Initial Concept

After pairing with Will and Yuxin we went to create our mind map and come up with an idea for a group project. We settled on a 3D animation as that had the most overlap with our interests. I gathered environment lighting reference for our campfire scene. I looked at games and films. I found good results when I searched for western and horror genre reference. Yuxin gathered character reference.

Production

After sharing our references I took over production scheduling and environment modeling. Yuxin did concept art and character design while Will setup a 3D prototype and previs and camera layout.

As I had the most experience with 3D animation I gave technical direction and suggestions for the team. As Yuxin modelled the character I provided draw over notes. Yuxin understood notes really quickly and was able to adapt them easily.

Based on our initial meeting I created a script for Will to follow with camera layout. I drew out a couple rough shots for reference for Will.

As I started modeling assets I tried to stay aware of our style of animation. I also tried to add personality to each of the assets. For the bag I tried to model it with slack so it felt a bit more used. For the tuna I modelled both a closed and open tuna can.

I needed to design the label for the tuna can and gave it blue colors to contrast the mostly orange lit scene. Following class critique I helped Will cut down on the edit so we could have something manageable but cohesive. I also showed him a few edit techniques in Premiere to add shot numbers and frame counts to help with edit notes.

For the tree models I knew we would need a full and filled forest so I experimented with multiple modeling methods for trees. I first modelled a high poly branch with pine needles, twig branches, and pine cones. This was extremely hard to move so I reduced poly count. The end result would be used in a close up shot.

For the next model I used a simple drawn pine needle cluster on a transparent plane. I then duplicated the planes into branches and randomized those across a tree. This tree worked well on its own but when duplicated the Maya scene became heavy. I duplicated it many times in a line and then took a render on a transparent background. This render I then placed on a plane and duplicated that transparent plane. This method of making a forest proved really effective. I was able to combine all three types of trees for various shots., especially with our dark lighting.

For the campfire I worked on the fire simulation. For a previous project in ACCAD 6651 I watched a tutorial for the fireplace fire. The only thing I didn’t like about the fire was that it started from a torus and you could see the original geometry. To solve this problem I thought I could use pieces of log geometry in order to have the fire point of origin from the top of the logs. The test worked out as I had hoped and the fire appeared to have logical starting points on the logs. I then progressed through different settings to try to make the fire look more realistic but still stylized.

For the final push I organized more production scheduling. I also rendered lit and composited majority of shots. Yuxin lit and rendered a few shots, as well.

Below is a composite layout of all the shots to make sure the color grade was consistent and the story was cohesive.