"Flip" Bird Rough Character Designs

 5 Point Turn Around

 Construction Model

 Full Body Expressions

Full Body Expressions

Short Story

It is a morning just like any other; the backyard of 25374 Wayland Lane is is covered with the soft glow of a newly rising sun. Flip, a small titmouse, is sleeping on his branch in an apricot tree. He opens his eyes and hops to his feet. Around him, the other birds in the trees are still asleep, their heads rested between their wings. Flip stretches first his right wing, then left, and fans out his tail before swooping off of the tree and into the morning air.

He circles in on a small hole in the ground, and lands gracefully at its mouth. For a brief moment his muscles twitch in preparation, and with a quick downward stab into the hole, his beak lifts out a fresh worm. Flip proudly carries his breakfast up to the top of the apricot tree, and proceeds to eat it while surveying the yard. Right as he finishes his worm, the sun lifts above the rooftop of the house, and with a large inhale, he chirps out a sweet melody that fills the yard like the sunlight. The other birds stir awake on the branches below, and the morning begins.

Flip smiles and takes a deep breath with satisfaction as the mornings events are proceeding exactly in order. He flies down below the branches of the apricot tree, where a white, plaster birdbath stands in its shade. Alighting perfectly on the edge of the bath, Flip daintily sets one foot in the water, followed by the other. He dips his head into the cool water, takes a sip and uses his front wing feathers to cup water onto his face. Humming to himself, he continues washing in a tidy and efficient manner, each movement hardly disturbing the surface of the water. 

Right as Flip glides to the center of the bath, he flinches at a loud crack resounding in the branches overhead. With a crash, a large, plump blue jay falls down through the branches and lands belly first in the bird bath, creating an enormous splash and drenching Flip. Leaves released from the blue jay's fall float down from the tree, littering the water. Flip stares incredulously at this intruder, his beak dropped in disbelief of his rude and untimely entrance. The blue jay groggily pulls himself to his feet and bangs the water out of his ears. Upon noticing Flip, the blue jay flashes a nonchalant smile and offers a friendly wave, to which Flip responds by promptly turning his back. With closed eyes, he focuses on smoothing his ruffled feathers. After a moment he tentatively sneaks a glance over his shoulder, and notices that the sloppy blue jay is still sitting in the pool. Turning his head back around, he rolls his eyes and continues washing.

The blue jay has now not only started singing loudly and off key, but is splashing profusely and consequently spilling a majority of the water over the edges of the bath. Flip's nerves are wearing thin as he has now been splashed several times. He stiffly marches over to the jay and attempts to push the bird out of the bath, but the blue jay's chaotically splashing wings accidentally knock Flip out of the bird bath, where he lands face first in the mud. Completely irate, Flip yanks himself out of the mud and propels himself back up to the top where the blue jay is now dozing, floating on his back in the water. Flip lands in the water right in front of the jay, and spreads out his wings, preparing to shower him in an enormous splash. Before Flip can complete this action, the blue jay opens his eyes, startled by the shadow Flip cast over his face. This catches Flip off guard, and he hesitates. The blue jay bursts out laughing upon noticing Flip's comical appearance with his feathers ruffled and the mud covering his face. Despite his furiousness, Flip is taken aback by this unexpected reaction and pauses. He notices his reflection in the water and can't help but laugh himself. The two birds continue laughing and share the bath together.

**I do not yet feel satisfied with this resolution, as it seems to be contradictory to Flip's character to laugh at himself and concede to share the bath. I think a better possibility would be for Flip's muddy appearance to frighten the blue jay away so he wins the birdbath to himself in the end. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Story Exercise (In Progress)

Act I:

- The sun rises and Flip, a small titmouse, begins his daily routine of pulling a worm out of the ground, singing and then flying up to the bird bath, right on schedule.  (Perhaps a montage plays of his daily bath time, always with him alone)
- He daintily steps into the water and proceeds to bathe in a tidy manner, making almost no splashes.
- Twist: All of a sudden a large, plump blue jay splashes into the water, seemingly out of no where.

Act II:

- Flip is rather annoyed at the appearance of this new bird, and tries to ignore him while he bathes, but keeps getting splashed.
- The blue jay swims annoyingly close to Flip and keeps invading his space unintentionally.
- Flip tries relocating to different spots, but each time gets nearly shoved out of the bird bath.
- Twist: The blue jay accidentally knocks Flip out of the bath and into the mud below.

Act III:

-Flip gets up and is very irate now and flies back up to the bath.
- The big jay is now floating on his back and snoozing in the water.
- He leans back to give him a big splash, but right as he is about to do so, the larger bird wakes up and the two stare at each other. Flip is still covered in mud.
- The blue jay starts laughing at Flip because of his hilarious appearance. Flip is even more frustrated but then begins to laugh too when he sees his reflection in the water.
- The two birds keep laughing, and end up sharing the bath.

Character Attributes

Jake
- Friendly
- Lazy
- Loud
- Relaxed
- Sloppy
- Inconsiderate
- Cheerful
- Optimistic
- Open-Minded


Flip
- Anxious
- Easily Flustered
- Particular
- Fussy
- OCD
- Tidy
- Orderly
- Impatient
- Judgemental

Character Backstory

Jake:

Jake's stocky build and perpetually rumpled head feathers make him easily recognizable, even amongst the other blue jays. He is larger, louder and lazier than any other bird in the backyard of 25374 Wayland Lane. Unlike many of the other birds, he was not hatched in the yard; he grew up with a brother and two sisters in a nest in a park about 10 miles away. Living all his life with such a large family, he felt crowded in their little nest, and decided to venture out on his own now that he is in his late "teenage years." Setting out on his own on a particularly blustery day, the wind carried him crash landing into the backyard of 25374. Upon noticing all of the amenities the yard had to offer--bird feeders, houses, and a bath--he decided this was the perfect place for him to start his new life. Since his arrival, however, some of the native birds haven't taken a liking to his habits. Jake would much rather sleep in than even think about catching "the worm" and one of his favorite pastimes is splashing around in the birdbath, often singing loud enough for the Pomeranian living down the street to howl in protest. Despite his sloppy manners and relaxed nature, Jake's easy going nature and constant optimism have allowed him to make some friends, even if he is unpopular with the older birds.

Flip:

Flip, a small titmouse, is just the sort of bird who dislikes changes in any manner of his life. He has been living in the backyard of 25374 Wayland Lane since hatching. Although he doesn't talk about it, Flip's entrance into the world began with a rocky start. His egg was jostled out of the nest before he hatched, and his mother never returned for him. He was hatched and raised under the wing (no pun intended) of a sparrow family who has since moved on to live in a birdhouse down the road. He was often teased as a young bird for his scrawny size, but now as one of the senior (in status, not age) residents of 25374, he has the respect of almost every bird in the yard, all except for that young new bird, Jake. Flip is a firm believer in everything Jake disregards--from rising before the sun, to singing on-key. Flip loves his daily routines, especially the 7.3 minutes in which he enjoys a brisk dip in the birdbath, and is determined to keep his bath time tidy and on schedule, which Jake seems to spoil at every opportunity. He disapproves of the chaos this young bird brings to his yard, and hopes that the blue jay will simply fly away already. 

Tollboooth Assignment

Jake, a healthy sized blue jay was awaken by an incessant pecking in his round left side. He rolled over in his bed and saw the source of the pecking through half opened eyes. Flip, a scrawny titmouse was glaring down at him.

"Get UP, you great lazy lump!" Flip squawked, "The day is half gone already! We were supposed to leave long ago!"

Jake brushed Flip off with a stroke of his big wings and slowly rose to his feet.

"Ah, chill lil' buddy. Don't get your feathers all molting," Jake yawned. He grabbed his car keys and the two hopped inside his Volkswagon Bug. After several cranks of the key, the car coughed to life and the two started off down the road. Jake turned on the radio to an 80's rock station and started singing along loudly, and more than a little off key.

Flip huffed a sigh and snapped, "If you can't drive at least the speed limit while singing, then turn off that racquet and step on it! I'm going to miss my appointment!"

Jake rolled his eyes and turned the tunes up another notch, but did speed up as asked. "If you don't like it, you can drive yourself!" He sang to Flip.

"You KNOW I can't drive," Flip grumbled.

"All I"m saying bro, is a little gratitude would do you good. You just gotta sit back and enjoy the ride every now and then, ya know? Just take it easy and--"

"--STOP THE CAR!" Flip interjected. The car brakes squealed as Jake slammed them, and the car skidded to a halt just inches before hitting a mechanical arm barrier that blocked the rode.

Jake gasped a breath of air and let out a relieved laugh. "That was close! See why slow and smooth is the best way to go?"

Flip didn't seem to hear. He had pushed himself over the driver's seat and poked his head out the window. "What! A tollbooth? And of course there's no attendant...Well, hurry up, Jake! Give us the change; there's already a line of cars behind us!"

Jake shuffled around in the car cupholders and pulled out a nickel, a penny and a button. "Uh, we may have a slight problem..." he admitted sheepishly. Cars began to honk in the queue behind them.

Flip ducked back to his side of the car and rustled his feathers, clearly flustered. "What are we going to do now? I can't believe you don't have $1.50!"

"Hey now!" Jake chided, "you don't have the money either! We'll figure it out." He slid out of the car and hopped over to the car in line behind them, where a lovely robin was idling in her little red sports car.

"Hey there, pretty bird, but I'm just short of the toll, and you would totally save my life if you wouldn't mind lending me the fee? Even if you say no, I'm grateful that this gave me the chance to say hello--seeing you is already the highlight of my day," Jake smiled. The robin blushed and dropped the change in his outstretched wing. Jake leaned in to give her a quick peck on the cheek as thanks. "You're one in a million, doll!" He leapt back over to the tollbooth, dropped in the change, and did an exaggerated bow to the line of cars behind him as the mechanical arm lifted. They applauded as he passed through the booth. "See Flip? It pays to be cool." Flip rolled his eyes but this time did not argue as he knew Jake was right.