In the early stages of 'Kung Fu Panda,' Nicolas Marlet was just one of several artists suggesting possible designs for the characters. 'This was the very first page I did on Po [the title panda],' he says. 'I was just looking for shapes.'
In the early stages of 'Kung Fu Panda,' Nicolas Marlet was just one of several artists suggesting possible designs for the characters. 'This was the very first page I did on Po [the title panda],' he says. 'I was just looking for shapes.'

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'Kung Fu Panda' character designs

Nicolas Marlet explains how he arrived at the animated film's unique look.
Posted: 5/30/2008

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In the early stages of 'Kung Fu Panda,' Nicolas Marlet was just one of several artists suggesting possible designs for the characters. 'This was the very first page I did on Po [the title panda],' he says. 'I was just looking for shapes.' 'I keep it loose in the beginning, and then I go into more and more detail,' Marlet explains. Most of his work happens before casting happens. 'When I was doing these poses, they use it to pitch to the actor.' 'The next big piece of the puzzle was casting Jack Black,' co-director Mark Osborne remembers. 'We really created the character of Po along with him to be the sort of perfect comedic vehicle for Jack.' Production designer Raymond Zibach was an early champion for the idea that Marlet take the lead on how the characters would look. 'Whenever you try to design a film with more than one designer, you're going to have inconsistency,' Zibach says. After seeing this page of possible villagers, co-director John Stevenson also began to push for Marlet to design all the film's characters. With DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg's blessing, Marlet was faced with a formidable assignment. The story called for a range of villains, above, plus heroes who represent all five base forms of kung fu. 'It really all goes to serve the comedic high concept of the movie, which is stuffed animals beating the crap out of each other,' Osborne says. Po's mentor Shifu, an elderly red panda, was inspired by such legendary kung fu movies as 'Kill Bill' and 'Big Trouble in Little China.' Though Marlet was unfamiliar with the genre, Zibach says, 'He just has to glance at [photos], and it's in there.' 'I love cats. They are so elegant,' says Marlet, who felt that kung fu translated quite naturally to the character of Tigress, voiced by Angelina Jolie. 'If you look at the poses, or the way people move when they do the kung fu, it's very elegant.' Viper, played by Lucy Liu, was much more challenging. 'They wanted her fighting with the umbrella,' Marlet says, reviewing these early designs. Every character had something particular, and she could hide under the umbrella or whatever.' 'For Mantis, I just looked at tai chi poses,' Marlet says of the Furious Five's smallest member, who was adapted to suit Seth Rogen's personality. 'I like to draw insects. They have very interesting proportions.' Rounding out the team, Jackie Chan supplied the voice of Monkey, while 'Arrested Development's' David Cross plays Crane, above. 'Some martial artists use a long stick to defend themselves, so Crane uses his legs like a stick,' Marlet explains. 'Nico is definitely one of the top three designers in the business,' Zibach says. For more of Marlet's inspirations, now at work on DWA's 'How to Train Your Dragon,' <a href='http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117986536.html'>read the full story.</a>