PB goodness
1. Who is your character's PB?
Hans is played by Thomas Kretschmann (German actor), Val by Richie Stringini (German boy band), Heck by Voltaire (musician), Ambria by Venla (some random Suicide girl), Delia by Marcelina Sowa (model)
2. Which came first, the character or the PB?
Almost always the character comes first. With all these guys, the character came first
3. Why did you choose this particular PB?
For Hans, I wanted someone who was authentically German who had been in movies where he'd had a Nazi uniform on to make icons easy. Val's pb had to look German, and at least vaguely like a descendant of Hans. Ambria I wanted to have a funky color of hair, and have her look pretty yet capable of being tough. Delia had to be someone that looked supernatural and unworldly. Heck had to be Hispanic, very over-the-top and somewhat old-fashioned charming.
4. How close is the PB to your character? What are the differences, if any?
In an ideal world, Hans would have blonder hair than his PB does. Val is pretty much spot on how I picture him in my head. Ambria I have limited pictures of her PB (icons from Hollow Art only) - I think Ambria would have more expressiveness than her PB shows in the pictures. Delia smiles frequently and I can't find a picture of her PB smiling because, models don't smile apparently. Heck's pb is so close the differences are insignificant.
5. Have you modified the PB in any way to be more like your character?
Nope, I suck at graphics manipulation so this would not be possible.
6. Have you ever changed your character's PB / would you ever? Why, or why not?
I am considering that if I play Val long-term, as he grows older and past his college boy / youthful stage he might need another PB - especially as boy bands seem to come and go fairly quickly so his current PB might not be popular by then and therefore not have new pictures to work with. Generally I don't change PBs though because once a character's pb is set, for me that person becomes the definitive representation of my character and that is that.
7. Where did you find icons of your PB, or did you make them yourself?
I find a lot of my icons at http://www.hollow-art.com , and through LJ and IJ searches. I occasionally make some myself, and sometimes they even come out pretty nice. But for the most part I'm graphically challenged enough that I try to find a pb with icons readily available.
8. Is it important to have an appropriate PB for your character? Why or why not?
Very important because I want people to be able to picture my characters when they are interacting with them, and I want to be able to picture other folks characters accurately as well. It's distracting when the PB is inappropriate for the character.
9. Have you ever been favorably/unfavorably predisposed towards a character because you liked or didn't like the PB choice?
Yes - unfavorably in the case of a PB being wildly off the mark. Like if you are playing a Greek god, he shouldn't be some androgynous asian boy/girl, and if you are playing a high school student she shouldn't be portrayed by a 39 year old actress. It's hard to take characters with pbs like that seriously because it ruins the illusion of realism. I've been favorably predisposed when I see an interesting PB - a non-traditional choice, an older person, a plus-sized person, a non-hollywood-beautiful person. That'll make me stop and click through to read about a character's concept and see if it is as interesting as the PB choice.
10. Have you ever had a character who was represented by text icons / no icon only because they were too difficult to find a PB for?
Yes, when I played fantasy games and the like - it was often hard to find someone that would be appropriate for the race and class of person and I used things like paintings, objects, and text to represent them. I also used Heromachine to make my own character portraits to icon in those kind of cases.
Hans is played by Thomas Kretschmann (German actor), Val by Richie Stringini (German boy band), Heck by Voltaire (musician), Ambria by Venla (some random Suicide girl), Delia by Marcelina Sowa (model)
2. Which came first, the character or the PB?
Almost always the character comes first. With all these guys, the character came first
3. Why did you choose this particular PB?
For Hans, I wanted someone who was authentically German who had been in movies where he'd had a Nazi uniform on to make icons easy. Val's pb had to look German, and at least vaguely like a descendant of Hans. Ambria I wanted to have a funky color of hair, and have her look pretty yet capable of being tough. Delia had to be someone that looked supernatural and unworldly. Heck had to be Hispanic, very over-the-top and somewhat old-fashioned charming.
4. How close is the PB to your character? What are the differences, if any?
In an ideal world, Hans would have blonder hair than his PB does. Val is pretty much spot on how I picture him in my head. Ambria I have limited pictures of her PB (icons from Hollow Art only) - I think Ambria would have more expressiveness than her PB shows in the pictures. Delia smiles frequently and I can't find a picture of her PB smiling because, models don't smile apparently. Heck's pb is so close the differences are insignificant.
5. Have you modified the PB in any way to be more like your character?
Nope, I suck at graphics manipulation so this would not be possible.
6. Have you ever changed your character's PB / would you ever? Why, or why not?
I am considering that if I play Val long-term, as he grows older and past his college boy / youthful stage he might need another PB - especially as boy bands seem to come and go fairly quickly so his current PB might not be popular by then and therefore not have new pictures to work with. Generally I don't change PBs though because once a character's pb is set, for me that person becomes the definitive representation of my character and that is that.
7. Where did you find icons of your PB, or did you make them yourself?
I find a lot of my icons at http://www.hollow-art.com , and through LJ and IJ searches. I occasionally make some myself, and sometimes they even come out pretty nice. But for the most part I'm graphically challenged enough that I try to find a pb with icons readily available.
8. Is it important to have an appropriate PB for your character? Why or why not?
Very important because I want people to be able to picture my characters when they are interacting with them, and I want to be able to picture other folks characters accurately as well. It's distracting when the PB is inappropriate for the character.
9. Have you ever been favorably/unfavorably predisposed towards a character because you liked or didn't like the PB choice?
Yes - unfavorably in the case of a PB being wildly off the mark. Like if you are playing a Greek god, he shouldn't be some androgynous asian boy/girl, and if you are playing a high school student she shouldn't be portrayed by a 39 year old actress. It's hard to take characters with pbs like that seriously because it ruins the illusion of realism. I've been favorably predisposed when I see an interesting PB - a non-traditional choice, an older person, a plus-sized person, a non-hollywood-beautiful person. That'll make me stop and click through to read about a character's concept and see if it is as interesting as the PB choice.
10. Have you ever had a character who was represented by text icons / no icon only because they were too difficult to find a PB for?
Yes, when I played fantasy games and the like - it was often hard to find someone that would be appropriate for the race and class of person and I used things like paintings, objects, and text to represent them. I also used Heromachine to make my own character portraits to icon in those kind of cases.