6 free tutorials · Beginner
Draw Anime Characters for Beginners
Build original anime-inspired characters from simple shapes. Practice faces, expressions, hair, a turned head and everyday clothing, then draw a complete standing figure with simple hands and shoes.
The drawings
Your First Anime Face
Practice drawing a front facing original anime character with a side swept bob hair style. Practice placing the head, both eyes and smaller features to the face before moving on to the hair.
Two Expressions, One Character
Draw two versions of the same character: happy on the left and surprised on the right. Learn how eyes, brows and mouth work together to change an expression.
Hair with Shape and Volume
Build a short swept hairstyle around a simple head. Use the skull, an outer envelope and a few broad locks to give hair shape and volume.
Turn the Head: Three-Quarter View
Turn a familiar anime head gently to the right. Keep the jaw, eye pair, nose, mouth and bob consistent with the same shallow view.
Build the Upper Body
Give your anime character a body to go with the face. Start with the chest, shoulders and arms, then draw a simple shirt around them. You’ll add the face and hair once the body is in place.
Your Complete Anime Character
Draw an adult anime character with the head tilted to one side. The character should have two hands visible and be dressed in a blouse, a skirt and boots. Focus on getting the relaxed stance of the character before adding clothes.
Two ways to use these lessons
You’re here
Free tutorials
A picture of every step, written instructions and a replay of the pencil strokes. Draw on paper or in any app you like. No account and no scores.
Guided course
You draw each step on our canvas and send it to Luna, our virtual coach. She tells you what to fix before you move on, and your drawings stay saved in your account.
Lesson 1 is free. The rest of the course is a one-time purchase.
See the guided courseGuided lessons
Watch Luna look at a drawing
Short recordings from our guided courses. A drawing goes to Luna, she circles what’s off and explains the fix, and the corrected drawing is checked again.
Before you start
Beginners who want to draw original anime- and manga-inspired characters. The course teaches still character drawing, rather than animation, comic storytelling or advanced anatomy.
Use the lesson canvas to follow the guided drawings and submit your attempts for feedback. You can also follow the public tutorials with paper, a pencil and an eraser.
You don’t need: Previous Academy courses, detailed anatomy knowledge, perfect lines or professional drawing equipment.
Work at your own pace. The final full-body project involves more construction than the early head studies; playback time is not an estimate of your drawing time.