Artist insight

I’ve now been working at Marvel Studios for over a decade and have learned so many things as a concept artist and supervisor. From creating huge, epic scenes to using tools learned on the job, I’ve managed to use the fundamentals I picked up in school in this fast-paced industry.

There’s the old phrase we’ve all heard in some form that “a jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one.” I love trying new techniques out, even if it means that I’ll never master anything to the degree I want, and that’s okay. Here I’ve put together tips that have helped me in my career so far working at Marvel Studios and in the film industry.

1 SMALL, MEDIUM AND LARGE SHAPES

When I do character pieces, I use the idea of small, medium and large shapes, not only in design but in composition. Creating different shapes for the figures and forms helps bring variety to the piece. I always struggle to use this idea because my brain wants to have similar shapes and sizes of figures, forms and so on. I always want to show every aspect of every character, but so often less is more.