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SEARCHING FOR THE RIGHT TOOLS - Digital Brushes That Mimic Graphite To Perfection


How to work digitally while maintaining the graphic and traditional quality of an analogue drawing?

This was the first challenge we had to deal with when starting this project.


As a starting point, we used development drawings from the director, Alberto Rodriguez Collía. These employed the technique of graphite on paper, which determined the aesthetic intended for the film.


Pre-production drawing for the film Tierra Milagrosa. charcoal and graphite on paper
Drawing by Alberto Rodriguez Collía, graphite on paper.

Given the complexity of applying such meticulous drawings to an animated film, we quickly realised that we would have to find a way of adapting this technique to the digital format, which began by finding a way of developing drawing tools that would perfectly imitate the graphite stroke.


To do this, we turned to Krita (https://krita.org/), an open-source painting and animation software. Krita comes with a wide variety of brushes, from drawing pencils to soft chalk, but it also allows you to customise and create your own specific brush sets.



You can save presets and combine them in bundles, that you can import and export and share within a team.




By doing this, we were able to advance the project recurring to digital processes and softwares, making use of its advantages when it comes to maximising time and work, without losing the plastic qualities so characteristic of traditional drawings.


Original drawing por the film Tierra Milagrosa
Original drawing by Alberto Rodriguez Collía, graphite on tracing paper

Animation drawing for the film Tierra Milagrosa
Animation drawing by Laura Gonçalves, digital.


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