CHARACTER DESIGN: CREATURES & CRYPTIDS
The Character Design: Creatures & Cryptids 5-week course at The Art Club is all levels workshop and focuses on creating compelling creature and cryptid designs with strong storytelling, personality, and believability.
You’ll learn how to ground imaginative designs in narrative, anatomy, and shape language to create creatures that feel alive and intentional, from eerie cryptids to original fantastical beings.
Over the 5 weeks, you will learn to:
Design creatures with clear personality and purpose
Use shape language and anatomy to support storytelling
Develop and refine original creature concepts
Create expressive poses and behavioral studies
Turn ideas into clear, professional-level final designs
What You’ll Make: A portfolio including creature sketches and ideation, design iterations, a 4 refined final creatures or cryptids, and expressive pose and behavior sheets.
Participants may join as Active students with feedback and drawovers, or as Viewers with access to live sessions and chat.
Dates
Tuesdays - Apr 28 - May 28
Time
7:00pm - 10:00pm PST
Location
The Art Club - Discord: <https://discord.gg/TZb8wK292j> Green Classroom
FORMAT
Class meets once a week on Discord.
Recorded Access: Class recordings are provided after the course, viewable for one year for Active & Viewer Pass students.
Active student’s must upload homework to Google Drive folder before the next class begins.
Active student spots are limited to 15 participants, and Viewer access is limited to 50 seats.
THE FACULTY
David Perez is a husband, father, and artist with over a decade of experience in the animation industry. He has had the privilege of working at some of the most renowned studios, including Disney, DreamWorks, Warner Bros, Nickelodeon, Sony, and Netflix.
Teaching and giving back has been one of the most rewarding aspects of his career. David occasionally offers online workshops, and he also shares free insights on his YouTube channel (@dzine555) to help aspiring artists on their creative journey.
Character design isn’t about being “advanced.” It’s about mastering the basics at a deeper level. Over the years, He has learned that great design always comes back to simplicity and that’s the foundation of my teaching philosophy.
You’ll not only learn how things work but also why they work. More importantly, you’ll gain the tools to deconstruct and rebuild characters in your own unique way. His goal is to make learning accessible, easy to understand at any age, and use his courses as a resource you can return to no matter where you are in your artistic journey.
David has a 100-page how-to book designed to teach anyone the fundamentals of character design. Whether you’re just starting out or looking to refine your skills.
If you would like to see more of his work you can check out. www.davidperezdzine.com
David’s Credits
Prerequisites
This is an all levels class. To participate as an Active student and get the most out of the class, Active students need to fulfill the following requirements:
Drawing/Painting software (Adobe Photoshop, Procreate, etc.)
Computer with microphone (camera optional)
Access to Google Drive
Access to Discord
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Establishing story, silhouette, and core ideas. Exploring how narrative and shape language define believable creatures and cryptids.
Assignment: Active students…
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Using design shapes to communicate emotion, behavior, and identity. Building creature “acting” through form.
Assignment: Active students…
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Blending real-world anatomy with imagination to create grounded, functional creature designs.
Assignment:Active students…
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Rapid design variations, pushing ideas further, and refining concepts through iteration and feedback.
Assignment: Active students… -
Polishing a final creature design and placing it into a narrative-driven pose or scene.
Who is this Workshop for?
The Creatures & Cryptids Character Design 5-week course at The Art Club is designed for artists of all levels who want to explore imaginative creature design through storytelling, anatomy, and shape language. The course focuses on using narrative to guide design decisions, helping you create creatures that feel believable, expressive, and full of personality. A basic understanding of drawing fundamentals is helpful, but not required.
Beginners – looking to explore creature design for the first time in a structured, supportive environment while learning core principles of shape, storytelling, and visual development.
Intermediate Artists – aiming to strengthen their design skills, improve originality, and learn how to build more intentional, story-driven creature concepts.
Advanced Artists & Professionals – in animation, illustration, or games who want to refine their creature design process, push storytelling in their work, and develop stronger portfolio pieces.
Hobbyists – who want a creative, guided space to experiment with creature and cryptid design while building confidence and personal style.
Outcomes
By the end of this workshop, students will be able to:
Design original creatures and cryptids that feel grounded, believable, and story-driven
Use shape language, anatomy, and structure to communicate personality, behavior, and function
Develop creature concepts through iteration, exploration, and design refinement
Create expressive creature poses and behaviors that reinforce narrative and world-building
Translate creature ideas into clear, readable, and compelling final designs and illustrations
Active Students will receive feedback and drawovers to refine clarity, design strength, and storytelling in their creature work
What You’ll Make: Active students will leave with a portfolio including creature and cryptid research, ideation sketches, iterative design explorations, a refined final creature design, expressive pose and behavior studies, and a fully realized story-driven illustration suitable for professional or personal use.
