Fantasy characters are romantic. Often they live in a magical world with powers that
can be used for good or evil. They’re more realistic and less exaggerated. They usually have
a limited number of traits. They may look different, and these physical characteristics might
extend to their personalities. Much of the fun of these characters is the fish-out-of-water
conflicts they have. This world could be a nightmare world or a world of our fondest dreams.
Stories can be funny or tales of good and evil. It’s possible for humans to enter into these
fantasy worlds and for fantasy characters to suddenly find themselves in a world that is real.
Nonhuman characters often personify certain human traits. Pooh is always hungry;
Scooby is always scared. Usually, only a few traits are given to the character, and the audi-
ence can identify with those traits. These qualities may stem from the properties or physi-
cal appearance of the animal or object itself. A cat uses its eyes like a soldier with a night
vision weapon, or a stick of gum clings.
Symbolic characters are meant to represent a trait or idea. They’re one-dimensional and
stand for qualities like love or evil, justice or fear. We find these characters in myths, comic
book stories, fairy tales, and other fantasy. The Ancient Greeks and Romans used these char-
acters, and they appeared in the morality plays of the Middle Ages and in the Punch and
Judy shows later. There are no gray areas in these personalities.
Everyman represents the ordinary man or woman or every kid. This character is less
specific and more symbolic. He has more than one trait, but he is generalized and we should
always be able to see ourselves in this character.
Taking Your Character Further
Consider other ways to develop characters. Is your character like anyone you know? Who?
Does the character resemble an actor or actress or one of the characters they play? In what
way? Stay away from characters that have been overdone. Does thinking about this real or
fantasy person give you any ideas to make your character funnier or more realistic? Is this
character a combination of people? Juxtaposing traits gives you something we wouldn’t
expect. You might want to take this real or fantasy character, and then give his personality
a new twist.
Observe people and use your observations. Try taking some real traits that you’ve
observed, and add a funny trait to make your character unique.
Quality characters are often more complex. This may explain why they tend to have
more lasting appeal. Make a list of inconsistencies in your character: He’s this, but he’s also
that! What’s illogical, surprising, and unpredictable about him? What makes him interest-
ing? Different? Fascinating? Compelling? Never too bland? Always larger than life? Use
“what ifs” to dig deeper into your characters. Once you’ve decided on these inconsistencies,
they should remain constant. They do not change on whim or in keeping with the current
episode’s story.
What makes your character funny? A comic character needs to have a flaw that makes
him funny. What are his funny attributes? What very human mistakes does he make that
would make us laugh? Recognize ourselves? Be typical and recognizable to kids of a spe-
cific age category? We tend to like comedians who let us feel superior (like Charlie Chaplin).
We know that we’re much smarter, more resourceful, and luckier than they. For animation
comedy we often want to create loveable and larger-than-life characters to whom slapstick
66 Animation Writing and Development