Development

Mask developments. Started off with a more modern leather-horror mask design that started adding chaotic crazy elements to it, exaggerating eyes and teeth. I had to decide whether the mask would totally obscure the face or the top half. Initial concepts were full face masks, however I decided it would be easier to tell the character's expression if the mask only covered the upper half of the face.

Concept of knife layout (I also considered having half filled wine glasses of blood, but knives left more of an impression and are quite frankly, more fun to draw) and camera angle for this scene. I changed the wings to a cape, because it didn't make much sense for the character to have angelic wings, but without something there the design felt lacking, and nothing says 'dramatic flair' quite so well as a performer's phantom of the opera cape.

(DRAMA)

However a cape is still cliche and difficult to animate, so I decided to go for something more unusual and decided to make his cape made of a string of enlarged circus flags that connected at the back.

I did a small sketch of a performer's bow at the end of my clip here. The circus flags were uneven and chaotic, but too many to animate simply. I also experimented with my character's hands, as I didn't really want him to have skeleton hands and since he was going to be a performer, I wanted to add magician's gloves. Or tried 'exaggerated claw hands' to further make my character more demonic.I decided the circus flag cape would connect from the cuff link to the back of the shoulder. Also circus flags also support the motif of 'performer' I have going for my character.