Character Design for Illustrators

Anthony Viera is an illustrator, art director, and character designer with over fifteen years of experience working across animation, publishing, and game development. His character work has appeared in feature films, graphic novels, and marketing campaigns for clients including Netflix, Warner Bros., and a range of independent studios. He has led visual development teams on projects ranging from preschool animated series to adult graphic fiction, and his design approach balances narrative intention with production practicality — ensuring characters are not only expressive and memorable but also feasible to produce at scale.

Viera began his career as a storyboard artist before transitioning into character design, a shift that shaped his emphasis on storytelling through pose, expression, and silhouette. He has taught character design workshops at the School of Visual Arts, Lightbox Expo, and online through Schoolism and Proko, where his curriculum focuses on the intersection of fundamental draftsmanship, design thinking, and professional workflow. His students have gone on to work at major animation studios, independent game studios, and as freelance illustrators across multiple markets.

He is the creator of the Character Design Foundation, a free online resource library of reference packs, design prompts, and process breakdowns used by over fifty thousand illustrators worldwide. He writes regularly about the business and craft of illustration on his Substack newsletter, *The Drawing Board*, where he covers portfolio strategy, client relationships, and the creative habits that sustain a long career.

Anthony Viera lives in Portland, Oregon, with his partner and two cats. He draws something every day, even when no one is paying him to.