Group Character Research
- louisrobinson2001
- Feb 23, 2021
- 5 min read
Group Research Form 7
Group members:
Louis Robinson, Max, ruby, Megan
First Character Name:
Caesar - ‘Dawn of The Planet of The Apes’
Image of Character:
Who was the illustrator / artist / designer behind this character? Or if multiple versions (like Joker) which one are you focusing on? And why?
- ‘Planet of the Apes’ was originally designed by Paul Dehn, he was a screenwriter also known for his work on: Goldfinger, Murder on the Orient Express.
- Julius Caesar the ruler of the Roman Empire, his hunger for power unsatisfied with the conquest of Gaul. Caesar is an embodiment of the sentiments of his predecessor, he is a metaphysical symbol of how humanities dominion over the world is so fragile that its very extinction is not a vague possibility but a notion that could arise due to our own actions.
- Character Design: He’s a literal monkey (ape, chimpanzee). Yet each of the apes is different and this is detectable to the audience, each character whilst summarized by their race has their own goals and ambitions to achieve.
- The scariest point of the apes is that they are so similar to human kind, the nature of the story takes on an Uncanny valley effect which makes the audience slightly uneasy.
- Caesar’s character came from Rupert Wyatt’s direction with the new films
- Played by: Andy Serkis - Does a lot of CGI character work, also known for playing Gollum in Lord of The Rings
Images of their other work:
What do you enjoy about their work, is it the line, silhouette, shading, style, technique?
The final scene of the original ‘Planet of The Apes’ shows the half-submerged statue of liberty, the shot in question is the opposite of how the once imperialistic America stood tall.
Write a short description of the character:
Caesar is a chimpanzee with exceptional intelligence and a hatred for humans. Born in the Gen-Sys lab his mother was used as an experiment to ALZ-112 which he inherited,
What makes the character an anti-hero - where on the scale of anti-hero do, they fall?
If he was human, he would be the Messiah, as he is an ape, he is a beast. Funny how the categories that we label stem from our perception of the world.
He fights to protect and help his fellow pack members ‘Apes together strong’ but does not think twice of killing humans.
He is an avenging archetype, humanity caused him to suffer, so all humanity shall fall. Whilst he directly attacks humans it is perhaps ironic that he killed a leader by the sickness he carried rather than direct action.
Whilst Caesar is a killer, he shows more sympathy for his enemies than humanity, it is said that a trait of humanity is compassion yet in ‘Planet of the Apes’ the female and child characters are treated no different from animals despite their sentience. When Caesar finds the girl in ‘War for the Planet of the Apes’ he shows mercy by letting her live, this act highlights how apes are better than mankind and their actions are justified showing him as a character on the side of good.
Do all the members of your group like this character, is there anyone who doesn’t like them or this design, if so why? Is there someone in your group that really enjoys this character and this design, what is it that you enjoy?
Yes, we find him an interesting/compelling character that can make you question the treatment of animals.
REFERENCES: Please reference the sites you used to gather info on the character design and description bellow HTTPs: //www.imdb.com/title/tt3450958/, https://planetoftheapes.fandom.com/wiki/Caesar_(CE),
Max’s brain.
Third Character Name: BoJack Horseman
Image of Character:
Who was the illustrator / artist / designer behind this character? Or if multiple versions (like Joker) which one are you focusing on? And why?
Lisa Hana Walt
Images of their other work:
Work from another adult animated show known as Tuca & Bertie
What do you enjoy about their work, is it the line, silhouette, shading, style, technique?
Write a short description of the character:
Bojackman is an anthropomorphic horse, who is bitter, narcissistic, self-destructive, and ill-tempered. Despite this he is shown to have a caring nature towards those he is close with
What makes the character an anti-hero - where on the scale of anti-hero do, they fall?
BoJack doesn’t do many “good deeds” and is a very pessimistic person which doesn’t reflect the nature of regular heroic protagonists. BoJack is a classical anti-hero, as he doesn’t commit dangerous, or murderous acts, he is just a bitter character that only does good when he has to.
Do all the members of your group like this character, is there anyone who doesn’t like them or this design, if so why? Is there someone in your group that really enjoys this character and this design, what is it that you enjoy?
REFERENCES:
Please reference the sites you used to gather info on the character design and description bellow
First Character Name:
The Narrator (Fight Club)
Image of Character:
Who was the illustrator / artist / designer behind this character? Or if multiple versions (like Joker) which one are you focusing on? And why?
- Director: David Fincher
- The Narrator: Edward Norton/ Brad Pitt as Tyler Durden
Images of their other work:
What do you enjoy about their work, is it the line, silhouette, shading, style, technique?
A perfect film, everything from composition to music is exquisite. When both main characters get in a car crash it is subliminal but it shows foreshadowing how the Narrator who was shown in the passenger seat is helped out of the driver’s side by the character in his mind.
Write a short description of the character:
Average man/ The cool dangerous guy you want to be
What makes the character an anti-hero - where on the scale of anti-hero do, they fall?
Tyler Durden sees the world as needing change and he sets out to do so. The Narrator is caught in the world and has no way of escape except for self-pity.
Do all the members of your group like this character, is there anyone who doesn’t like them or this design, if so why? Is there someone in your group that really enjoys this character and this design, what is it that you enjoy?
REFERENCES:
Please reference the sites you used to gather info on the character design and description bellow
INDIVIDUAL REFLECTION
How did this process go, how did you work as a team? Do you feel inspired, are you struggling still and want to expand your research?
This process helped me come up with characters that without this session I would not have even considered. I would like to think that we worked considerably well. This has helped with my inspiration and with points of reference for research.
Write a short summary about your favorite character from the session and sum up what you might take into your own work.
My favorite character is Caesar from The Planet of The Apes as when you consider him from a human perspective you may consider him as evil but if you look from the point of view of an Ape you see humans as vile, manipulative, hateful, and violent monsters whom have been suppressing their kind for centuries. Therefore, in that perspective you could imagine Caesar as the hero of the story freeing them from oppressors.
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