Nicole's 3D Computer Animation blog

Content and Task:

• Set up the camera angles for the corridor-to-wide-shot sequence.
• Make adjustments to the previously captured shots and render them again.
• Edit the footage and synchronize it with suitable music.

Version 3.1:

In this shot, there are a few issues:

1. Due to texture streaming, the visuals suddenly became blurry at certain moments during rendering.
2. The corridor scene is overly dark, making it difficult to see the surrounding environment. I think I need to add some faint lighting to slightly illuminate the structure.

Version 3.2:

Version 3.3:

In version 3.3, I adjusted the atmosphere of the scene, the fog, and added lighting to the corridor.

Then, I merged the two shots, edited them, and added background music.

Demo with background music:

Then, I discussed the demo with my teacher and received very helpful feedback and insights, which I will implement before the final submission:

1. The camera has a moment of acceleration when moving through the corridor, which looks a bit abrupt. I need to adjust the camera’s curve.

2. When entering the cave, the eyes transition from a dark environment to a well-lit one, which might be uncomfortable at first. I can adjust the exposure and focal length to achieve this effect, similar to James Turrell’s works.

3. In the wide shot, I should focus more on the statue, with the boss appearing as a black silhouette in the background. Since there will be a close-up of the boss later, I need to add more lighting details to the statue so that the viewer’s attention isn’t distracted by the light from the cave entrance, and I can reference how to use the light to create contrast and focus from some art works from Caravaggio’s paintings.

4. For the close-up shot of the boss, I can add more detail to the base, such as scattered rocks and grass.

5. When the boss opens its eyes, I will lower the brightness of the rocks behind it, allowing the light from its eyes to have a subtle color influence on the environment.

Content and Task

• Place the cemera
• Color grading
• Render the firest version of the video

The first version of the shot

I discussed this shot with my teacher and received very helpful feedback:

1. The pacing of the shot is a bit slow.
2. The focus has issues.
3. When the camera passes through the statue, there is clipping, which affects the visual experience.
4. While the boss is lit, there are no shadows on the ground, which feels inconsistent.
5. The boss’s animation, where it turns its head and opens its eyes simultaneously, makes it hard for the audience to identify the primary movement.

I also identified some issues myself, such as:

1. Due to the volumetric fog, the dark areas in the distance appear too gray and lack sufficient depth, resulting in weak overall contrast between light and shadow in the scene.
2. When the boss sits cross-legged, the leg model deforms noticeably. I need to adjust this using blend shapes.
3. The sky behind the boss looks too plain, and the entire scene, including the animation, feels overly static. To enhance the sense of depth and introduce some dynamism, I plan to add birds and distant snowy mountains.

After the modification, I rendered the second version:

Due to the backstory, this boss has been meditating in the cave ever since its power over death was stolen. It neither resists nor continues to fulfill its original duties. Originally, the balance between life and death attracted many explorers to this forest. However, with the power of death taken away, the power of life is left unchecked. Under its influence, the forest’s inhabitants and all living beings cannot experience a proper death.

The protagonist, as the challenger and corrector, is actually being used by a higher deity. Since they cannot directly compel the boss to resume its duties, they tempt the protagonist with the boss’s remaining powers, essentially turning the protagonist into a collector. This power exerts a slow, irreversible influence on the area within a certain radius centered on its wielder. Rather than functioning as a power, iy seems like a moving curse.

According to the setting, after seizing the power of life, the protagonist begins to question whether they are truly walking a path of his or her own choosing.

In this scene, I want to convey the boss’s sense of abandonment and its inevitable “eaten”.

So, this isn’t exactly a highly optimistic worldview, and the boss, as a deity, isn’t as unattainable as one might imagine. It’s merely another piece on the chessboard. Perhaps influenced by Souls-like games, I often enjoy creating worlds that aren’t entirely bright or hopeful. This boss isn’t a noble god; it’s simply a being with extraordinary power, coveted by various forces, reduced to a mere pawn in their schemes. Thus, it remains in this desolate cavern, awaiting the one who will eventually claim its life.

Since the overall scene is very dark, the boss lacks sufficient lighting, leading to a loss of detail. To address this, I separated the scene models and lighting into Channel 1 and placed the boss model and its lighting into Channel 2. Additionally, I positioned around eight area lights around the boss to create dynamic lighting effects.

I aim to create the impression that when the boss opens its eyes, the light from its eyes illuminates its face. Furthermore, as the boss awakens, its body will emit a glowing energy effect.

Content and Task:

• Use ZBrush to create the statue model and textures, then import them into the scene.
• Continue build the scene

Craft the sculpture:

Continue build the scene:

Content and Task:

• Set up the white-box model for the scene, determining the camera position and the overall layout of the scene.
• Replace the polygons with FAB assets, add environmental fog, and finalize the lighting setup.

Create a sketch of the scene layout：

I initially built the sketch in the classroom, but the classroom computer doesn’t have C4D, so I had to use Maya instead. While Maya is good for general modeling, it’s not as efficient for quickly setting up large scenes compared to C4D. This is because if the scale is set too large, parts of the model get hidden and become invisible.

Then, I imported the Maya scene into C4D and continued adjusting the layout. I enabled the camera’s rule-of-thirds grid, which helped me better position the objects.

In the overall scene, I made some adjustments based on the sketch. I wanted to capture the moment where the protagonist walks through a corridor and then reaches the cave, so I added a narrow corridor. As seen, the scene consists of several sections: the farthest and highest point is where the boss sits, followed by a ruined staircase. In front of the staircase is a body of water, along with statues and columns. For the foreground, I plan to add some grass and rocks.

Import into UE5:

Then I use data smith to import the scene and camera position into UE5. And strat to build the scene:

Content and Task:

During this week, I need to rig the model of this character.

Since the model is not only asymmetrical but also has a high polycount, and the hole in the chest complicates weight painting, I will first use a plugin to reduce the polycount, retopologize the model, and remove the chest structure, replacing it with a flat surface.

Place the rig

Create cage(deform – cage – create) as a second low model for the low model. This allows the weights to be copied onto the lower module later.

Since the generated cage is too thick and overlaps around the fingers, I need to adjust its size. Then copy the weight of cage to our low modle.

Paint and adjust the weight:

Copy the weight in low model to the model with more ploygons, and adjust the weight.

Use blend shape to make the eyelid close

I encountered a serious issue: when sitting cross-legged, the thigh area stretches too much and twists, creating a very odd appearance. I need to switch from classic linear to dual quaternion and then use blend shape with smooth to adjust the shape of the model.

Content and task:

This week, I imported the model into sp to bake the high mold and paint the material.

Bake the model:

Materials of the boss:

Since recording the screen while painting the textures causes lag and the model has a high polycount, I will take screenshots to showcase the final result and the overall texture workflow.

The image above shows the texture I painted for the first time, which has a matte finish but looks rather monotonous. Therefore, I decided to incorporate a mix of organic and inorganic elements. I made some adjustments:

Balancing the added elements during painting is crucial because certain textures and bumps can alter the original sculpted structure. However, I had to make some compromises in this process to ensure the details enhance the model without overwhelming or distorting the sculpted form.

When painting the head’s texture, I need to consider various factors. According to the boss’s backstory, as a deity that has been sitting still for centuries, its body will have dust accumulated in the crevices, and the entire body has a rough texture. Considering the humid environment of the cave, moss would grow on it, and the surface of its body would have a layer of damp moisture. Therefore, I added these effects to reflect those conditions.

Since no natural creature is perfectly symmetrical, I’ve kept symmetry off both in the design and texture painting. This irregularity adds to the realism.

For the chest, I want to create a layered structure on the right side, with elements like veins or organic features attaching to it. On the left side, I plan to paint textures resembling rock and glowing jade.

For the abdomen and arms, I want to maintain a texture that combines hardness like rock or wood, with patterns resembling tree bark and subtle bumps to emphasize its organic, yet rugged, nature.

Content and task:

To ensure a reasonable timeline, I need to allocate time for rigging, animation, scene creation, rendering, and editing. Therefore, I should aim to spend one week on creating the high-poly model and sculpting the details. This week will be dedicated entirely to detailing the sculpt.

First part of detail:

I used subdivision and projection to ensure the model’s polycount is appropriate. Later, I will bake the high-poly details onto the base model, but that will be part of the work in Substance Painter.

The creation of details is mainly divided into two parts.

The first part involves sculpting the primary details, such as the flowing lines and muscle definition.

Second part of detail:

The second part focuses on the skin details, including its rough texture, scales, wrinkles, and rock-like cracks. I will use various brushes to create these features.

The second part of the detailing, along with UV unwrapping and base color painting, can be found in the following video.

I want to add some details to its horns, such as making the outer shell appear rock-like and hard. Over time, due to wear and tear, cracks will form, and some of the worn-out shell will expose the jade-like material beneath.

The next step is to export the first level model, which is the baked model, and use rizomuv to cut the uv, which you can also see in the video

Use RizomUV to cut uv

For the body, since I’ve combined the head, arms, and torso into a single model, I need to use UDIM to ensure the texture resolution is maintained properly.

Use Zbrush paint base color

Then, I continue using ZBrush to paint the base colors because ZBrush’s masking tools are more effective than those in Substance Painter. I’ll complete the base color in ZBrush, export it, and then import the base color into Substance Painter for further work.

Content and Task:

• Make a boss model and determine the proportions of the limbs
• Determine muscle direction
• Definite silhouette
• Engrave the details of the chest

In the head sculpt, I want to convey a sense of both danger and gentleness. Its silhouette might resemble that of a deer, but the details will deviate from this impression.

Around the mouth, I want to sculpt an emaciated and dry appearance, as if the skin is clinging tightly to the bones. Additionally, I want to create the impression of vines growing beneath the skin.

For the overall body, I aim for a more slender and lean design, suggesting that it doesn’t rely on strength or muscle to win battles.

Due to the story setting (though this won’t be shown in the video), this boss possesses the powers of both life and death. However, the power of death was taken away many years ago, leaving an unhealed scar on its chest. Therefore, I want to sculpt some details that convey the sensation of flesh growing on a hard surface. It resembles a fusion of organic matter, rock, and jade.

I aim to highlight its divine nature, showing that while it has formidable healing abilities and powers, it still bears permanent scars and can experience pain. At this stage, I noticed that its chest and muscles appear somewhat soft, so in the final polishing stage, I plan to make the edges look sharper.

I noticed that I started sculpting the back muscles relatively early, but because of the need to use Dynamesh, the details were lost. I’ll pay more attention to this in future work to avoid wasting unnecessary time. Since this time I started creating after not using the software for six months, many of the repetitive tasks could have been avoided with better planning.

For example, in a proper workflow, I should finalize the shapes of the fingers, toes, and all other parts before moving on to detailing the head and chest. However, I couldn’t help but start with those details first.

However, I often find myself getting lost in the process of refining the shape. This stage, which lies between rough sketching and detailing, tends to feel tedious. I often can’t help but dive into detailing a specific area instead of focusing on the overall form.

My weekly reflection:

Sculpting the mid-level model is a painful process because it’s extremely tedious. I can’t immediately see the final result, which makes the entire workflow feel endlessly long. I ended up remaking the legs three times.

The first attempt aimed to create a treant-like feel, with legs resembling a structure made of branches. However, when considering the integration of the legs with the body, I realized they were too thin to properly support its weight. So, I redid the legs.

The second attempt followed an animal-like structure, including bent knees and heels. But I had to reconsider this because the character needs to sit cross-legged, and I also needed to factor in the later rigging work. This led to the third version of the legs, where I switched to a human skeletal structure to make the subsequent work less troublesome.

I had to make some compromises, such as removing the branch-like structures extending from the hip area. I was worried they might clip through the body when the character sits cross-legged.