2020
2020
g
g
2020
2020
Overview
An action-packed heist film that follows two bandits’ love story. It’s set in a retro-futuristic world where opulence & crime has reached a peak.
But will the light shine upon our protagonists as well?
Director.
Head Rush was a 3D mixed with 2D graduate film produced in my final year of university. I worked on the film during the pre-production stages of the film; within the 3D department.
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I was a 3D modeller and was tasked to create and rig the car model ready to be textured and then animated. I used a turnaround created by the concept artist to use as a reference while working.
Software Used:
Modelling & Animation: Autodesk Maya
Rendering: Arnold (Maya)
Working from concept art and turnarounds is very common within the animation and film industry and is a good practice to grasp. During my time at university and 3D modelling, I have adopted it into my workflow.
The art director set out the styling during the pre-production stages of the film so I was able to understand fully how the model needed to look; I worked closely with the co-director to ensure that any changes needed to be made, could be done so quickly and efficiently.
Having the various profiles of the car was extremely helpful; it added a sense of depth and proportion to the model.
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The image above was created by and belongs to the concept artist who worked on the film, and does not belong to me.
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* The textures of the car model were not created by me. I only modelled the car mesh.
A character/vehicle rig has to be clear on how to operate as well as, it has to work. Testing is a part of bringing to ensure that problems do not arise later in the pipeline.
My experience with rigging was very limited at the time of creating the car rig. I knew it had to be simple and clear for the controls. I took advantage of parenting to link meshes to the controls. I used the main ring for the directional and rotational movement of the car. I used smaller rings around each of the tires for the movement of the suspension.
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I took countermeasures to ensure the rig wouldn't break the mesh of the car and also that the car wouldn't clip through itself. In order to do so, I set a limit to the suspension on how far up and down the wheels would move; adding a sense of realism. I also locked off the scale controls for the main control ring so the animator wouldn't accidentally animate the scale of the car.
Challenges & Method.
Hard surface modelling has come become a natural skill to me and I will always look to refine and build upon this skill. Modelling a stylised car is a good challenge as it has to have the elements of a working car with the creative freedom of being fictional.
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Getting the scale and weight of the car was quite difficult, and something I kept in mind throughout the modelling process. (It needed to look compact but fast while the scale had to match the other vehicles and scenes being built. Working closely with the director ensured these targets were hit.)
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The time scale was quite sure for the build due to the film being a combination of 2D & 3D. (Time management and organising my own schedule meant everything was either completed on time or early.)
Rig Demonstration
I have created a turnaround of the character, on a plane with an Arnold Skydome light to ensure the model is well light.​ This shows off the various levels of the mesh going from; Mesh View, High Polygon View, Low Polygon view.
Animation Test.
Testing is important and one of the last steps before handing over and model to the animators. Once the rig had been completed I set up a scene to ensure that all rig controls worked. Also having the rig demonstration meant I was able to quickly and clearly show how the rig would work.
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To capture the reality of a vehicle and add ease for the animators, I used parenting controls that linked the wheels to the movement of the car; the tires would rotate when moving forward.
