Character Design Reflective blog

Vicky Yang

For this character design project, the starting point provided by the instructor was: “A door.” My initial concept was that I would open this door, and the character I was tasked with designing would be waiting behind it.

• About my initial: My initial idea for this character was a young girl capable of using magic in combat. Inspired by the Japanese anime Puella Magi Madoka Magica, she possesses a cute appearance, a gentle personality, and long, curly hair. Her weapon of choice is a magical staff (or wand), which she uses in battle.

At the beginning, I felt lost when trying to envision the world behind the door, as well as the detailed setting and backstory of the character. I only had a basic concept of the character, but the specifics remained unclear. During a discussion with a classmate, however, they listened to my ideas and began asking questions about the character and their world. For example: Why is this character behind the door? What is the world beyond the door like? Does she enjoy living in this world? Does she want to leave it? These questions, though not immediately related to the character profile, sparked a wave of inspiration. Before long, a vivid and unique character emerged in my mind, and through further discussions, I was able to refine her design and make her more complete.

• About the world beyond the door: In my concept, I open the door, revealing the young girl, who resides in a world completely different from our reality. It resembles the “otherworlds” often depicted in novels and films. However, after extensive exploration and investigation, I discover a shocking truth: the world beyond the door is a massive digital construct, with everything composed of data. Even the “humans” within it are data-based beings.

I drew inspiration from works such as the Japanese light novel series Sword Art Online, which explores the concept of humans being trapped in a man-made virtual world, and the American film The Mandela Effect, which unveils the idea of the entire world being a program constructed by developers, with everything made up of data. These stories greatly influenced my creative process and provided a foundation for the development of my own concept.

• About the Character: Helena Reincarna is a young girl from the data world, a being of data with light-based combat abilities. For reasons unknown, she is able to reincarnate repeatedly within this world, returning to the night of her 19th birthday each time she dies. She is aware that the world will inevitably face destruction in the near future and, through countless cycles of reincarnation, has desperately tried to prevent it. However, she cannot escape the cruel fate of her own death and the world’s collapse.

As her backstory developed in detail, so did her personality traits. Once a kind and gentle girl, Helena gradually became cold and withdrawn after experiencing endless cycles of death and reincarnation. She no longer expresses her emotions outwardly but hides them deep within her heart. Despite enduring countless brutal deaths, she refuses to give up and continues to fight relentlessly against her fate. Helena is efficient and decisive, appearing cold and distant on the outside but remaining gentle at her core. Toward her enemies, she is ruthless and unhesitatingly lethal.

When sketching her expressions and action poses, her demeanor and movements evolved from the soft and charming innocence of a magical girl to the icy ruthlessness of a battle-hardened warrior.