behind the character

There is also allot to consider as to what goes into the character in terms of the 3 productions (pre, pro and post) as it is not just the concept art that brings the character to life, there are actors that play the characters, post effects that bring the character to life further, maybe in terms of the environment in which they are in, or even taking the actor and re-modelling them to create a completely different character.

Gollum

played by Andy Serkis in the astounding performance that is Gollum/Smeagol we see a different kind of character emerging after the first lord of the rings film in 2001, where this process was rarely heard of being used.

So first the concept artist (in this case John Howe) sketches what he interoperates the character as being (from the original novel by J.R.R Tolkien).

Then the actor (Andy Serkis) performs wearing a motion capture suit which tracks the actors movements and pumps them into the computer where the modelled Gollum is placed on top to form the base of the character and its motions.

It is then the animators job to go in and adjust the slight defects in the motion to make the action look more realistic and believable

And that is how Gollum is born!