Summary and Research

*note that this was documented on word and converted to wix due to now working from home, this has caused formatting issues*

Introduction

My final major project is the exploration on why and how archetypes are used in most successful stories throughout history and modern day. I will be researching existing characters, the archetypes that guide them such as Jungian archetypes , I will then use this knowledge to create art using my own archetype based characters.

I will be designing and creating a character in a 3D workspace. This process will consist of research on characters and archetypes, a character biography that will serve to give context to the design choices I make, concept artwork on the character and accessories and a final 3D model that will be a product of all the work listed beforehand.

Research 

Archetypes

An archetype is the events and surroundings that shapes the human nature of a character. (“The universal and recurring mental images and themes”) In theory all stories consist of archetypes that each give cause to, and portray a key element to the journey such as safety, danger, power and so on.

Archetypes date back all the way to ancient myths and stories, to modern day million pound movie. When broken down and simplified almost all of these stories share the same structure archetypes but are dressed up to be something different. The Reason these structures are followed is because they work well as blueprints to expand upon.

Perhaps the most popular set of archetypes are the Jungian Archetypes created by Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung. Carl Jung’s work consists of concepts such as Extroversion and introversion, people being either the introvert, focusing on internal reflection or the extrovert reflecting on the external world. 

Jung’s works also mentions the Persona – “A consciously created identity or personality” created from the experiences endured in life. Related to this is Jung’s theory of the ‘Shadow’ being the traits of our unconscious mind that we choose to ignore.

12 Jungian Architypes (important to note that the names used for this vary)

1. Ruler – Power and control over other characters 

2. Creator/Artist – Creates and expands the narrative

3. Sage/Mentor – wise and gives guidance 

4. Innocent – a character with no poor intent

5. Explorer – Explore boundaries and push to discover

6. Rebel – outlaw who breaks the rules

7. Hero- The character followed by the audience to guide through the adventure

8. Wizard – Powerful and controlling has the key to many goals

9. Jester – Provides comedy to the story

10. Everyman – An everyday person whop the viewers can relate to

11. Lover – Romantic who is guided by love

12. Caregiver- Supportive character.

Screenshot images Credit:http://www.sfcenter.ku.edu/Workshop-stuff/Joseph-Campbell-Hero-Journey.htm

3D modelling and style Research 

When it comes to creating characters in a 3D workspace there are many approaches and styles that can be taken, this can be due to skill level, purpose such as optimisation for games and accuracy for product design or simply preference. I am going to be researching existing artists and work to see what styles will suite me and my beginner skill level.

Stef Walker

ArtStaionuser Stef Walker is a 3D artist at a games company calledGlowmade, meaning his models are created with the intent of being optimised and used in video games. His style is very minimalist and doesn’t rely heavily on textures. On a scale of detail they are lacking but in a way that looks intentional. He doesn’t mention his technique but to me these look 3D modelled in a software such as Maya rather than sculpted due to their hard surfaces.

Thersetextures also look ageless, this could be because they aren’t rendered inside a games engine, but with time these models won’t look dated like old movie CGI.

Doom Eternal

Doom Eternal from id software is a 2020 video Game title with one of the most impressive games graphics released. The style is highly detailed yet not photorealistic, if you was to place this character model in a real world scene it would still stand out. This model makes use of lots of layers and texturingwith things like bump maps, whilerelying heavily on accessories and clothing to tell a story.

CyberPunk2077

original images is 14k when zoomed in you can see nose hair and skin pores (wix has compressed the image and removed those details)

CyberPunk2077 is an unreleased game title by CD projekt red. Footage of the game has been released and although we can exspect the final product to be less impressive, we still have assets that can be assessed and analysed. The models in this game are almost photorealistic, promotional material features CGI player models (not in game graphics)with so much detail that zooming in reveals clothe fibres, finger prints on weapons, hairs on the nose and face, as well as spots and skin pores. textures play a big role in the qaulity of the game assets once again through the use of BPR maps (physical based rendering). This quality of assets is clearly way out of my scope of execution, but I think its important to assess and understand what is possible in order to push myself further.