Creature Anatomy

This course is an in-depth exploration into the creation of imaginary animals based on the anatomy of real animals, in order to invent plausible beings for the concept, animation and entertainment arts. In each lesson, I’ll take you on a journey through specific types of creatures, the real zoology on which they stand, concise break-downs of real animal anatomy, and its step-by-step and direct application to imaginary animal anatomy. I’ll also show you many applicable examples from my own work and my career. Above all, we will keep in mind the purpose, world, and stories for which our creatures are being designed.

We’ll apply and put into practice the following

– Understanding the “why” of the creature
– How to research and gather reference
– Understanding the different real animal groups
– Step-by-step understanding of real animal anatomy
– Step-by-step creation of imaginary creatures
– Untangling and understanding complicated animal poses
– Creating conceptual narrative illustrations with creatures

Knowing the structure of real animals and applying that structure to imaginary creatures or actual animals adapted for entertainment arts projects is what gives you wings as a creature designer. Sound anatomy is what makes animation possible, and allows the greatest range of possibilities for both imaginative design, and in the creation of dynamic concept art that effectively gets the story across. Included in this course is a growing library of resource files and materials gathered by previous critiqued students. You can download this collection as a useful tool throughout your career!