Pout expression

Why the pout reads as cute

Real anger tightens the face; a pout exaggerates it into something rounder and softer. Cheeks fill with air, the mouth becomes a small bump, and the eyes look away or up from under the brows. The message is "I am upset, and I want you to notice", which makes it endearing rather than threatening.

In Japanese manga the puffed-cheek anime pout is often lettered with the sound effect puku, and it suits tsundere characters, younger siblings and anyone who loses a small argument.

Kinds of pout

• Puffed-cheek pout: cheeks inflated, lips pressed into a short line or tiny triangle; the classic sulk.
• Lip pout: lower lip pushed out, chin dimpled, eyes wet; closer to about to cry.
• Kissy pout: lips rounded forward as if blowing a kiss; playful rather than sulky.
• Duck face: lips pushed out with cheeks sucked in, popular in early 2010s selfies.
• Side-eye pout: head turned away, eyes sliding back toward the viewer, arms often crossed.

How to draw a pout

Start with the cheek outline: in a puffed pout the jaw line bulges outward between the cheekbone and the mouth corner, so the face becomes rounder at the bottom. Draw the mouth small and close to the nose, either as a wavy line or a tiny upturned triangle.

Angle the brows down toward the nose but keep the eyes large; narrow eyes push the face toward real anger. A blush across the cheeks, a sweat drop or a small cross-shaped vein mark at the temple are common comedic additions. In profile, the lips should project past the line of the nose tip only slightly; too far looks like whistling.

Posing a pouting face for photos

Take a breath, hold a little air in the cheeks, and relax the forehead. Looking slightly up at a camera held above eye level enlarges the eyes and keeps the pout soft.

Add one prop or gesture to give the sulk a reason: crossed arms, hugging a plush, or poking a puffed cheek with one finger. Keep the shoulders loose, because tense shoulders turn a cute pout into a stiff one.