Under, the pair inform us how they designed 5 characters from Maya and the Three, specializing in the dazzling costumes — one of many present’s most eye-catching components. Their feedback are accompanied by improvement art work.
Maya in Coronation Gown
Jorge Gutiérrez: For this loopy gown we checked out Mexico’s “nationwide costumes” over time for the Miss Universe pageant, that are typically ridiculously excessive. Mexico has gained 3 times! The headdress was impressed by Montezuma’s headdress, who was the Aztec emperor on the time of the Spanish conquest. This isn’t an outfit that displays Maya’s character in any respect so we pushed that concept.
Sandra Equihua: This scene is Maya’s coronation in addition to a tip of the hat to conventional quinceañeras, that are consultant of a transition in a younger woman’s life from childhood to maturity. The place clothes used to solely be white for quinceañeras, these days they go to extremes to be distinctive and indulgent in colour or design. However as a standard rule, they’re normally humongous. We needed to take this concept and go loopy with it!
King Teca
Gutiérrez: I needed this dangerous hombre to appear like a loopy Aztec tank! I used to be very impressed by the normal Aztec Eagle Warrior sculptures I noticed on the Templo Mayor and Museo Nacional de Antropología in my hometown of Mexico Metropolis. And the epic Eagle Warrior work of Jorge González Camarena, particularly El abrazo and La fusión de dos culturas. I used to be additionally impressed by a design I noticed on the facet of a taco truck after an evening of tequilas in Tijuana!
Gutiérrez: [When drawing inspiration from traditional Mesoamerican designs,] we have been all the time tremendous respectful and did a ton of analysis. We additionally studied fashionable reinterpretations in Mexican tattoos, city murals, and fashionable tradition in Mexico. Since we’re each Mexican (and mestizos, which means combined blood) we actually allowed ourselves to be magical, whimsical, and experimental. I imagine artists will all the time assist tradition evolve and that is our private fantasy reinterpretation of those worlds.
Barbarian Princess
Equihua: We determined to make use of heat colours and patterns paying homage to numerous textiles and symbols present in historical Incan tradition. The symbolism of the pumas could be very particular to our magical world.
Her father, the Barbarian King (designed by Jorge), is a towering hulking mass, so I assumed utilizing a slender design for the Barbarian Princess could be excellent to make him look much more intimidating (which is form of humorous, as a result of he’s very childlike in lots of points, however will nonetheless chop your head off if offended!).
Gutiérrez: [As the designs transition to 3d models, the costumes are tweaked] a lot lower than you suppose! I love to design characters and don’t have a director or producer above telling me to simplify! Sandra’s fantastically graphic character designs are usually extra streamlined and my greatest observe is all the time, “I need extra loopy please!”
Time and cash are the true limitation: we needed to reduce the quantity of arms, hair, and fabric to remain on finances. Earlier than I began at Netflix, I employed Esteban Pedrozo (in Paraguay) to do ZBrush variations of the characters of Maya and “the Three” (Rico, Chimi, and Picchu) to promote what they might appear like to everybody. And the ultimate manufacturing variations accomplished by the sensible workforce at Tangent Animation have been extraordinarily near that.
Chimi
Gutiérrez: Since “the Three” are impressed by the Scarecrow, the Tinman, and the Lion from The Wizard of Oz, Chimi is type of the Tinwoman. This kingdom worships Woman Micte, a fantasy goddess of demise, and Chimi is her greatest fan. Chimi was born with Albinism (and was outcast for this) so she paints herself in another way than everybody else.
Equihua: Chimi’s design was conceived to create a distinction with Maya’s stature. Whereas Maya is petite and curvy (like her membership), Chimi is lengthy and svelte (like her arrows). There may be an magnificence to her persona whereas Maya’s design creates a juxtaposition to Chimi along with her stout legs and the best way she strikes.
Lord Mictlan
Gutiérrez: I figured I might solely get one probability in my life to design my very own fantasy model of a Mesoamerican god of warfare, so I needed to go all out and be a bit metallic. The 2 cranium heads symbolize the concept warfare is about two endlessly opposing forces.
Gutiérrez: I referenced the traditional photographs of each Huitzilopochtli (Aztec god of warfare) and Ek Chuaj (Mayan god of warfare, human sacrifice, and violent demise!). Additionally the Skeletor work from the He-Man Nineteen Eighties toy containers, Lord Humongous (from Mad Max 2: The Street Warrior), La Parka (a skull-themed masked luchador), and Thulsa Doom (from Conan the Barbarian).
