Anime Character Maker

Anime characters are designed to be told apart instantly, even in a crowd scene. Each one gets a hair shape, a color and an outfit silhouette that nobody else in the cast shares. This maker lets you design characters by the same rules.

It works in full body, which is where anime character design mostly happens: uniforms, coats and footwear say as much as the face.

Designing a cast, not one character

Line your characters up and check these three things.

• Hair silhouettes differ. One long, one short, one tied up, one spiky.
• Each has a color. Assign one hue per character and use it on hair or outfit.
• Heights of detail differ. One wears a hat, one a scarf, one nothing extra.

Uniform with variation

School and team settings put everyone in the same clothes, and anime uses small changes to show personality. Give the whole cast the Blazer and tie, then vary how it is worn. The serious one has a Bow tie and Boots. The rebel swaps to the Open jacket. The athlete wears Sneakers and Shorts. One uniform, read four ways.

Model sheets

Animators work from a model sheet: a clean front view with flat colors. Download each character with the Transparent background and place them side by side in an image editor. You now have a cast sheet with consistent proportions, useful for writing, for a comic, or as a brief for an artist.