 60 detective, amateur 58–59 dog 104–105 doubtful expression 128

E

emphasis, creating 46–49 enthusiasm 129 expressions 128–129

144

eyes closed 24 emphasizing 46 open 25

F

fearful expression 129 personality type 64–65 flexibility 85, 142–143 forehead 48 friendly pose 116–117 front view pose 90–91

G

genre characters 28–31 gestures, arm 140–141 girl, cheerful 22–23 glasses 127 guys dad 102–103 middle-aged 26–27 popular 21 short 139 skinny 71, 76–77 tall 138, 139

H

hair and glasses 127 long and flowing 126 metropolitan cut 126 modifying 51 short 124–126 hands on hips 106 head kids 18–19, 75 templates 12–15 height 78–79, 138–139 hero, unlikely 54 hiker 130 hyperextended body 143

I

indecision 62–63

K

kids body, “average” 80 characters 75 head 18–19 toddler 118–119 knight costume 134–135 knock-knees 142

L

legs, crossed 107

M

middle-aged guy 26–27 middle schooler 20 modifying characters accessories 50 angles 36–37 chin 48 contours 41 curves 42–43 emphasis, creating 46–49 eyes 46 forehead 48 hair 51 nose 47 planes 38–39, 40 shapes, 34–35, 44–45 monster 30–31

N

narrow and tall 78–79 nose 47

O

oddball characters 80

P

personality types con artist 55 daydreamer 60 detective, amateur 58–59 fearful 64–65 hero, unlikely 54 indecisive 62–63 temperamental 61 troublemaker 66–67 villain 55–57 wickedly evil 56–57 phone, on the 100–101 planes creating two 40 flat 38–39 popular guy 21 poses accidental 110 arms crossed 137 arms down 136–137 friendly 116–117 hands on hips 106 legs, crossed 107 phone, on the 100–101 shoulder shrug 108–109 sitting 118–121 walking 111–115 posture, good 96–97 princess costume 132–133

proportions changing 19, 138–139 charming 74

S

shapes changing 34–35 compound 44–45 short guy 139 shoulder shrug 108–109 shuffling walk 114–115 side view 92–93, 96–97 sitting poses 118–121 skinny guy 71, 76–77 strolling 112–113

T

tall guy 138, 139 teens sitting pose 120–121 zombie 28–29 temperamental personality 61 templates body 16–17 head 12–15 thin guy 71, 76–77 three-quarter view 94–95 toddler 118–119 troublemaker 66–67

V

variations 122–143 arm gestures 140–141 clothes 130–135 costumes 132–135 expressions 128–129 flexibility 142–143 hair 124–127 pose 136–137 proportions 138–139 villains con artist 55 wickedly evil 56–57 visual rhythm 89

W

waistline, adding 86–87 walking poses shuffling 114–115 strolling 112–113 worried walk 111 wary expression 129

Z

zombie, teen 28–29

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