ImagineFX - Issue 225 2023

Editor’s letter
Welcome to… EDITOR’S CHOICE Three of my top

picks this month…
30
Welcome to the latest issue of

ImagineFX. This month we
have a vast range of content for
you, covering areas from
traditional illustration through
the digital, and work done for Artist in Residence
Take a tour around Rufus Dayglo’s wonderful studio,
Hollywood blockbusters. which is filled with a mix of collectibles and mementos.
We invited community
favourite Daryl Mandryk to 68
illustrate our cover, as well as produce a wonderful
workshop outlining his process. Head over to page
62 to discover how to paint your own concept
characters using Photoshop.
If you’ve ever wondered how designs make it to
the big screen, then we have you covered. Deak
Ferrand shares his thoughts and experiences
working on Blade Runner 2049 and Dune among
many others, creating some of the most epic and Expressive character illustration
recognisable designs in cinema. Then we also have Follow along with Olga Andriyenko as she shows us her
a fantastic feature, looking at Framestore and how process for creating a challenging scene.
their concept artwork shaped the worlds of Doctor
Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
90
And if you want to push your skills to the next
level, there are many courses you could take. Check
out our rundown of the best on page 22.
Editor Draw a creature from your imagination

[email protected] Nicola Asura shares his thoughts for translating his
ideas from the mind to the page.
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Your art 10 22
10 FXPosé
A round-up of digital art, submitted by you.
News and events

22 The best art schools
We break down a selection of the leading
courses to kick-start your art education.
28 A day in the life of...

Greg Hopwood
Learn all about the concept costume
artist's daily schedule and top advice.
30 Artist in Residence:
FXPosé The best art schools
Rufus Dayglo
A treasure trove of collectibles awaits as we
take a look inside the comic artist's studio. 38
Features
38 Deak Ferrand interview
The art director shares tales from working
on Dune, The Sandman and plenty more.
48 Sketchbook: Célia Beauduc

Discover the artist's natural inspirations.
54 Journey into Madness

Dive into the VFX concepts from Doctor
Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
Regulars
Deak Ferrand interview
6 Next month
8 Subscriptions
20 The Rookies 48 54
37 Letters
46 Recent editions
30
Artist in Residence:
Rufus Dayglo Sketchbook: Célia Beauduc Journey into Madness
4
Issue 225
66 68
Workshops
62 Sketch with the Mixer Brush
This month's cover artist Daryl Mandryk
explores a favourite tool for Photoshop.
66 Observe and improvise

Alariko takes inspirations from their
surroundings in creating scenes.
68 Expressive character
illustration
Observe and improvise Expressive characters
Break down the steps for a tricky multi-
character piece with Olga Andriyenko.
62
74 Finding the right angle
How Toivo Huhtaniska sets up Unreal
Engine to bring traditional art vibes.
76 Create a concept vehicle

Bernie Walsh explains how he developed
a speedy prize-winning design concept.
82 Composition development
Magic: The Gathering artist Filipe
Pagliuso outlines his creative process.
Traditional Artist
86 Traditional FXPosé
Discover this month’s selection of the
finest traditional art, sent in by you!
90 Draw a creature from

imagination
Nicola Asura shares the power of a
creative mind in his eerie pencil artwork.
Sketch with the Mixer Brush 94 A mind-bending perspective

Rob Rey blends a galaxy of deeper
meaning into his cosmic fine art series.
76 96
96 First Impressions:
Sarah Joncas
Find out how discovering a passion for
painting changed the artist's direction.
Create a concept vehicle GET YOUR

82
RESOURCES
1 Go to the website
Type this into your browser’s address bar.
https://ifxm.ag/mandryk
First Impressions:
2 Open the Dropbox link
Find your files ready for download.
Composition development Sarah Joncas

3 Download what you need…
Save the files or watch the videos.
5
Next month
Editorial
Editor Rob Redman [email protected]
Art Editor Daniel Vincent
Production Editor Henry Burridge
Contributors
Tanya Combrinck, Greg Hopwood, Rufus Dayglo, Trevor Hogg,
Célia Beauduc, James Clarke, Daryl Mandryk, Alariko, Olga
Andriyenko, Toivo Huhtaniska, Bernie Walsh, Filipe Pagliuso,
Nicola Asura, Rob Rey, Sarah Joncas
Advertising
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3
THE PLACE TO SHARE YOUR DIGITAL ART
Yishu Ci
LOCATION: China MEDIA: Photoshop, Procreate WEB: www.artstation.com/ciyishu
Yishu Ci is a freelance concept artist who is inspired

by spacesuits, mechanical structures, fashion and
Chinese swords. He ties these together via character
design steeped in manga and comic books.
1 2
1 KING OF MEAT
“Here I wanted to depict
Taoist priests in a modern-
day setting. They also pack a
lot of fashion sense!”
2 TAOIST
“This piece is another
rendition of a modern Taoist
kung fu practitioner.”
3 ASTRONAUT003
“I like to imagine that
when people travel to space
regularly, they’ll start to
combine fashion trends with
their functional spacesuits.”
4 GOING PLACES
“This piece combines
kung fu themes with modern
settings, and features
everyday people.”
10
4
11
Jennifer Beam
LOCATION: Canada MEDIA: Procreate, Photoshop WEB: www.artstation.com/jenniferbeam
Jennifer is an illustrator and background artist in the animation industry.

She is inspired by the many artists who worked on films she loved watching
growing up, and always enjoys creating colourful and whimsical paintings.
1 TURTLETOPIA
“This painting is what my
ideal utopia would be: living
2
on happy, flying turtles.”
2 THE SAND CAT

“This is a painting where
all the kittens have heard
about the legendary sand
cat and wish to meet him, so
they rush towards him to
hear his tales.”
3 JOAN OF ARC
“In this painting I wanted
to focus on a quiet, peaceful
moment with Joan of Arc.
The flowers reflect her
personality, like the white lily
that symbolises purity,
commitment, and devotion.”
12 Want to submit your work? Visit http://ifxm.ag/getinifx

3
Want to submit your work? Visit http://ifxm.ag/getinifx 13

Brad George-Catalin
LOCATION: Romania MEDIA: Photoshop, 3DCoat WEB: www.artstation.com/georgecata93
Brad is a freelance artist who enjoys designing concepts and illustrations

based on fantasy topics such as floating cities and surreal landscapes. His
clients include DreamWorks Animation, Facebook and Games Workshop.

2
1 PATH MAKER
“This is a mega machine
which roams through the
2 ALIEN RUINS
“Ruins are great to draw
as they evoke lots of mystery
rocky desert, carving paths and let your imagination run
and creating new routes.” wild. These alien ruins are
built on a high mountain
waiting to be explored.”
3 MALFUNCTION
“Sometimes I enjoy exploring funny topics, such as this monkey
engineer who is low-key panicking over a malfunction on their vehicle.”

Skyfire
LOCATION: Taiwan MEDIA: Photoshop WEB: www.nnoo007.com
Skyfire is a Taiwan-based illustrator and character designer. They

are best known for their Taiwan Office Lady series, which depicts
the day-to-day lives of white-collar workers on the island.
1
1 CARROT...
“The person on the left is
blowing on the hot
dumplings, while the person
on the right is picking out
shredded carrots they don’t
want in their noodles.”
2 DOUBLE D-RING
BUCKLES
“There are loads of scooters
on the roads in Taiwan.
Those who care about safety
use the troublesome double
D-ring buckle instead of the
plastic alternative.”
3 BORING TIME
“Red lights in Taipei
hold up motorcyclists for 99
seconds. It’s much more
comfortable for the riders
to rest their feet on the
sidewalk while they wait for
them to change.”
4 RAINY DAY
“This picture is set at an
intersection on a rainy day.
The office lady is waiting for
the traffic light to change on
her walk back to work. The
lunch she bought hangs on
the handle of the umbrella.”
2 3

4

Sofia Scogli
LOCATION: Italy MEDIA: Photoshop, Procreate, Nomad Sculpt, ZBrush WEB: http://sofiascogli.artstation.com
Sofia studied at the Brera Academy, where she became passionate about
concept art and character design. “I like creating figures with strong, royal
auras, usually followed by a creature friend who is their companion for life.”
2
1 HIERONYMUS
BOSCH ARMOUR
“A valiant knight acquires
magic powers by wearing a
particular armour. Its design
was inspired by Hieronymus
Bosch’s little creatures.”
2 THE GOOD OGRE

“A big, tall ogre helps
their wounded friend, the
Spirit of Birches, to cross
through the forest.”
3 LADY WITH A DRAGON

“Dragon wings are a
powerful ingredient in magic
potions and spells. This lady
has just found out that
somebody has cruelly cut off
the wings of her baby
dragon, causing him to die.”
Do you want to see your art on these pages? Then email five pieces of your work and a short explanation
about each artwork, along with a photo and a few details about yourself, to [email protected]

3

The Rookies is a platform
to help digital artists
get discovered without
having to compete
with professionals for
attention. You’ll get to
the front page of those
sites one day, but for now,
we’ve got your back and
want to help turn your
passion for creative media
into a successful career.
WWW.THEROOKIES.CO
High High Mountains

YEAR CREATED: 2022 MEDIA: Photoshop
“High High Mountains is an environment from one of my

projects, made as a tribute to classic 3D adventure games.
I also made the area’s soundtrack using free plugins.”
20
The Rookies
Artist
PROFILE
Axel Paumier
LOCATION: France
Axel is a concept artist working
on characters, environments and
props. After beginning his studies
at New3dge Concept Art school,
he chose to become self-taught.
www.therookies.co/u/paumierart
21
ARTIST NEWS, SOFTWARE EVENTS
AT THE CORE OF THE DIGITAL ART COMMUNITY
The best
entertainment
art schools
Top of the class Tanya Combrinck explores five
courses to help build the skills for your dream job
When choosing an art course, the INSTRUCTOR: DALE STEPHANOS

biggest decision you’ll make is
whether to go for an online
programme or a traditional course
taught at a bricks and mortar
institution. Both have advantages.
A university course has all the
networking opportunities, the chance
to learn as part of a group, and is a
more immersive experience. On the
other hand, online courses also have
their plus points. They’re substantially
cheaper, don’t require moving home,
and you still get the personalised
tuition and feedback of an in-person
class. Some courses hold their lessons
live so students can interact, and the
structured nature keeps you
motivated and on your toes because
you still have to show up on time.
In this article we explore a few of
the best options out there today, so
you can decide which learning style is
right for you and select a programme
that will help you meet your goals.
STUDENT: ALANA TEDMON
Each course at Visual Arts

Passage exposes you to a host
of inspirational guest speakers,
tutors and mentors.
22
A DAY IN THE COLLECTOR'S YOUR VIEWS,
LIFE OF... PARADISE YOUR ART
We say hello to Greg Take a guided tour as Readers write in with
Hopwood, who fills us comic artist Rufus their art news and
in on a busy schedule Dayglo opens up his opinions on what we've
working in the world studio, filled to the covered in ImagineFX.
of costume concept rafters with mementos Plus, we feature art
design and shares and memorabilia from a that's caught our eye
advice for keen artists. lifetime of collecting. on social media.
Page 28 Page 30 Page 37
INSTRUCTOR: AUDREY BENJAMINSEN
At Visual Arts Passage, students

are mentored by world-class
INSTRUCTOR: JON NEIMEISTER professional working artists.
STUDENT: ELIJAH BOOR
Visual Arts Passage

https://visualartspassage.com
Visual Arts Passage offers online Students sign up for the 10-week
courses taught by working artists tuition blocks one by one until the
from top studios. The big difference is programme is completed. It usually
that rather than having pre-recorded takes a year, but you can repeat the
tutorials to work through in your own career development programme to
time, this academy works on a continue to receive the support of a
schedule and lessons are live. mentor. Each course costs $1,199.
If you follow one of the Visual Arts Classes are live and interactive, with
Passage mentorship programmes, the demonstrations, critiques and guest
idea is that they’ll whip you into shape speakers, and students are also
in just 12 months and you’ll be ready assigned a mentor who delivers one-
to start work as a professional artist. on-one coaching. There are multiple
Courses teach technical skills and the sessions per week. If you can’t attend
industry know-how you need to win the live class, it remains available on-
In some ways, work, and come the end of the demand and you can still receive
programme you'll have a portfolio you feedback on your work.
these online can use to start your career. In some ways these online
programmes get There are three tracks: character

design, illustration and commercial
programmes get you the best of both
worlds: the motivational benefits of a
you the best of gallery art. Once you’ve picked your
track, enrolment happens four times a
structured course, and the
convenience of being able to work
both worlds year, with three or four 10-week from anywhere while maintaining a
courses per programme. flexible schedule.
23
ImagineNation News
STUDENT GROUP PROJECT
Escape Studios is an Unreal

Engine Authorised Training
Centre and a Rookies and
Houdini certified school.
Escape Studios
www.pearsoncollegelondon.ac.uk/escape-studios.html
Established to address the talent time during the evening. Depending

shortage in the entertainment art on the course, you’ll learn about
industry, Escape Studios’ mission is to worldbuilding, character and creature
produce graduates with skill sets creation, how games or animation
tailored for working at top VFX pipelines work, storyboarding, previz,
facilities, animation studios and video and how to use the latest software.
game companies. As you may be aware, there is a
The key point about this academy high and growing demand for artists
is that they work closely with some proficient with Unreal Engine. Escape
of the biggest names within the Studios has a special relationship with
entertainment business to ensure that Epic Games and is one of the few
their ‘Escapees’ are trained in exactly Unreal Authorised Training Centres,
the skills that are currently required so this is an ideal place to get a good
by the industry. The idea is that after grounding in this software.
completing your course, you can get Tutors at Escape Studios are
straight to work in an entry-level role industry veterans who have worked
and be of real value to your employer on blockbuster films and games at
from day one. some of the world’s top VFX,
Escape Studios offers animation and games studios, and
undergraduate, postgraduate and Escapees have gone on to have
short courses in animation, games, careers with similar trajectories.
visual effects and motion graphics. Based in London, this academy gives
The short courses can be studied you easy access to some of the best
either full-time during the day or part- studios in the world.
The idea is that after completing your

course, you can get straight to work in Top companies look to Escape
Studios to deliver the well-trained
an entry-level role and be of value

new talent they need.
24
Artist news, software & events
INSTRUCTOR: DAVE DORMAN
Tutorials from The

Gnomon Workshop are
available for you to work
through in your own time.
INSTRUCTOR: APRIL CONNORS Tutors are working artists, so INSTRUCTOR: ABE TARAKY
you can be sure their teaching
is up-to-date and relevant.
The Gnomon Workshop

www.thegnomonworkshop.com
Not everyone has the chance to move Gnomon instructors are working
to a big city to attend a top art school, professionals from the world’s top
so it’s a good thing that there are studios, so you’re learning workflows,
online learning opportunities that can techniques and software being used
give you a world-class education no by the best in the industry. The
matter where you are. The Gnomon instructor line-up contains real stars,
Workshop is the online offshoot of the giving you the chance to learn the
prestigious Hollywood Gnomon craft from your heroes. For example,
School, established in 2000 to offer you can learn illustration from Dave
top-level VFX, games and animation Dorman, who has worked on Star
training globally. Wars, Spider-Man, The Lord of the
The Gnomon Workshop operates Rings and many other big franchises;
via a subscription model that can be or Jana Schirmer, who has worked on
paid monthly ($54) or annually ($499). video games at BioWare, Obsidian
Your fee gets you access to more than Entertainment, Ubisoft and more.
300 lectures, or over 1,000 hours of Every aspect of digital artistry is
training covering the full animation covered at The Gnomon Workshop, so
and VFX pipeline, with project files it’s a training resource for those in the
available for many lessons. You can early stages of their learning as well as
work through the tutorials at your own professional artists looking to expand
INSTRUCTOR: JANA SCHIRMER pace, as it suits you. their skill sets and stay up to date.
25
ImagineNation News
Proko INSTRUCTOR: STAN PROKOPENKO
www.proko.com/course/drawing-basics/overview
For those at the start of their journey, and the tutor incorporates critiques of
Proko’s online Drawing Basics course student work into the lessons so you
With Proko, you’ll learn
by Stan Prokopenko offers a good can get a sense of how you’re doing.
to draw 3D objects
grounding in the fundamental Each project in the course is from your imagination.
principles you’ll need to learn drawing. presented at two levels, beginner and
The course begins with lessons on line intermediate, so once you’ve nailed
quality and looks at breaking objects the skills at the basic level and got
down into simple shapes, before some practice under your belt, you
moving on to perspective, colour can return to the lessons to finesse
values, and study of how the edges in your abilities at intermediate level.
your drawings can make them more The full programme is $139 and this
dynamic and exciting. gives you access to all the videos
Maintaining momentum is always a forever. The course is currently active
challenge for beginners, so this course with a new tutorial coming out roughly
is designed and paced to help you stay once a week. When you’re ready to
motivated and engaged with the move on to more advanced study,
exercises. The Proko website has a Proko also offers courses on figure
community section where you can drawing, portraits, anatomy, creatures,
post your drawings to get feedback, character art and much more.
INSTRUCTOR: STAN PROKOPENKO
INSTRUCTOR: STAN PROKOPENKO
Maintaining momentum is always a

challenge for beginners, so this course Learning to simplify the shapes,
edges and values of a portrait
is paced to help you stay motivated from observation is a vital skill.
26
On this course you’ll

develop vital core skills
such as communication
and teamwork.
GRADUATE: DANIEL SANDERS
GRADUATE: DANIEL SANDERS
University Centre South Essex

www.southessex.ac.uk/course/digital-animation-ba-hons
For those looking for a traditional chance to work on live projects with such as script and story writing,
university experience, the Digital external clients. You’ll learn core character design, background design
Animation degree at University animation principles such as visual and visual communication. As well as
Centre South Essex is a three-year grammar, concept development, these creative skills, the course wisely
undergraduate course that equips narrative animation and character places a strong emphasis on many
you with a well-rounded skill set for performance, as well as how to use core competencies such as
working as an animator. the main animation software communication, teamwork, problem-
From the outset, this course gives packages used in the industry today. solving and leadership.
you lots of opportunities to get Beyond this, you’ll also learn a host Your final project forms Should you fancy striking out and
practical experience via work of ancillary abilities that will help you the basis of a portfolio starting your own production
that you can use to
placements, field trips, and the to keep your career options open, launch your career. company one day, this course gives
you access to workshops that teach
you the entrepreneurial abilities you’ll
need, as well as the practicalities of
funding and running a business.
In the final year, you’ll produce a
substantial final project as well as a
body of work that you can use as a
basis for your portfolio. A professional
development unit will teach you
about the ins and outs of the
animation and creative industries so
you can plan your career and
GRADUATE: DANIEL SANDERS transition into employment.
27
ImagineNation News
© Netflix
Greg worked on the beastly
clown figures in comedy
horror film The Curse of
Bridge Hollow.
A day in the life of…
© Amazon
Greg Hopwood
Early riser The costume concept artist reveals his
typical day and shares advice for aspiring designers
“If I’ve got an intense schedule, I’m miscellaneous hour, for doctor’s
up at 6am. Before I can even see, I’m appointments, interviews and such.
checking emails. My dog is part My friend Rusty loves cooking, so
cattle dog, so she herds me out the he’ll come over around 5:30pm and
front door. I go to Starbucks because start. At 6:30pm, I send my stuff to
I’m a spoiled millennial who will the designer and power down. My
never be able to afford a house due friends show up and we eat. Vintage and modern there isn’t legislation against AI, there
suit concepts for Soldier
to my coffee intake. Then I stretch Then sometimes I work after that, Boy in Prime Video could potentially be no career path
because sitting at a desk has until 11pm. If I go straight from work to series The Boys. left here anymore. Assuming we can
destroyed my back. sleep, my brain is still figuring out the fight off this threat, I’d recommend
I get all of the un-fun stuff done first costume. If I have time to decompress using social media to your advantage.
– emails, notes, scheduling – then I I’ll watch brain-shut-off TV, then the Fill that feed with artists you want to
shift gears. I need the creative sleep is less but more beneficial. emulate, and also reach out to them. I
equivalent of coffee, so I’ll watch As for advice for newcomers, I get hundreds of DMs on Instagram,
something with choreography like apologise for this pessimism, but if and I answer them.”
K-pop, check out websites of artists I Greg has worked as a costume
love, and so on.
I try to do lunch at noon. If I’m
If I go straight from work concept artist for years,
including designs for The Boys,
having a stressful day, I’ll go on a
short hike or swim, then grab a
to sleep, my brain is still and most recently Agatha:
Coven of Chaos for Disney+. You can see
sandwich or salad. 2pm is my figuring out the costume more of his art at www.greghops.com.
28
Harley Quinn’s roller
© Warner Bros. / DC
derby outfit designed

for Birds of Prey.
Concept art for the lead

character’s La Sirena
outfit in the first season
of Star Trek: Picard.
© CBS / Paramount
Concept Art
Association is an
organisation
committed to
elevating and
raising the profile
of concept artists,
their art and their
involvement in the
entertainment
industries. Its
annual Concept
Art Awards Show
showcases and
recognises
behind-the-scenes
individuals
working in
entertainment
concept art.
conceptart
association.com.
29
ImagineNation Artist in Residence
I assemble my art like my altars, layer As a kid I lived in Tokyo and I’ve framed some of my
by layer, with hidden objects and was obsessed with both favourite pieces from my
conversations. I love it when people Gundam and the light-up ice collection, including a collab
notice a detail years later. cream signs I’d see everywhere with Gerry Talaoc on Tank Girl,
on street corners. and assorted War Picture
Library paintings.
Rufus
Dayglo
Treasure trove The comic
artist shares the awesome
collection that inspires
his work on a daily basis
I live and work in

Saint-Étienne, France.
I bought two little old
shops right next to
each other, one to live
in and one to work in! It’s the best
commute ever.
The shops are about 200 years old,
and I’ve been renovating them myself.
My work studio was a little gun
engraving workshop in the 1870s, and
as I rebuilt it, I found all sorts of rifle
and shotgun parts scattered about
the place in cracks and crevices. I love
that an artisan was also here over 150
years ago, decorating rifles, and now I
sit drawing sci-fi laser blasters.
I tore all the fake walls and ceilings
off my shop and exposed the original
stone walls and wooden ceilings, so it
became a functional, stripped-down
space, and then filled it with way too
many collectibles!
SPACE TO EXPERIMENT
Having my own studio allows me to
spend more time working,
experimenting with my art, and I also
have my toy and art collection to
inspire me. I try to start from 8-9am
and finish 8-10pm most days.
Our little French city is in a valley, so
we are only streets away from small
mountains. At lunchtimes I often go
walking up into the trees, and look
This sign is from where I grew near Shibuya, Tokyo!

It amused me as a kid, so I nicked it when I left. It
sounded so Judge Dredd in it’s English. My studio is
called Scribble, Scribble because of this sign.
30
My childhood copy of Fleetway Super I covered the wall in Situationist slogans Gertrude is an antique Victorian teaching skeleton and I’ve
Library! It was one of the comics that and graffiti from Vivienne Westwood’s had her for 25 years. She is a huge help for drawing, and
inspired me. I wanted to make comics punk shop. My city is a hot bed of great company. She hangs from the wooden ceiling
like this when I grew up. Somehow I do! anti-fascist activism. It felt appropriate! beams, so I can see her from my desk clearly. When I
bought her at a flea market years ago, I had to hail a cab
with the skeleton wearing my coat as I was getting so
many odd looks, and a few cabbies drove off refusing
Gertrude a ride. Happily a lovely woman gave us a lift
home, and even named her for me.
I used to work at
Warner Bros.
Animation. I was
listening to One Piece
at a Time by Johnny
Cash, and in a fit of
boredom-induced
stupidity decided to
disassemble my desk,
and steal it one piece at
I have stacks of reference a time. One month later
books from Comic Cons I had a desk at home.
across the world. There’s also Every comic that I’ve
a Gorillaz figurine, and a ever made was made
THARG doll from 2000 AD. on this desk.
31
My reading area, with sofa and an
old 80s console. Opposite my desk
are my toy cabinets and a beat-up
old Chesterfield sofa complete with
a Pulse Rifle from Aliens for close
encounters. I spend a lot of time
playing the old arcade game, and
the sound cuts in and out.
32
33
Garry Leach’s The V.C.s. This On a visit back to Japan, I managed to find
original was a birthday gift from a 1/12 scale Gundam; he’s just under six-feet
my friend and mentor Garry. tall, and 55 kilos. I also found my beloved
ice cream sign for sale in a market in Ueno.
Explaining these at customs was hard.
down at our neighbourhood.

Something I just couldn’t do at
I love to find silly new things to put
home in Hackney! Living in the
middle of a city, but right next
in my studio at flea markets and junk
to nature is a such a gift. shops, like my six-foot Gundam
My studio is set up so I can
I got to draw this cover, make Comic artwork for 2000 AD The studio is stuffed with old I painted one wall to look like the old
an adaption of one of
my favourite childhood and other publishers in the States and medical display cases full of toy Vivienne Westwood Seditionaries
Judge Dredd epics into Europe. I set my drawing table and robots, Shogun Warriors, Voodoo, store in 1976, on the King’s Road in
a board game! I loved
the Cursed Earth story, computer back-to-back to stop African, and Mexican art, and old London, with Situationist graffiti and
so to get to draw all my myself sitting on eBay all day, which is medical human skeletons and skulls to slogans. I’ve been into punk since I
favourite characters
together was a real gift! a real temptation! That way I can draw draw. It’s a bit like Hannibal Lecter was a little kid, and now I finally have
and listen to loud music, and not get browsing in Hamleys. my own shop I can decorate.
tempted to go down any digital rabbit Luckily we live in a really old, small On the Walls, I have some of my
holes looking at obscure action city, so I find a lot of my furniture in favourite Comic art, from Battle and
figures for my collection. the street! Antique work benches and War Picture Library books, and 2000
such that most people just don’t want AD pages my friends have given me.
here, so I’m forever dragging some Getting to see how other artists make
new piece home after discovering it work has been very important for me;
dumped outside a house being it was my art education. Seeing the
renovated. It’s one of the reasons that originals, and the mistakes the artists
I love France! made helps your problem-solving
abilities, and also makes you feel okay
GLOBAL COLLECTION about making your own errors when
I also travel a lot to comic conventions, you see their own corrections.
and I love to find silly new things to Rufus is a comic and storyboard artist. He
put in my studio at flea markets and has worked on Tank Girl, Judge Dredd,
junk shops, like my six-foot Gundam I Metal Gear Solid, Gorillaz, and Iggy Pop,
I created Counterfeit Girl with Peter
Milligan. When it was collected as a dragged back from Tokyo, and an ice made art for lots of bands, and has a new
TPB edition, I designed this cover cream sign. It stands behind my desk, series out soon in 2000 AD. Follow him at
inspired by my 80s Tokyo childhood.
watching my six while I work! www.instagram.com/rufus_dayglo_art.
34
I work on a transparent plastic artboard,

which I can use as a lightboard. I worked for
a time in animation; it’s part of my practice.
I want your skull! I have a large collection of antique bones and skulls from
old medical and dental collections. I spend a lot of time drawing skeletons for
sci-fi comics and punk bands, and these are the best reference possible. A
lifetime spent trawling flea markets and weird places.
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36
Letters
New works that have

YOUR FEEDBACK & OPINIONS grabbed our attention
Contact the editor, Rob Redman,
on [email protected] or write
to ImagineFX, Future Publishing,
Quay House, The Ambury,
Bath, BA1 1UA, England
Follow us on Twitter: Last month Cameron Scott Davis showed how to
twitter.com/imaginefx combine the traditional with the digital.
Find us on Facebook:
facebook.com/imaginefx Mixed media
Share your artwork via #imaginefx: Hi. I read the last issue and loved it. I
instagram.com/imaginefxmagazine especially enjoyed the workshop near
the back by Cameron Scott Davis. I’d
Sketch love always considered digital vs traditional keelerleah
Good morning ImagineFX. I’m writing as a very binary option, and seeing an @keelerleah
to say well done. Recently you seem to artist combine the two in such a deep
have covered more in the way of way has inspired me to get a scanner and
sketches and line work, which I truly take my sketches into my computer to
appreciate. Line work has been a big finish them off. It’s so lovely to have new
struggle for me and I have never been ideas (to me) pop up!
confident in this, so being able to look at Please keep showing new processes
so many high-quality images in the for us. It’s wonderful to explore fresh
magazine has been a huge help. DID YOU MISS ideas and really helps.
Seeing a line-art cover was great too, THE PREVIOUS Anya, via email
PACKED ISSUE?
and really inspired me to push through Don’t worry –
and keep working on my own projects. you can get hold Rob replies Hi Anya. Thanks for getting
Please keep showcasing the sketchbooks of issue 224 in touch. I know exactly what you mean. I
and line work, as well as the fully at ifxm.ag/ think there is probably a little ‘us vs them’, but
rendered art. single-ifx. in reality they are all tools, so work with what
Jerome, via email gets the job done and enjoy working the way
that suits you best. Cameron definitely proves
Rob replies Hi Jerome. Thanks for that a combination of tools works really well.
contacting us. You aren’t alone in your Not only is it useful for the creative process, Gabriele D’Aleo
struggle with confident lines. I hear from but many traditional artists scan or @89gabrix
many artists, at all levels of experience, who photograph their work for final colour
find this problematic. It’s great to hear that corrections, or simply for delivering to a client.
ImagineFX is helping to alleviate this for you Most work now is consumed digitally, making
and we will absolutely continue to show more Our Sketchbook showcase these skills more important than ever.
of this, including in this issue. Head to page is a key part of the
magazine and we have
48 to check out our latest Sketchbook article! plenty more planned! Subscription woes
Hello, I’ve been a long-time subscriber
but recent months have caused some
problems with getting my issues
delivered. Sometimes I get the wrong
one, others I get none at all. Please help.
Iain, via email
Rob replies Hi Iain. Thanks for contacting

us and sorry to hear about your problems.
These things happen and I totally understand
how frustrating it can be. Even though Catherine Arthur
editorial doesn’t have much to do with the @afferine
deliveries and logistics, I can put you in touch
with the right person. The same applies to any If you’ve created art that you want us to
readers out there. If you have a problem, drop shout about simply tag us on Twitter or
Instagram, and use the hashtag #imaginefx
me an email and I’ll do my best to help out.
37
Interview
DEAK FERRAND
I need somebody to tell me
the story. I want to project the
emotion and I believe you can
do that if you put yourself in
that mood for two days.
Rodeo FX’s Deak Ferrand tells Trevor Hogg why being
in the proper mood for conceptualising is important…
A
long with the many talents
that have seen him
employed as a concept
artist, matte painter and
art director on major
projects such as Blade Runner 2049,
Dune and The Sandman, Deak
Ferrand has developed an interesting
workaround when it comes to ZBrush
as he literally creates clay sculptures.
“For Resident Evil: Welcome to
Raccoon City, I was asked to design a
Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures and Rodeo FX
few creatures and I’m not good at

ZBrush. That’s a problem. You have to
be good at so many different methods
of creating an object.
“Artifices are fine but sculpting in
ZBrush to the level of other concept
artists, I can’t do it. But I can sculpt in
clay, so I asked the visual effects
SYD MEAD’S LAS VEGAS
“The architecture of Las Vegas was designed
supervisor, ‘Do you mind if I do clay by Syd Mead. It’s like, ‘Oh, my god, I don’t
recognise Las Vegas.’ The scale is gigantic.”
maquettes of the creatures and I can
change them quickly. It’s just a matter
of removing things. If you like it, I will POLICE CHARGER Before becoming the head of the art changed my life. I came out of the
take a beautiful picture and do a “The police car in department at Rodeo FX in Los theatre transformed.”
Valerian and the City
turntable where I put it on a Lazy of a Thousand Planets Angeles, Deak was a shy child growing
Susan, roll the thing, and film the has to be threatening.
Those bevelled things
up in Switzerland. “I started to draw CANADIAN MOVE
model.’ He said, ‘Fine.’ on each side give you early on and it was a way to escape Pursuing a career in cinema and visual
a spiky look. It has to
“The client was happy to see a clay have gigantic bumpers and invent my own little world. At the effects was not viable in Switzerland.
model. It’s funny how people react to because this thing is age of 12, I was doing Super 8 movies “It was even hard to find books to
going to try to ram you
something real. Even if it’s rough, in the air.” and makeup effects. I was crappy, but learn. I remember being able to go to
they’ll go, ‘That’s cool. It’s different.’ I wanted to be a makeup effects guy. It this old library and they had Cinefex
love to have the freedom to do things all started when my father took me and Cinefantastique [magazines],
like this. It’s fun, and you develop and to see the original Star which I loved. For me, that was the
maintain skills. You’ll lose Wars film in the way to get in and try to understand
your skills if you theatre. I must have who these people were making magic.
don’t use them.” been nine or ten. That I didn’t really understand how they
Courtesy of EuropaCorp and Rodeo FX
38
Deak Ferrand
WHITE WALKER AND
ARMY OF WIGHTS
“I would do the concept art based on
the 3D assets from Game of Thrones.
I’d repaint, alter things and do them
over. [VFX supervisor] Joe Bauer
would say, ‘I like this.’ It changes fast.”
Courtesy of HBO and Rodeo FX
THE SANDMAN: THE GATES OF HELL

“The Gates of Hell needed to match with the
idea of being a volcanic place. What you’re
thinking of is a volcanic flow that hardens
these bodies, which are melted together.
It’s like a Wayne Barlowe Inferno idea.”
Courtesy of Netflix and Rodeo FX
39
Interview
Artist

HARKONNEN GUNSHIP
PROFILE “Production designer Patrice Vermette
had this idea that the Harkonnen gunship
is like the bubonic plague, so he showed
Deak Ferrand me a picture of an infected guy and some
LOCATION: US images of planes that shoot flares from
FAVOURITE MOVIES: their sides so missiles can’t hit them. It
looks like it’s vomiting fire flares.”
Star Wars, Blade Runner, The Man
Who Would Be King
DESERT ISLAND SONG:
Rêve, from Opéra Sauvage by Vangelis
IN MY NEXT LIFE I WOULD BE:
A film music composer
MEDIA: Cinema 4D for 3D, Photoshop for 2D,
Monster Clay for sculpting, oil paint and
acrylic for traditional art
WEB: www.artstation.com/deakferrand
BLOOD: THE
LAST VAMPIRE
“I had to follow the idea
that vampires look like
bats. This was done in 2D. I
mixed things in Photoshop.”
did it. I started with stop-motion

and miniatures.”
A decision was made to travel to
Canada, which would at least put
Ferrand in close proximity to the US.
“I ended up in Montreal 25 or 26 years
ago, and began to work selling clothes
“Twin brothers extraordinaire,
Gunnar and Meinert Hansen, became
I started to do my own
because there was nothing at all. Then
all of a sudden, this school opened
my mentors because I didn’t know
anything about production. I started
short movies and caught the
right on top of Softimage. I was on commercials and doing some 3D. eye of one of the teachers
working during the day selling clothes Slowly I saw that I could do a lot of
and taking this 3D animation course different things. I pushed for matte movie based on a Philip K. Dick short
at night. I started to do my own short paintings. I really grew my skills, story that helped us to show off.”
movies while I was in class and caught learned so many things and made so
the eye of one of the teachers, who was many mistakes. I was young. It was CONSISTENT WORKFLOWS
working at Buzz Image Group, which wonderful. The big break happened Despite the change in technology over
had just started a 3D department. I with Screamers by Christian Duguay; the years, the types of software and
quit the school. it was a Québécois science fiction workflow have remained constant. “I
am using the same duo of 2D and 3D
software that I used a long time ago,
that are much better now. In the old
days it was Softimage and now I’m
using Cinema 4D. Then Photoshop is
Photoshop. An image has to come out
that looks awfully beautiful, but also
fulfils all the requirements the
production designer will need to be
Courtesy of EuropaCorp and Rodeo FX
able to build sets, or in post to

construct models.
“Today we’re all working the same
way. You’ll build almost everything in
3D first, city or spaceship. It will be a
VALERIAN: ALPHADOCK virtual object. You’ll set your camera
“For me, it was a way to be able to finally
work on The Fifth Element. I know this in that software. Put your human
world and the taste of Luc Besson.”
touch in Photoshop, make it in your
40
Deak Ferrand
PALACE OF THE DREAMING ENTRANCE

“Pieces of dreams create the palace. This is a cool
DREAM’S PALACE
Deak Ferrand on working with VFX supervisor Ian
idea. Then they ask, ‘How does it look when it’s in
ruins?’ You can’t just destroy it. It’s not as interesting.”
Markiewicz during pre-production of The Sandman
“Ian would come down to the not as interesting. There is a lattice

office and we would sit and talk that maintains the structure of the
about ideas. It was a pure design palace. This lattice could be
workflow that would help Ian to following any shape. It doesn’t
figure out the visual effects budget matter what it is.
and the complexity of it. I would do “When he comes back and it’s in
something like Dream’s Palace. The ruins the lattice is still there. All of
concepts that you have are the greenish walls made out of
completely different from the final. dreams would be gone. It looks
“You can see that it’s made out more like an empty skeleton rather
of pieces of dreams. Someone was than just destroying the palace. We
dreaming of a face of somebody were going this way and saying,
who is in there. This is a cool, ‘Let’s try the mechanics,’ because if
surreal idea. Then they ask you, you can find a mechanic in the
‘How does it look when it’s in design, you can apply it to any
ruins?’ You can’t just destroy it. It’s angles and views.”
DUNE IMPERIAL SHIP

“Denis Villeneuve definitely knows what he

wants. You’re a translator of his vision. In his
movies there’s always something constant. How
does he see the world? What’s his angle?”
style, and then you can give the 3D

model to the production designer or
visual effects supervisor. Then the
director can say, ‘I love this
environment, but show me in this
other angle with different lights.’ Most BLADE RUNNER 2049
concept artists will have a 3D base.” “You’re always looking for ways to
show scale by putting something
Driving the conceptualisation is the that people are familiar with and
vision of the filmmaker. “I say to know right away. All of the middle
ground of Las Vegas is normal-
young people starting in this business, scale buildings and freeways. As it
‘Listen, we’re not fine artists. If you goes in the background, boom! you
have these gigantic structures.”
want to do art by yourself, do it at
41
Interview
BATTLE OF THE BLACKWATER

“You want it bright enough you can
see things, and at the same time dark
enough that it doesn’t look so fake.”
PLANS OF
ACTION
Deak produced artwork for
two high-action sequences
in Game of Thrones
“The action is specific. I’m doing
concepts that are there to help the
lighters, animators, and the guys who are
doing the camerawork to make sure that
they understand the story. Can you
imagine how long it would take, for both
battles, to come up with something that
the client would like [if they had to be
rendered in 3D]? It was easier with [visual
effects supervisor] Joe Bauer. I would do
this based on the 3D assets and repaint
or change things. Joe would say, ‘I like
this.’ It changes fast.
“It’s a shock for the animators and the
people who are going to do the shots,
because we’re talking way more than
one. I’m showing them an idea of the
entire sequence in one concept. They’ll
go, ‘Oh, crap!’ You want it bright enough
so you can see things, and at the same
time dark enough that it doesn’t look so
fake. It’s a fine line. You’re trying to have
Courtesy of HBO and Rodeo FX
an impression that you’re seeing things

that are not there. Using a bit of smoke
there helps prevent all of the information
getting in your face, as otherwise it’d be
too much. It’s an impression of detail.”
42
Deak Ferrand
GAME OF THRONES:
BEYOND THE WALL
“I’m showing animators and
the people doing the shots an
idea of the entire sequence in
one concept.”
Using a bit of smoke helps

prevent all of the information
getting in your face. It’s an
impression of detail
43
Interview
We’re here to tell a story, but

first to tell a visual story at one
point in the movie or timeline
Courtesy of Universal Pictures and Rodeo FX

the weekend. We’re here to tell a definitely knows what he wants. You’re production concepts. “Not because
story, but first to tell a visual story at a translator of his vision. That’s they weren’t beautiful,” Deak recalls.
one point in the movie or timeline. important. You have to listen and “Denis didn’t have enough time to get
We’re trying to help the shot that was understand the person to know where the concepts exactly where he wanted
before to move to the shot after. It’s he comes from. You have to watch all them. It was a big movie in terms of
important to understand what it is. of his movies to understand what he’s visual effects and Denis got frustrated,
“Second, you’re like a psychologist. looking for. What is he trying to say? because now he was trying to explain
You’re trying to enter the mind of the In his movies there’s always something to the visual effects companies what
director. If he could do the concept, he constant. How does he see the world? he wanted again and they didn’t get it
would do it. Your job is to try to be as What’s his angle? This is all the work because, ‘I can’t draw.’
close to his vision as you can. Lots of that’s important before you start.” “It was a real problem. I would sit
people don’t know what they want, with him and he would conceptualise
that’s fine too. Then you go, ‘Let me try GETTING THE MESSAGE ACROSS ideas and things that were already in
to understand something that might During post-production for Blade the post-production process, to do it
make you happy.’ But when you’re Runner 2049, Villeneuve realised he exactly the way he wanted. Now I’m
working with Denis Villeneuve, he was not happy with a lot of the pre- going to take that image and bring it to
the visual effects company and say,
‘You do that.’
“For Dune, it was like, ‘I’m not going
to make the same mistake. That’s what
we’re doing.’ He will do the concepts
and when the concepts are finished,
we are going to bring that to post-
production and they’re going to do
HARKONNEN ORNITHOPTER exactly that. That made him a lot less
“Patrice Vermette asked that
since I’d designed the Harkonnen stressed about the whole process of
ships, could I do an ornithopter? I trying to explain what he wanted in
followed the recipe I’d developed.”
post-production.”
44
Deak Ferrand

THE SANDMAN: THE
COLUMN MOOD TEST
“The job of the production
designer is to give you images,
objects and textures that work;
then you start to talk to him and
look at other things. It’s a real
collaboration finding the canvas
where you can start to build the
idea, palette, and texture.”

URBAN ATMOSPHERE
“For the mood of LA, Denis said,
‘Make it look like you’re underwater.’
There’s no definition to the fog.
When I did my concept, it was too
much like Hong Kong and Shanghai,
where the humidity creates clouds.”
DUNE: LIET-KYNES HOUSE

“Liet-Kynes is living in an old quarry where they
have dug out the rock to make the city. She made
it her home and lives more like a Fremen.”
BRINGING BACK THE

COCA-COLA SIGN
An iconic location from the original Blade Runner’s
Los Angeles resurfaces 30 years later in the sequel
“I have lived in the world of Blade that the other shots aren’t good,
Runner since the first one came but they were different and less
out,” Deak says. “I’ll spend evenings saturated. He said I could do a
still listening to the Vangelis standalone shot.
soundtrack. When I had the chance “Just after the shot where the
to do a few shots for Blade Runner police chief says something about
2049, I couldn’t refuse. the soul to K, Denis wanted to cut
“When Denis [Villeneuve] came to the Coca-Cola sign, which to him
to the office, I played a little trick on meant something about being
him. We had this gigantic 4K TV soulless. I said, ‘I want to do that. I
and I was playing an up-res Blu-ray want to do the Coca-Cola and
VAN HELSING of the original with one of the shots Atari.’ I did another shot and
“Stephen Sommers was writing
the script for Van Helsing, and I’d
that I love with the rain. He comes concept where I was able to put
come to see him and he would tell in and goes, ‘Oh, Blade Runner.’ I my Pan Am logo. I was so happy! I
me a scene. He said, ‘Dracula
needs a castle.’ I would go home asked, ‘Do you want a little Blade would play Vangelis’s music all the
and do my thing. We would meet Runner in your Blade Runner?’ Not time while working on this shot.”
again. That was organic and fun.”
45
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47
Artist
PROFILE
Célia Beauduc
LOCATION: France
Célia is a freelance artist

in perpetual research,
navigating between
traditional and digital
techniques. Leaning
towards purity, she creates delicate
universes where nature holds a
he
figures in t
privileged place. Célia is nourished by
ith female the great Viking epics of yesteryear
ew
ns combin sy character sketches
and fantasy stories, and her
insp ira t io experiments have led her to graphic
Natural eries of fan

ta design and illustration for books.
h ar t ist ’s s www.instagram.com/linu_art_
Frenc
FLOWER FAIRY
“This one is special for me. I
found an old sanguine and
wanted to draw something soft
and delicate. This is what
came out!”
SMILE LEAVES
“She feels the wind.
“I drew this one pretty Drawing hair is, for me,
quickly with my Pentel. I’m not relaxing and meditative.
entirely happy with it, but I I’m not thinking of
love her eyes.” anything else.”
48
Sketchbook Célia Beauduc
SWEET FRIEND
“She knows she can count on
him and never be disappointed.
He is and will always be her
closest confidant.”
I love drawing
portraits with strong
expressions and trying
to project a feeling
LET ME
TELL YOU…
“I love drawing portraits with
strong expressions and
trying to project a feeling.
You can communicate
so much with the
eyes!”
49
INKTOBER:
FORGOTTEN
SWORD
“Nature is not consistent
and you can make
mistakes. That’s
something I appreciate. I
like to add animals that
you don’t see often,
like the maned
wolf here.”
50
TSSS
“‘What a silly
joke,’ she thought.
Here is one of my
daily doodles when
I’m not thinking of
what I want to
draw.”
MERMAID
“I love drawing with
coloured pencils. I can
find inspiration with them,
especially when I draw
with intuition like
RED SKETCH
“I stayed in my comfort
this one.” zone here, but I wanted to work
a bit more than usual on the
details and textures.”
WINGS
“I’m playing with
the lines and the
CRYSTAL
“Each Inktober I like
shapes here. Never
stop playing.”
drawing my queen with her

companion. She comes to
life only at this time.”
Nature is not consistent and

you can make mistakes. That’s
something I appreciate
51
WITCH
“Even digitally, I like to find
QUEEN
“She knows there is
brushes with nice textures to have nothing left to do to save
the feeling of my traditional work. I them! Some daily
used a Proko pencil in Infinite exploration.”
Painter that reminds me
of charcoal.”
INKTOBER:
OVERGROWN
“It’s interesting to see how a simple drawing
INKTOBER: can come to life just by adding tiny details
like butterflies and contrasts.”
PLANT
“I drew her when I was DOODLE
pregnant. At that time the “I was trying
word ‘plant’ was perfect to a new brush to
symbolise the new life experiment with
ahead me.” texture and fluidity,
loosening up my
movements
a little.”
It’s interesting to see how a

simple drawing can come to
life by adding tiny details
52
INKTOBER:
MASK
“I was using two words
instead of the usual one –
mask and fish – to help
me beat my struggles
and be more
creative.”
Do you want to share your sketches with your fellow ImagineFX readers? Send us an email with a
selection of your art, captions for each piece and a photo and bio of yourself to [email protected]
53
here’s a rich and deep horror-styled, and has a visual energy Sylvain Degrotte, a
visual tradition for that might be familiar from other Sam CG supervisor at
filmmakers to tap Raimi movies; notably The Evil Dead Framestore, offers a
into when they and his Spider-Man films. deep dive into the
approach an Fundamental to the work required creative choices and
adaptation of a comic to mount a lavishly resourced comic challenges of the project
book. For Doctor Strange book movie like Doctor Strange in the for the studio’s visual
in the Multiverse of Madness, Multiverse of Madness is the input of a development team, and how
the world of Marvel’s Doctor Strange visual development and concept art that work informs visual effects
comic heritage, and the established team, whose work becomes part of a elements. The concept art generated
visual style of the character’s first dynamic with the visual effects and by the team at Framestore allowed for
eponymous feature film (2016) animation departments to tell a story an exploration of storytelling
provided opportunities to both in a coherent and vivid way. possibilities around mood, scale,
honour the legacy and strike out to genre, tone, and key points of
create new images and forms. A fusion
of genres – fantasy, horror, and time
Only the infinite road that character and plot.
We begin by discussing Sylvain’s
travel – as it progresses, Doctor
Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
Doctor Strange runs on made entry point for involvement in the art
department for Framestore’s work on
becomes increasingly Gothic and the final cut of the film the film. He recalls: “We had a
54
Xxxxxxxxxx
IMPORTANT CHOICES
The work of the visual development
team at Framestore informed choices
about key plot points, tone and scale.
STYLISTIC CONTINUITY
The movie’s visual style echoed
and developed that established in
the first Doctor Strange film.
All images courtesy of Framestore © Marvel 2022
VISHANTI
VISUALISATION
Visualising the Temple
of Vishanti enabled
Framestore’s expert
visual development
team to draw on
real-world cues.
55
Feature
great relationship with Janek Sirrs COMIC HOMAGE “We didn’t want to redo the same
[production VFX supervisor] and Marvel’s Doctor sort of procedural fractal visuals; we
Strange comic series
Cyndi Ochs [production VFX served as a frame of wanted to propose something new.
producer], as we had worked together reference for the visual What began as a freefall evolved into
development work.
on the illusion battle in Spider-Man: multiple snapshots of the same New
Far From Home, which was a very York City street spliced throughout
creative sequence. Marvel reached out different universes. Starting with a
to Framestore in 2019 to work on the blank sheet of paper allowed us to say,
sequel to Doctor Strange.” ‘What if we had a world made of…?’
and create something where, in a
VISUAL LANGUAGE fraction of a second, the audience is
“At that time, it was a very different able to tell what type of universe we
script,” Sylvain continues. “For are travelling through.
example, there was a sequence called “Of course, we referenced the comic
Ellis Room, set in Ellis Island prison, books a lot. Our Temple of Vishanti
where characters in photographs on was inspired by work from [Doctor
walls came to life. We developed the Strange creator] Steve Ditko. The north
side of the temple is an homage to the TEMPLE EXPLORATIONS
The portal ride sequence wacky environment in Ditko’s comic
books. As the sequence evolved, we’ve
The Temple of Vishanti design allowed the
Framestore team to explore the visual
complexity of the location.
definitely echoed the mystery lost most of the Ditko objects floating
amongst the stars, and so only the
tour from the first film infinite road that Doctor Strange runs
on made the final cut of the film.”
idea of flat, painted characters
transforming and solidifying out of FREEDOM TO CREATE
their picture frames as 3D objects The back and forth between
made of paint. We did some concepts screenplay and further, parallel visual
on how they could detach from the development was mutually beneficial.
concrete, what sort of look they would Sylvain offered an insight into this
have when they walk, and the kind of dynamic between what the screenplay
abilities that living paint might have.” suggests, and how much scope the
Sylvain also describes how the concept artists have to develop that.
established visual language of the first “We had a really collaborative

Doctor Strange movie and the Marvel process with the team at Marvel
comics inspired their own creative Studios,” he explained. “They were
approach to the work for the sequel. open to all of our ideas and so we
“The portal ride sequence definitely brought as much creativity as we
echoed the mystery tour from the first could, right from the beginning. The
Doctor Strange film, where the portal-ride sequence was in the script
Ancient One separates Stephen from the start, briefed as a freefall of
Strange’s consciousness from his Doctor Strange and America [Chavez]
body,” he says. from one universe to one another.
56
Multiverse of Madness
MULTIVERSE TRAVELLERS
Visual development informed
director Sam Raimi and his
collaborators in exploring the
dynamics of travelling through
a series of multiverses.
TAKING A
MULTIVERSE RIDE
The freefall scene was the result of a
lengthy process, says Sylvain Degrotte
“From the outset, we knew there was going to be a ride
through different multiverses with our hero characters in
freefall. What we know now as the portal ride sequence
was originally called the helter-skelter sequence. The brief
was very open, so our art department gathered lots of
references, and started laying the groundwork on what
this sequence could entail. Some of their initial concepts
such as characters transforming into paint, and an
environment made of skull and bones, remained in
the final cut of the film. In total, our development
process lasted three months.”
57
Feature
PARISIAN REFERENCE
In designing the Temple of Vishanti
scenes, subtleties of light and colour were
informed by the stained glass windows of
the Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris.
It was something as cool as the ride

in the first Doctor Strange, but
universe to another. It’s a star-shaped
portal that she breaks into by
It was a challenging effect
completely different. It was important
that it was executed as one single take,
punching a sort of crystal door. In the
comic, the visual is a very simple star
that was very much art
which always adds complexity.” shape and some crystal debris. The directed to tell the story
Breaking down the visual brief was that the portal should
development process for a particular ‘shatter the plate’, letting us see other sell the idea that it physically exists in
sequence, Sylvain notes how the visual universes through the opening. the scene. We looked at lots of
effects work was informed by visual “Early on our vis-dev team came up references to make it physically
development and concept artwork. with a 2D motion concept that was plausible. It was important to come up
“[America’s character] has the power very well received. From there we with coherent effects that make a link
to open a portal to go from one moved on to a 3D version that would with America’s performance.
“This journey led us to a portal
made of crystal that keeps shattering
and reconstructing itself. The stability
of the portal edges correspond to the
ability of America Chavez to control
her power. As she feels more confident

with it, the portal shape would get
more and more stable.
“Our FX team developed a setup in
Houdini to follow our own made-up
COMPLEX VISUALS logic. The borders of the star portal
The interaction of would constantly shatter and release
clouds with lighting and
live-action elements debris to the other universe, the area
were a key creative that just shattered would immediately
challenge for the team
at Framestore to tackle. start to reconstruct itself. The speed of
58
Multiverse of Madness
CONCEPT
ARTIST SKILLSET
Sylvain Degrotte explains how Framestore’s
concept art team approach creativity
“Pretty much all concept artists at Framestore have
diversified their skillset. They can use modelling software
like ZBrush, and texture and render their artwork in a 3D
software. Then they finish the work in a more traditional
way with their painting and compositing skills. It makes
their concept art even more believable, I think. As artists we
should always look for references. Watching movies is
great, but we should also look at every other form
of art like dance, painting and sculpting, have
fun with different mediums. 3D is
just one of them.”
the regeneration causes a stress on the

outer border of the portal, which
creates cracks like an earthquake
would make. It was a challenging
effect that was very much art directed
in order to tell the story.”
REAL-WORLD INFLUENCES
Sylvain further defines the dynamic
between concept art and completed
visual effects elements. “For other
aspects of the film, we had a
wonderful starting point in the form LIGHTING DETAILS
Visual development work contributed
of the visuals from Marvel Studios’ to defining lighting nuances that can
production designer Charles Wood. tie together live-action and visual
effects environment work.
The Vishanti temple had a clear
direction from the get-go; Charles
drew on Portuguese and Moroccan to be able to get from point A to point visual development work, and cites
styles, with the large stained-glass B, but how it got there was ours to Framestore’s work on the Temple of
windows inspired by the Vatican and invent. We did a lot of different Vishanti as a standout example. “The
Notre-Dame. It really gave us a solid motion studies. Does it fly? Is it temple was technically the most
foundation upon which to build our floating like a squid? Or crawling like difficult. The development took
visual development concepts. a spider? Eventually we settled on a months to get the sequence to where it
“The demon in the Vishanti Temple combination, but it was a really fun needed to be visually and technically.
[known to us as the Demon Crawler] journey to go on.” We had a combination of extra steps
also gave us a lot of scope. The script Sylvain was also keen to identify a and complexity that contributed
laid out the actions so we knew it had particularly challenging aspect of the greatly to the overall challenge.”
59
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Advice from the world’s best artists

62 76
68
This issue:
62 Sketching with
the Mixer Brush
Daryl Mandryk’s insight on one
of his favourite Photoshop tools.
66 Observe and
improvise
Advice from Alariko on using
your surroundings in your art.
68 Expressive
character illustration
Olga Andriyenko explains her
workflow for a bewitching piece.
82
74 Finding the
right angle
Toivo Huhtaniska shares the
secrets to his Unreal Engine art.
76 Create a concept
vehicle design
Learn how Bernie Walsh made
a speedy prize-winning sketch.
82 Composition
development
How Filipe Pagliuso moves from
first sketch to finished artwork.
61
Workshops
Photoshop
SKETCHING WITH
THE MIXER BRUSH
Artist Daryl Mandryk shows the flexibility of Photoshop’s
PROFILE versatile tool as he generates a character concept
Daryl Mandryk
LOCATION: Canada
Daryl has worked as a I’m always looking for but it is essentially a cross between normal brushes. This can create
video game concept
artist for over 20 years,
new ways to create the Stamp and Smudge tools. some interesting brushstrokes and
contributing to a wide images, and recently It works by sampling part of an add a bit of life to your work.
variety projects. I’ve been enamoured image and then using that as a brush This sketch was made almost
https://bit.ly/3YWSTec
with the Mixer Brush tip to paint with. By playing with the entirely using the Mixer Brush. I’ll
in Photoshop. It has a number of settings you can achieve a host of give you a few tips and insights on
advantages, and a few drawbacks, different effects, similar to the the tool as I take you through the
over the normal Photoshop brushes, Opacity and Flow settings used with creation of my sketch.
How I create…
A REFINED ROBOT CHARACTER
Simple start Develop the character Image refinements

1 I’m looking at a photograph for
2 Here we are getting more refined and
3 Almost done. The design has come
colour and lighting reference, but just as a I need to start making decisions. I spend a together and I’ve settled on a simple shape
starting point to find colours to work with. lot of time on the head, trying to come up design for the head. At this point I can
Once I have a palette I quickly knock in a with something simple and striking. This refine as much or as little as I like. Since this
background and a rough sketch. At this doesn’t make the cut, but experimentation is just a sketch I won’t go too far with it.
stage everything is very loose, I don’t feel is an important part of my workflow. You There is something nice about leaving areas
the urge to commit to any particular design; can also see the wide variety of marks I’m that look a little unfinished, as it gives a
it’s just loose and fun. No details! getting by using different samples. feeling of spontaneity.
62
In depth Mixer Brush
63
Workshops
SET THE SCENE DIFFUSE SKY LIGHTING
RIM LIGHT
Find the right light

A quick word on lighting. I like to keep it simple.
Here I am mainly imagining diffuse lighting coming
from a sky dome above the character. This gives
pretty soft overall lighting, which is good for
showing form. Then I add in a simple rim light to
help pop the character off from the background.
BEFORE AFTER
Background details
Here you can see I am adding a Lighten layer to the
shapes in the background, and then brushing over it
with various Mixer and Texture brushes to get some
nice variety. Then I’ll play with the ‘Blend If’ options
in Photoshop to get an interesting mix. I’ve included
a couple of my Mixer Brush presets that you can
experiment with yourself.
64
In depth Mixer Brush
Focal points
I like to add small areas of juicy, saturated colour as
focal points where I want the viewer’s eye to go.
Usually this colour will not appear anywhere else. In
this case I chose his eye as a focal point, so I made
sure to blast this area with some hot pink. Little
touches like this are the icing on your art cake.
RESOURCES
PHOTOSHOP
CUSTOM BRUSHES:
PRESETS
One of the great parts of

the Mixer Brush is the
ability to select from a
range of brush tips, as
well as adding extra
presets to your library.
Material contrasts
I like to indicate various materials to
add contrast and interest to my Experimentation
design. For example, cloth By playing with the spacing of your
contrasted with more robotic Mixer Brush, you can get a result that
elements. Small colour and texture is very similar to repeating hard-
variations within those elements can surface details.
allude to another sub-layer of
material differentiation.
Brushes
The great thing about the Mixer Brush
is that it can use any of your existing
brush tips. First go to your Mixer Brush
tool by selecting it with Shift+B, then
go to Window>Brush Settings. Here
you can select Brush Tip Shape from
your existing library of brushes. Now
that you have your brush selected, you
can play with the different mixer
controls to get various effects. In
particular, the Mix and Flow settings
can give you different painterly
effects. I’ve included a few of my
presets, but experiment with the
options available to find the settings
that feel right for you.
65
Workshops
Technique focus “All of my art starts as a vague idea. I After I change the colour of the
OBSERVE AND
like to improvise while I draw the line-art from black to light brown
line-art to keep the freshness of this and set it to Colour Burn, I use
IMPROVISE
idea. After finishing the line-art I Linear Burn for the shadows.
move to the colouring phase, which Characters are added in a different
is unconstrained as well. layer like in 2D animations, then
I start by painting element by everything is colour corrected in
Alariko brings in inspiration from their element. For example, in this piece I Adobe Lightroom.
surroundings to build out rich artwork started with the restaurant, My secret to a rich background is
continued with the elements that are just to look around you. Plenty of
near it, then painted the sea and the details surround you, all you have to
mountains in the distance. do is focus on them.”
66
Tech Focus Scene development
Artist 1
PROFILE
Alariko
LOCATION: Spain
Alariko is an art student

in Spain with a big
interest in background
painting and visdev, as
well as a passion for
french fries.
https://alariko.carrd.co
67
Workshops
Clip Studio Paint

EXPRESSIVE
CHARACTER
ILLUSTRATION
Learn how Olga Andriyenko plans out and creates
a challenging scene featuring a cauldron of witches
68
In depth Expressive illustration
69
Workshops
There is a lot to look for inspiration in mundane, interact. When I finally start
Artist
PROFILE consider when
drawing a group of
everyday moments and apply it to
magical situations. Who doesn’t have
drawing, I keep it rough to be able to
move and bend the characters until I
Olga characters. But before a memory of squeezing into a tiny find a composition that works for the
“AsuRocks” getting lost within car with too many people? How story I have in my mind.
Andriyenko anatomy, character design and would this play out on a broom with After this I can focus on the facial
LOCATION: Germany
fashion choices, I focus on the story a group of excited young witches expressions, which I find most
Olga is a freelance story that I want to tell. going to a magical party? important for strong character art.
and visual development
artist working for games, For this illustration I want to Sometimes I plan out what each For these, practising from reference is
animation and comics. picture a lively moment of witches character is doing in my head before immensely helpful, no matter if it’s
She loves drawing
sharing a broom ride. I like to add I even start drawing. I think about from photos or movies, or most
stories and feelings.
https://asurocks.art some humour to my work, so I often their mood and how they could conveniently of all your own face!
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RESOURCES
CLIP STUDIO PAINT

CUSTOM BRUSHES: Keep it rough
CHALK 2
1 I plan my composition with rough character sketches. I know my background will be a night sky, which is not so
rigid in terms of perspective and scale, so I can ignore it for now and focus on the characters and how they interact.
Textured chalk brush For multi-character scenes like this one, I pay special attention to where bodies overlap and touch. During the
used to create softer sketching process I keep all of the characters on separate layers to be able to move them around easily.
edges and gradients on
the clouds.
FINE NOISE
Almost like a soft

airbrush, but does not
look as clean and digital.
LACED RIBBON
A lace pattern that I

used to decorate the
characters’ clothing.
REAL G-PEN TEXTURE
My preferred inking
brush that allows me to
Be your own reference
2
draw extremely thin or
thick lines by varying
My favourite part of the process is usually drawing Let them interact
pressure. I use it with and
without the texture on. facial expressions. I sometimes look at reference pictures 3 When dealing with a group, it’s more interesting to
THIN GOUACHE
I’ve found, but the easiest method to find the exact have some interaction between the characters involved. I
expression I need is to do it myself. Sometimes I just act keep it natural and try not to force it, so not every
them out in front of the mirror, or I take photos with my character is interacting with another. But even if they
A buttery, painterly phone, as it’s hard to see yourself in the mirror while don’t, perhaps their belongings do, like one of the
brush that I used for squeezing your eyes shut! It also helps to feel which witches’ hats poking another, or someone’s long hair
background elements
like clouds and buildings.
muscles are getting tense while making the expression. being blown into somebody else’s face. If it adds some
This is also useful for full-body or hand poses. humour, then even better.
70
Squeeze and stretch

4 While refining my sketch, I use transformation
tools to move elements or adjust a part of someone’s
anatomy without having to redraw everything. I use the
Transform and Mesh Warp tools for bigger adjustments, Finished sketch
like changing perspective of a body part. For subtler and 5 As a fashion lover, I like to spend time deciding on the outfits for my
more detailed changes I use the Liquify tool. It can be characters. But as soon as I’ve figured those out, I try to leave the sketch behind as
useful to exaggerate facial expressions by pulling the eyes soon as possible. I’ve noticed that too clean of a sketch tends to make my line-art
open wider, raising an eyebrow or squeezing cheeks. rather stiff, so I try to keep it as rough as I can.
Lively lines
6 I prefer an inking brush with some texture and a
high width variation. I rarely change the brush size, so I
want to be able to draw thin and thick lines just with the
pressure I apply. This keeps them more fluid. Clip Studio Folds and creases
Paint’s Stabilization function is a great help, but I like to 7 I add subtle lines in places where the skin creases, which often happens with
keep the setting low at around 2-3. When I need to draw strong expressions. I experiment with how much realism I can add while in
long, curved lines I’ll set it higher. keeping with my style and not making the characters too tired or wrinkly.
71
Workshops
Custom brushes
8There are plenty of helpful downloadable custom
brushes for elements that can be tedious to draw by Colour flats
hand, like lace, but it’s also easy to get lost in them. I’m 9 I set my finished line-art layer or layer group as a reference and proceed with
absolutely guilty of brush hoarding. I’ve also built a filling in all the flat colours for my characters. I alternate between different fill
collection of scanned manga screentones (Clip Studio tools for different parts. For some elements the automatic tools work fine, but
Paint also has an entire library of them). All of these others I have to draw in or fill with the Lasso. I create a base layer for the entire
came in handy for lace elements on the witches’ clothing. character group, and then make all the colour layers as clipping masks on top.
10 Adjustments, adjustments, and

more adjustments
At this point I need some basic background to be able to
choose more fitting colours. It’s not pretty yet, but it does
the job. I go back and forth between the background and
the characters’ colours a lot, making tweaks until I feel
they work together. I use the Hue/Saturation/Luminosity
Tonal Correction most of the time, but also layer subtle
fills and gradients.
72
Foreground witch
11 I outlined the witch who is close to the camera
with a softer brush to make her look slightly out of focus. 12 Setting the mood
Now I spend some quality time with the background. I use gradients and
To emphasise this effect, I also add a horizontal motion a large, soft airbrush to colour the night sky. I paint in the clouds, alternating
blur to the line-art and colour flat layers. between a dense gouache brush and softer pastel brushes for feathered edges.
13 Adding some magic

I create the stars with a particle spray airbrush. To
make elements glow I duplicate the layer, apply the
Gaussian Blur filter, and play around with the colour and
the layer blending mode of the blurred layer until I like
the result. For a more magical glow, like the Moon’s, I
create new layers and paint it in with a fine noise 14 Shiny details
I give my characters a final polish by adding a pinkish rim light from the
airbrush. I experiment with layer blending modes and Moon, and a more surreal teal one from below. I add shine to glossy materials and
sometimes happy accidents like the peachy-pink Moon reflections, like the ones created by the light of the magical mirror. I draw all these
glow happen, and I just go along with them. details on a new layer on top of the line-art.
73
Workshops
Technique focus “Pillars is a fully 3D with a directional light, fill lights to
FINDING THE
scene running in fake global illumination, and
Unreal Engine. It’s traditional fog cards.
built to resemble a The pillars of rock and the terrain
RIGHT ANGLE traditional painting

more than a game environment, so I
crafted it with a single viewing angle
are hand-sculpted for maximum
control over the shapes, and
supported by scanned Heightmaps
Toivo Huhtaniska reveals the tricks that in mind. This was a big time saver for a realistic result. I textured the
give his 3D project a traditional art feel and allowed me to nail the rock features in Substance Painter,
composition and lighting. I opted to but the terrain uses a landscape-style
not use the Lumen system here, and material with tiling textures applied
instead the lighting was achieved using Vertex Colors.”
74
Tech Focus Perspective
Artist
PROFILE
Toivo
Huhtaniska
LOCATION: Finland
Toivo is a Helsinki-based
artist in the video games
industry. He describes
himself as a rock
enthusiast and a nerd
about all things related
to both architecture
and music.
https://bit.ly/3KeYQi7
75
Workshops
Sketchbook
CREATE A CONCEPT
VEHICLE DESIGN
Transport design guru Bernie Walsh guides us
through his process for the creation of a sleek,
prize-winning concept ready to ride in the snow
This workshop comes For anyone who wants to work on Set yourself a timeline. I usually
Artist
PROFILE from my entry into
the Agorapode
their vehicle design concept skills
and practise the ability to work to a
think about it for a day in between
work, then quickly gather my
Bernie Walsh AGPContest, which is brief, I would absolutely suggest references for 20 minutes, otherwise
LOCATION: Australia
a monthly car design entering these types of art I’ll spend all day looking online.
Bernie is a design concept art challenge run mainly on competitions. I do it regularly in Then start sketching, giving yourself
specialist who has Instagram. The organisers give you between design projects to exercise about two hours, by which point you
worked mainly in the
transport industry, three prompt words to create your my little grey cells and to keep should have a concept.
designing a host of vehicle from; in this case they were improving my sketching skills. Remember that the sketch doesn’t
vehicles for road, rails
‘snow’, ‘coupe’ and ‘retro’. To make these challenges work for need to be in great detail; that will
and the water. He is
passionate about digital The competition is judged on you and train your brain to work come as you are working on it. This
design, sketching and creativity, the design and the final faster and more creatively, try not to whole process also allows me to
creative thinking.
https://bit.ly/3EuScAj
presentation, plus how well you stick spend too much time on them. Us explore new skills and images I
to the given themes. And at the end designers tend to keep redesigning, wouldn’t normally use, like the snow
of this one, it was my design that so keep this as one concept of many in this sketch. But above all, this
came out the winner! and more will flow from it. should be an enjoyable process!
76
In depth Vehicle concepts
Start sketching and work

1 towards the competition brief
I don’t spend a lot of time on a really detailed line sketch
for my concept at this stage, because I’ll clean up the lines
when I start to block in the colour. For my sketch lines I
use the Fineline Pen tool, which gives me a cross between
a pen and pencil feel. I had to put in some research to
follow the prompts. First I looked up the correct meaning
of coupe, which is a car with a fixed roof and two doors.
For retro, I took a 1930s Ford and created a hot rod
silhouette with a wedge-shaped nose flowing into the
main body. When it came to the snow theme, I fitted
traction engine wheels modified for grip, plus
snowmobile skis for the front and steering.
77
Workshops
Introduce colour
3 It’s time to add some colour to our vehicle and
block in areas of our image. I first select a new layer and
block in the main body profile by sketching the outline
Mirrored canvas with the Brush tool, then filling in that area. When filling
2At this stage I’ll mirror the canvas so my brain sees the sketch perspective and the outlines I always find it simpler to use a dark grey
proportions for the first time, and make any adjustments, flipping the image back colour, because it’s much easier to see than the actual
and forth as I add or subtract lines. I’ll also sketch contour lines onto the body to finished body colour, which can come after the filling
show the surface form of the vehicle. process has been completed.
A B
C D
Add form
4 Next up I lock the transparency of that layer, and use the Airbrush tool to spray light and dark hues of the colour to show the form of the
body. I’ll then add a background environment layer behind the body layer, so I can see it to pick colours for the top surfaces that reflect the sky.
78
Behind the scenes

5 Now I add the vehicle’s black interior, as well as the subframe areas as another new layer behind the body layers. I’d also recommend
adding a shadow underneath the vehicle, as this will place it within the background for a more realistic image.
A B C D
E F G H
I J K
Wheels and skis

6 Every vehicle needs a way
to get around, so this is the stage
we’ll make that happen for our
snow coupe! Once again I’ll use a
separate layer to construct these
components, which is always
good practice.
79
Workshops
Take a look underneath

7 Once the body is reasonably complete, I then start to add the door lines and the body separation lines. To make this process easier, I
reduce the transparency of the body colour layer so that I can see the sketch lines underneath, and then just add in the extra details.
A B C
Hood details D E
8 We don’t want to forget to let our
vehicle breathe! The vent details on the hood
were created by sketching one in with a fine
airbrush on a new layer, then duplicating and
placing it over the line sketch position, as
well as the rough sketch that you can see
through the transparent layer. Adding these
elements brings an extra layer of realism.
Duplication trick
9 Here’s a little tip. I’ll take all the wheel layers, merge and hit the copy button, but won’t paste them just yet. Using the undo arrow I first
unmerge the layers so I can alter or use them later on. With that done, I can now paste the assembled wheel layers, which remained merged
from our copy function, underneath the body for the opposite wheel, before doing the same for the ski at the front of our vehicle.
80
10 See through
I turn the background on again so I can see the
colour hues and use them to create the glass area, which It’s in the details
is placed between the black interior and the body layers. I 11 Adding small details starts to bring the concept to life, such as my little vents,
use the Airbrush tool for these so I can control the door handles and the number graphics. This stage is where you get to play with the
transparent look. To help fine-tune the see-through concept, but remember to use separate layers so you can modify or delete your
effect, I’ll turn the layer up and down. additions if you don’t like how they look.
Highlights 13 Let it snow

With the snow coupe complete, I use the Brush tool
12 All the door cut lines will need a highlight. I duplicate the black line layer, to add snow to the top of some of the surfaces, while
and then make the bottom version white by locking it and wiping over with a being careful not to overdo it. I also sketch some snow
white brush. With this done, I can then drag that layer down to get that highlight. over the wheels and skis to tie it into the background.
81
Workshops
Technique focus
COMPOSITION
DEVELOPMENT
Filipe Pagliuso details the stages of his process,
going from initial sketches to finished client work
“I often start my bit further to create some black and

process by creating a white thumbnails. These are the
sheet of very loose line sketches I then send off to the client.
drawings in order to Once one of them is approved, I
get a sense of what begin to work on more complex line
may or may not work. From there, I art to serve as a guide for my first
try to visualise which compositions brushstrokes. Over time, these are
have the potential to become good gradually developed into shapes of
illustrations, then I develop them a colour and shadows.”
82
Tech Focus Composition
Artist
PROFILE
Filipe Pagliuso
LOCATION: Brazil
Filipe is a predominantly
self-taught artist with
more than 10 years of
professional experience
to his name as an
illustrator. His clients
include Wizards of the
Coast, Blizzard and CD
PROJEKT RED.
https://bit.ly/3XcIwlb
© Wizards of the Coast
83
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Digital editions available on desktop, iOS or Android

Traditional Artist
Inspiration and advice from the best pro artists
90 96
86 94
This issue:
86 Traditional FXPosé
Discover this month’s selection
of the finest traditional art,
which has been sent in by you!
90 Draw a creature
from imagination
Nicola Asura renders fascinating
humanoids from mind to paper.
94 Illuminating a cosmic
mind-bending perspective
The fusion of ideas behind Rob
Rey’s out-of-this-world artwork.
96 First Impressions:
Sarah Joncas
The artist shares her journey and
thoughts on life in the industry.
85
Traditional Artist FXPosé
SHOWCASING THE FINEST TRADITIONAL ARTISTS
Julia Körner
LOCATION: Germany MEDIA: Watercolour, gouache, colour pencils WEB: http://dyru.de
Julia is an illustrator and visual development artist for

games and animation. When working traditionally,
she enjoys creating whimsical worlds and creatures.
1 ONE TREE PLANTED

“I created this piece for
last year’s Our Planet Week
2 CLOUD GIRL AND
STAR RAVEN
“The Cloud Girl is an original
2
illustration event. It shows character I draw frequently.

little nature spirits happy This was my first time using
about a newly planted tree.” acrylic gouache, and I like
the opaque textures.”
3 FRESH
“I made this illustration
for the Childhood Week
4 FROG BABBLE
TRAVELLER
“This is the first piece in a fun
event, where the challenge is little personal series I’m
to recreate and interpret making, all about magical
childhood memories.” frog characters.”

Inspirational art

Traditional Artist FXPosé
Mike Butkus
LOCATION: US MEDIA: Acrylic paint, colour pencil, graphite WEB: www.mikebutkus.pro
Mike is an illustrator and concept artist with over 40 years in the

entertainment industry. He and daughter Amelie write and illustrate books
on drawing creatures of the universe without losing more than one limb.
1 THE SCRIBE AND THE LAMPLIGHTER

“This image features in our upcoming
book on aliens and how to draw them. It’s a
2 READY PLAYER ONE
“It’s a wonderful challenge, encapsulating
a movie in an image. As a concept artist, it’s
2
testament to steampunk and whimsy with all about telling a story through vibrancy and
the girl and her loyal, yet creepy, servant.” composition, pulling you into this universe.”
3 LUKE
“One of my all-time favourites. As a
Star Wars fan, it’s a dream to capture the
essence of this larger-than-life character.”
4 THE WITHERIN RACES

“Racing Robot Ostriches! On the
planet of Aetherin, mechanical gladiator
races are a spectacle. I loved the motion
and Mad Max nature of this piece.”

Inspirational art

Traditional Artist Workshops
Pencil
DRAW A CREATURE
FROM IMAGINATION
NICOLA ASURA shares his process for translating fascinating humanoid
creations from mind onto paper in his melancholic graphite artwork
W
hether working on creature related. I love finding ways As soon as my pencil connects
either personal or of creating humanoids with creature- with the paper I try to be loose while
professional work, esque elements, or vice versa. keeping the pencil down. Don’t start
I mainly draw Lately I’ve been putting embryos thinking, just let your hand move
from imagination. into my creatures. I like the contrast and see where it takes you.
Professionally I’m coming up with they give to my drawings, which are Nicola is a tattoo artist from
creatures and putting them on skin usually melancholic, heavy and Austria. He enjoys finding
as tattoos, while my personal dark. These innocent beings are interesting ways to transform
drawings are graphite on paper. protected by a bigger creature around the body by putting his
When I start, I don’t have a clear them, or are an inner child being creature designs onto the skin.
concept in mind other than it being carried around by personal demons. www.instagram.com/nicolaasura
Step-by-step: Rendering from your imagination
1 EXPLORE SHAPES
I start without a clear concept in my
mind. To explore possible ideas, I start
2 REFINE THE CONCEPT
During the exploration process a
concept starts to form in my mind. As I do
3 RENDERING
I change up the back of the head a few
times and finally settle on a pod-like
sketching loosely with a light pencil, trying a lot of creature drawings, the round shape element with an embryo inside. Don’t be
not to lift it. Round and triangular shapes, could be a head with a critter or insect afraid to use your kneaded eraser and only
lines that don’t go anywhere, everything body. Instead of an insect-style head, I settle once you’re satisfied. I render with
goes at this stage. Exploration should be chose a humanoid one to make it a bit my mechanical pens, working on the
fun, let your hand do the thinking. more surreal and abstract. contrast and textures.
90
Artist insight Creative process
91
Traditional Artist Workshops
In-depth: Eye-catching visual elements Focal point

I want the embryo to be the point of
interest. To achieve that I left my values
light, surrounded by dark shadows. This
creates a stark contrast and hopefully
Humanoid guides the viewer to this part of the
elements drawing first. Adding fine details like
I like to add humanoid the umbilical cord and the cratered
features to my creature textures in this specific area help to
artwork. Blurring the accentuate the pod.
transition between the
two helps to create a
mysterious image. I feel
like having a humanoid
face helps to add an
emotional note, and in
this case a sort of
melancholic one.
Bio-organic features
I love getting lost in rendering bio-
organic elements, in this case skin
tissue; pushing it towards more
abstract, intertwining shapes while still
retaining the humanoid neck.
Switching up shapes
By varying my shapes from rounded to
more aggressive triangular ones, I try to
keep my silhouette interesting, as well
as the creature as a whole. I always use
textures and forms as part of my
exploration process.
MATERIALS
PAPER
Moleskine 165 gsm
Sketchbook
PENCILS
Blackwing Natural
pencil, HB
Multiple layers Mechanical pen,
Adding lightly shaded elements and
0.35mm B
making them disappear behind my
main shapes helps to create the illusion Mechanical pen,
of a third dimension, even though this is 0.5mm 2B
a plain side view.
92
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93
Traditional Artist Workshop
94
y Cosmic Perspective series is about
celebrating a meaningful connection to
M the natural world through science. For A
Galaxy Within, I wanted to make an image that
conveys the complexity of biology by illustrating
that the human brain has about as many neurons
as there are stars in a typical galaxy.
From the beginning, I knew that I was working
with the imagery of galaxies and heads or brains.
I decided that the exploded or disintegrating
feeling of this configuration was particularly
interesting, while also expressing something of
the overwhelming exercise that is trying to
comprehend large numbers, such as 100 billion
stars or neurons.
I made sure to use the galaxy to provide a
sweeping S-curve that lends a sense of movement
to the composition, and went to work at making a
convincing transition between the head and the
galaxy. Pushing the glow of the galaxy, I tried to
give the sense of its light spilling out through the
cracks and thin areas where the head is
disintegrating into stardust.
I like a clean and brushy-looking final image
Technique focus that requires me to work wet-into-wet with oils,
despite taking several days to paint. To facilitate
this, I complete a thorough, detailed, oil colour
ILLUMINATING A COSMIC study. Then, by following the colour study, I’m
able to work one section at a time while the oil
paint is wet, and still have all of the sections come
MIND-BENDING PERSPECTIVE together in a cohesive fashion.
Rob is an illustrator and fine artist creating
ROB REY explains the hidden meaning behind the fusion of ideas in A Galaxy art that helps make science a meaningful
part of our lives. See more of his Cosmic
Tech focus Cosmic Perspective
Within, one of the pieces from his out-of-this-world fine art series
Perspective series at http://robreyart.com.
95
Traditional Artist Interview
First Impressions
Sarah Joncas
The artist shares GHOST OF A HEAVY HEART
I wanted to create an ethereal
her journey from an and melancholic beauty for this
work, while conveying feelings of
loss and remorse.
animation obsession
to the fine art world
Where did you grow
up and how has this
influenced your art?
I grew up around the
Southern Ontario
region in Canada. I wouldn’t say
that the cities influenced my work,
but more the small patches of
nature I found and the suburban
landscape as a mundane presence.
Even if a nearby forest was
manicured, I liked that feeling of
escaping to it.
What, outside of art, has had the

most influence on your artwork
through the years?
I would say music. When you want
to saturate in a mood or feeling to
help get in the zone, it’s what works
best. I particularly love film scores
for that purpose.
You’re a child, you see a painting or

drawing that changes everything
for you. Where are you and what
are you looking at, and what effect
did it have?
For me it wasn’t fine art that had the
biggest impact, but cartoons and
especially anime when it hit us in
North America. I used to draw
dinosaurs and Simba religiously up
until I watched Sailor Moon for the
first time. That redirected me
towards a focus on female figures,
and eventually portraiture.
Even if a
nearby forest was
manicured, I liked
that feeling of
escaping to it
96
Sarah Joncas
FEVER BREAK
I decided to play around
with how I use colour,
while favouring a more
simplified composition.
97
Traditional Artist Interview
What was your next step? Did

other interests vie for attention?
What was the deciding factor?
I always thought I wanted to get into
animation until I began painting for
the first time as a teenager. I grew
such a passion for painting, and it
was such an emotional release, that
I decided to change directions
towards fine art within a year of
adopting the brush.
Tell us about your first paid

commission, and does it stand as a
representation of your talent?
Hard to recall, but I was 16 and had
a few commissions at that age.
Sadly, I don’t have documentation
of everything, but I look back at my
paintings created during that time
with a lot of fondness and
recognition of who I was during that
period. Though not as polished as
what I do now, I think there was a
charm and immature talent to
them, given my age.
It was such an
emotional release
that I decided to
change directions
towards fine art
What’s the last piece you finished,
and how do the two differ?
My work has changed drastically
from my teenage years compared to
now. I was more scattered as a
youth, not choosing any cohesive
style, and my characters were more
naive and cartoonish. Currently my
figurative work approaches realism,
and I find experimentation and play
within the backgrounds, either
adopting abstraction or an
illustrative approach.
What piece of advice would you WORLD’S A STAGE inexpensively is huge, as well as the Most of the characters I create are
give to your younger self to aid you This painting was inspired by influence of seeing and connecting personal to begin with, even self
Georges Méliès and a 1920s Art
along the way? Deco aesthetic. with so many other artists! portraits at times, but when it comes
Be kinder to yourself and more to fan art, I painted Amelie many
open and social with others. Is making a living as an artist all years ago and felt an affinity
you thought it would be? towards that character.
How has the industry of art It is and I still love what I do! I’m Sarah was born in 1986 and grew up in
changed for good since you’ve been surprised and thankful I get to keep Hamilton and Niagara Falls, Ontario. She
working in it? at it each day. graduated from the Ontario College of Art
Given how connected the world is and Design’s BFA program in 2010. You
now, having the ability to promote What character or scene that you’ve can see more of Sarah’s art by visiting
and share your work so publicly and painted do you most identify with? http://sarahjoncas.ca.
98
9000 9021

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Editor’s letter

Welcome to… EDITOR’S CHOICE Three of my top

Welcome to the latest issue of

Editor Draw a creature from your imagination

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News and events

28 A day in the life of...

48 Sketchbook: Célia Beauduc

54 Journey into Madness

66 Observe and improvise

76 Create a concept vehicle

90 Draw a creature from

Sketch with the Mixer Brush 94 A mind-bending perspective

Create a concept vehicle GET YOUR

Composition development Sarah Joncas

Distributed by Marketforce, 5 Churchill Place, Canary Wharf, London, E14 5HU

All contents © 2023 Future Publishing Limited or published under

fantasy artist and author

gouache skills portrait pieces of character

Learn techniques Discover the key Explore stunning

ISSUE 226 ON SALE 11TH APRIL

Graphic design Art Web design 3D Digital art

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PRINT AND DIGITAL

DIGITAL ONLY SUBSCRIPTION

SUBSCRIBE AND SAVE AT:

THE PLACE TO SHARE YOUR DIGITAL ART

Yishu Ci is a freelance concept artist who is inspired

Jennifer is an illustrator and background artist in the animation industry.

on happy, flying turtles.”

2 THE SAND CAT

12 Want to submit your work? Visit http://ifxm.ag/getinifx

Want to submit your work? Visit http://ifxm.ag/getinifx 13

Brad is a freelance artist who enjoys designing concepts and illustrations

14 Want to submit your work? Visit http://ifxm.ag/getinifx

Want to submit your work? Visit http://ifxm.ag/getinifx 15

Skyfire is a Taiwan-based illustrator and character designer. They

16 Want to submit your work? Visit http://ifxm.ag/getinifx

Want to submit your work? Visit http://ifxm.ag/getinifx 17

2 THE GOOD OGRE

3 LADY WITH A DRAGON

18 Want to submit your work? Visit http://ifxm.ag/getinifx

Want to submit your work? Visit http://ifxm.ag/getinifx 19

High High Mountains

“High High Mountains is an environment from one of my

AT THE CORE OF THE DIGITAL ART COMMUNITY

When choosing an art course, the INSTRUCTOR: DALE STEPHANOS

STUDENT: ALANA TEDMON

Each course at Visual Arts

INSTRUCTOR: AUDREY BENJAMINSEN

At Visual Arts Passage, students

STUDENT: ELIJAH BOOR

Visual Arts Passage

programmes get There are three tracks: character

STUDENT GROUP PROJECT

Escape Studios is an Unreal

Established to address the talent time during the evening. Depending

The idea is that after completing your

an entry-level role and be of value