3D Modeling & Animation
2025, D. Cuomo
2025, D. Cuomo
Concept and Story Development of The Hangar Alarm
In my PBM, I have to create a cut scene in 3ds max for a video game. The purpose of the cut scene is to show the player what is happening around the world. In my game, a virus has spread, causing people to act like zombies. Resources are scarce and the importance of my cutscene is to show the player that there is an abandon place with a working plane and other potential resources that they can use to their advantage.
The character in my animation is the lonely plane that is mysteriously starting the engine and stopping. The character is unique because it is not a traditional character where they could breathe, or talk but it is an inanimate object that is acting as if it is alive while not being alive at all. My cut scene tells the story of how people have abandoned buildings and left everything, while showing how the mysterious forces are acting upon forgotten things.
Environment and Layout
My cameras are placed near important objects to show the player that the object is important and for the player to see the character move and come alive or they are placed near an animated object such as the door closing to show other objects that are not the main character so the player can see other things moving and working. This layout allows for quicker and sharper camera movement and cuts, to show the player the randomness and crazy the place is all while being completely abandoned and empty.
Plane
Character - Needs special attention
Will be a red metallic color to stand out of the background
Will look somewhat brand new to show how it is in great condition for the player
Crate
Oak wood material with very little detail
Clipboard
Simple brown board with a blank piece of paper
Alarm
Bright red lights
Doors
Large, heavy, industrial doors with a black and yellow warning tape on the edges to stand out
Table
Wrench
Metal
(There are no objects in need of rigging so there are no plans on how to rig any objects.)
Sketching my design helped guide my modeling process by allowing me to see what I needed to make and what kind of detail I was looking for. My textures and material choices were influenced by my want for my artifact to stand out and contrast from the background to show it's importance. The tool I used effectively was edit-poly, it allowed me to make a more detailed shape and object. Materials enhance the realism of my model by making it seem to have a real life texture and allowing the viewer to see what the object might look like in real life. It was hard to create a shape that I thought was good enough but eventually I started to form a good shape using edit-poly and it looked sufficient. I am most proud of the little details I added because it allows for a more realistic looking artifact.
For my scene, I wanted a dark atmosphere with a spotlight to emphasize the importance of the main character, the plane, so the viewer can see how it stands out. I used a mixture of spotlights and omni lights. My spotlights were used to focus on certain objects like the character or things behind a door that will be a main focus in a scene and the omni lights allow players to see the surrounding objects but not have the objects b the focus of attention. The light intensity and color allowed for my scene to have a warm, almost humid feeling while having limited viability due to the light intensity.
Q&A
Question #1: What did you animate and why did you chose these elements?
Answer: I animated my main character because it was required and because it needed to be interesting and have the main focus of the viewer. I also animated doors to make the viewer ask questions like why the door was opening and closing and a clipboard to show that the plane was making strong winds or vibrations, causing other things to move.
Question #2: What part of your final animation are you most proud of?
Answer: The part of my animation that I am most proud of is how it loops seamlessly and looks smooth.