CHARACTER CREATION - Models Selection

What do Nicholas Cage, Eric Bana and Ben Affleck all have in common? If you guessed that all three have been nominated for awards, and won, you would be correct. You would also be correct if you said that all three have suffered from being horribly miscast: Cage as "Ghost Rider" was a little long in the tooth to play the part of the demon possessed stunt riding Johnny Blaze. Bana's shoulders were a little to broad to carry "The Incredible Hulk" given that Dr. Bruce Banner is suppose to be 98 lb. weakling, and while Ben Affleck did a superb job portraying George Reeves, television's first Superman, as "Daredevil", his publicity machine was so large that we all thought, "Gee, Ben Affleck looks good in red leather," rather than wondering how Daredevil was going to get out of his next tight bind. All three movies had great casts. All three movies suffered from horrible casting calls.

When you select an actor as your avatar to play a character on XPG, we ask that you carefully consider who you submit, because we will. Ask yourself, if you were casting Husk would Reese Witherspoon or Blake Lively be the better choice - Many people might think that a young a Witherspoon would be the better choice. But, if you reach into Lively's pre-GossipGirl past, you'll see there is a wealth of acting history and images that would make the woman know for wearing High Fashion a perfect choice for Husk. When you cast someone to represent a character on XPG, they and the images selected need to represent the character; You might have the perfect actor, but if you don't have the correct images you'll likely find the submission rejected.

Please consider the follow guidelines before setting your heart on casting Tobey Maguire as "The Punisher" or the "John Travolta" as the next Invisible Girl.

Rule No. 1 - Cast a model that fits.

It may seem pretty obvious, but take this example: Jessica Alba may be a sexy woman but there are very few who would say that this Hispanic actress was the perfect cast for blonde-haired, blue eyed Susan Storm. Even fewer would agree that Chris Evans (Johnny Storm) and Jessica Alba, even in full makeup, could pass for brother and sister. That being said, if you want to use a Hispanic actress for a white role, justify it. Find a way to make it work, but make it believable, by making it part of the history. For a loose example; Susan Storm is now, in fact, Johnny’s adopted sister. She wears blue contacts and dyes her hair in order to feel more adequate and to fit in with her family. (Don’t expect to use this example for every model. We want creativity and new ideas!)

Ethnicity is not the only factor to consider in your casting. Do not forget to also consider age, build, and style. Age is given some leniency on XPG in what we call WB Casting (20-somethings playing high school students), but please do not supply us with pictures of Keifer Sutherland at age 60 and imagine us to imagine what he looked like as a young man. If your model/actor has never played a teen or 20-something, do not cast them in the role of a high school student. As for build and style, keep in mind that like Iceman was never popularly portrayed as a massive, muscle bound, meat head and so Vin Diesel would be a poor choice. Christian Bale had the youth - and guns - to be the dark knight in "Batman Begins" (2005). But Billy Zane's pudgy pot-belly and flabby arms made him a poor candidate for "The Phantom" (1996). But build is not limited to those characters that are trim and cut; plus sized characters need plus sized models, and, while Patrick Stewart was the ultimate casting choice for Xavier, photos of him as Jean-Luc Picard, or Macbeth would not be appropriate at all.

There are millions of actors out there in all races, sizes, and shapes. Searching for the ‘perfect casting’ for your character will help you understand parts of who they are, how they act, how they move, and how you will write about them. Make this part of your character creation, take advantage of the time spent sorting them out. Please!

With that in mind, please remember that not all superheroes are superheroes all the time. Christopher Reeves defined the modern Superman ("Superman," 1978) as both an imperturbable man of steel and an uncomfortable Clark Kent. Brandon Routh in "Superman Returns" is believable as Superman, but struggles to exude the cheesy, awkward nature of Clark Kent. Keep this dichotomy in mind when choosing your model. Not all superheroes are thick with muscle or heavy chested. Most of these characters will be teenagers! Zits, bad hair, skinny arms, and smelly pits are par for the course. Choose a character who is a human first, and a superhuman second.

Rule No. 2 - This rule is mentioned briefly at the end of Rule 1. Use images that fit the role.

Patrick Stewart as Macbeth is a no-no. But equally unacceptable would be Husk, a down-home country gal dressed in Dolce & Gabbana and Yves St.Laurent. Does this mean that Blake Lively is a poor casting choice? No. Blake Lively as Serena van der Woodsen is a bad casting call, but if you dig a little deeper into her past, you’ll find a wealth of photos from Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and earlier that may suit your purposes far better! The same rule is true for the complete contrary; if your character only wears the best fashion possible a picture of them in scrub PJs or punk rock filth is not ok. Leave the glamour shots for the glamorous characters and leave the rugged shots for the rugged characters.

Rule No. 3 - Use someone with multiple images.

At XPG we discourage the use of ‘real people’, for no other reason than to maintain a certain level of quality (photo quality, not ‘people’ quality). Webcam shots or singular photos of an attractive guy or girl you found on MySpace are not adequate enough for a model. We ask that you find at least two good quality images with decent picture resolution, lighting, cropping, ect.

Canon characters may use some comic/drawn images, although not all comic/drawn images. Drawn images should correspond with your live acton model; do not use Canon Longshot, complete with rippling muscles and golden blond 80’s mullet if your model is 15 and has short, spiky hair. If your character has a physical mutation, such as Ugly John, Beast, Beak, or Basilisk you can use one image of how the actor would look if not deformed but remember that this is to help visualize your character and they will still be deformed in the game.

Please use as many of the optional photos as possible; load pictures of your character in all aspects. Different facial expressions, poses, clothes, and environments (that correspond to your character) help all players to understand your character better. But keep in mind that a picture is worth 1,000 words; if your character is dark and broody, do not use smiling pictures full of fluffy bunnies and rainbows. Just so with quiet, mousy characters; please do not use pictures of them jumping up and down at a concert with 15 friends around them.

IMAGE SELECTION GUIDELINES - Main and Thumbnail pictures

Thumbnail photos should be adequately sized headshots of your character's model, and one that shows any physical facial deformity they may have is greatly appreciated. For the main image, it can be any size from a head shot to full body shot. Please don't use the same image for the thumbnail and main shot.

• Two shirtless image are acceptable so long as the pose is not overtly suggestive in nature.
• If the actor/model is under 18, no topless images.
• Pants must cover the pubic hair.
• No underwear shots.
• No lude poses or gestures.
• Do not use images of yourself for your character.
• FINALLY - Before you upload an image, ask yourself, is this an image Professor Charles Francis Xavier would upload to the Cerebra.
  

• Anything covered by a typical, two piece bikini is to be covered in your model photos.
• Two bathing suit photos, where the suits are of adequate coverage, are accetable.
• If the actor/model is under 18, no bikini images or revealing photos.
• No visible pubic hair.
• No lewd poses or gestures.
• Do not use images of yourself for your character.
• FINALLY - Before you upload an image, ask yourself, is this an image Professor Charles Francis Xavier would upload to the Cerebra.