>when you want to create a character design portfolio or just

You can upload your work on Behance and choose the rights to it. Also Behance is dope as hell

>>2956884
>choose the rights to it
>"""artists""" on the internet literally have no idea how copyright works

>>2956884
You don't trademark designs. Trademarks are for things like company names, and brands, like Coke™.

You copyright designs. You create a copyright the moment you create something. As long as it doesn't contain elements of other copyrights, you can sue for copyright infringement.
When you're established, you can officially copyright things in the copyright office, and that will absolutely help make a case. But, simply putting "©2017 your name" is enough to claim it, and if you publish it online or elsewhere, you can use that to prove your ideas came first, or that someone copied you.

Big studios are very careful about issues like this, it's the smaller companies that are more likely to infringe on your ideas. Every piece in your portfolio, that doesn't use someone else's ideas, should include your copyright.

Behance is one way to display your work. You can also embed your copyright in the metadata of the files, which I do automatically. I also have my work published in a portfolio site with the year of creation/copyright clearly labeled.

I would highly suggest that everyone who reads this gets the Graphic Artist's Guild's book. It's also for fine artists and any creative professional. The cost of the book includes membership in the guild, with legal and copyright information. You need to understand how copyright works, it's extremely important.

To answer your question, if you can prove they copied your work, you can sue them. That's why you document everything, when you step out into the professional world.

>>2956890
>simply putting ©2017 your name" is enough to claim it

Even if it's on a place like Twitter, Tumblr or Instagram?

>>2956893
Yes. People will disregard it, and there's nothing you can do about it - but honestly, why put portfolio pieces you're protect of in social media like that? No art director is going to go to IG for a portfolio.

I have a professional portfolio, and none of it is on social media, it doesn't need to be. Especially Tumblr, where copyright is completely ignored.

And yes, from time to time you'll have to contact someone and tell them to take your work down. I've had to do it. 99.9% of the time lawyers don't get involved. I've also had to sue for people selling my work illegally, and had to hire lawyers, and sue.

It's worse if your work is in any genre or medium with fans, like video games, bands, movies, etc. The fans have no regards for copyright, but if someone links my work, I just ask for a link to my site, and credit, and I usually get it.

There's a lot of people who think "If it's on the internet it's free", and you'll have to lawyer up because of them from time to time. It's the cost of doing business as an artist.

If you really want to be protective, put a watermark over the image, one that would be impossible to healing brush out (yes, they do that, too) This is more effective, because they'll just crop your copyright off.

>>2956893

Even moreso. That's publishing.

>>2956910
So, where is your portfolio?

>>2959079
I'm not going to link my professional work on 4chan. I'm not stupid.

>>2959108
But where is it?

>>2959127
Not him but do you know what paper is?