3D Modeling & Animation

Planning & Storyboard

PBM PLANNING

Title: Brink of Disaster

Purpose: To show and emphasize how close the country this takes place in was to war. 

Character: the future tank is the 'character', and will be the focus of the clip. It will have the most detail and will be the center of most shots.

It will tell a story by starting with showing nothing happening, and then the hangar coming alive with activity, to the hangar returning to its idle state.

Asset list: 

• Tank (I am going to use the tank that I designed a few modules ago as the base for this. It will have the same futuristic design but obviously more detail, this will be the “character”, with the most detail, to reflect the secret and important nature) (WILL MODEL)

• Metal walls (WILL MODEL)

• concrete floor (WILL MODEL)

• Metal workbench/desk (https://poly.pizza/m/YJyJam67hJ)

• Desk lamp (https://poly.pizza/m/uJDWrSJGVH)

• Folders (https://poly.pizza/m/fDhOEadpKWA)

• Papers (https://poly.pizza/m/0DL5rjkcbTH)

• Screwdrivers (https://poly.pizza/m/a4vSw5RcfdR)

• Hammers (https://poly.pizza/m/cOizz1RJnb3)

• Screws (https://poly.pizza/m/dqGogKNfzCj)

• Large doors (WILL MODEL)

• Clipboard (https://poly.pizza/m/8H5SDxwMnEA)

• Oil barrel (https://poly.pizza/m/orjMeJQfFD)

• Frosted glass window (WILL MODEL)

• Swivel chair (https://poly.pizza/m/UfKvrZBK6C)

• Control panel (https://poly.pizza/m/1aw3zdwyJo)

• M4 rifles (https://poly.pizza/m/vx8dQfkzNM)

• Spare missiles (https://poly.pizza/m/dPVCvXP-S58)

• Blowtorch (WILL MODEL)

• Scrap metal (https://poly.pizza/m/coWUgQr3Pe8)

• Tablet (https://poly.pizza/m/2LxocCCiDy-)

• Laptops (WILL MODEL)

• Usb drives (https://poly.pizza/m/cKfcEEZJ0E)

• mug (https://poly.pizza/m/2jVUdnj4mVP)

• Very simple human figures (for shadows on frosted glass, potentially very simple rigging for basic arm movements needed) (https://poly.pizza/m/yiQDOLP4Ry)

3 Modeled items (1 Character and 3 other objects)

• Tank

• Blowtorch

• Laptop

• The Room (Floor, Walls, Window, Doors)

To see how the scene will look, see the attached images.

Artifact 1

• What was the concept for your main character, and how does it fit your chosen prompt?

The concept was to create a futuristic, angled tank. I think that this fits my prompt because it fits the role of some form of special technology, especially one that fits in a hangar.

• What steps did you take to unwrap your model cleanly and evenly?

I used unwrap UV, and in the UVW editor I used flatten and normal mapping to make everything mostly even, and then a little bit of manual ajustment to clean everything up.

• How did you ensure your textures aligned properly with the UV layout?

I made sure to troubleshoot UVW maps as I was working to ensure things fit.

• What part of your finished model are you most proud of, and why?

Its kind of small but I am really happy with how the antennas worked out on the back of the tank. I think they look very realistic, and I think the taper and rubber texture worked very well.

Artifact 2

• What kind of environment did you decide to build (e.g., classroom, sci-fi lab, fantasy forest)? Why did you choose this setting?

I chose to create a hangar housing some futuristic technology. I chose this location mainly because I thought it would be fun to create. We did an assignment earlier creating a tank, and I enjoyed the assignment, so I wanted to do something similar.

• How did you ensure that your models matched the genre and visual style of your chosen prompt?

I made sure to look at lots of inspiration images to take inspiration for my scene, and made sure all of the objects I chose fit.

• How did you organize your scene and files (naming, layers, groups, etc.)?

I have used an organization system since the beginning, organizing my files by their status (WIP, completed), what type of file they are (model, map, image, render), and by doing this I have been able to keep everything very well organized. I minimized time I spend looking for files, and was able to make the most of my time.

• If you could improve one part of your workflow or modeling process, what would it be?

Sometimes I was having trouble keeping track of which computer had the most recent files once I started using a second computer. I could have improved keeping recent backups on google drive of all my 3d modeling files. 

Artifact 3

• What mood or atmosphere did you aim to create with your lighting?

I mostly tried to create an atmosphere of tension with the red lighting, emphasizing urgency and crisis.

• Which types of lights did you use, and how did they work together?

I used omni lights, mostly because they would imitate the large overhead lights of a hangar and cast long shadows like a real hangar.

• How did color temperature and light intensity affect your scene’s tone?

The red created a sense of urgency and tension, and the scene without any red seems much more calm.

• What challenges did you face when setting up or balancing your lights?

I had problems getting the shadows in the frosted glass just right, there were problems with reflection.

• How does your lighting enhance the storytelling of your project prompt?

By enhancing the feeling I am attempting to create, and the changing of color and intensity helps clue in the audience to what is happening.

Artifact 4

• What did you animate, and why did you choose those elements?

I thought the chairs and mug would help emphasize how heavy and impactful the opening of the door was, and how under normal circumstances loose opbejcts like that would be removed but this is not normal circumstances. The camera shake was to emphasize weight.

• How did you ensure your animation looped seamlessly?

When I was finishing the last shot, I loaded up my first shot to ensure the positions of all objects were exactly the same.

• What challenges did you encounter with timing or pacing?

Most of the challenges were keeping continuity (ensuring moved objects maintained positions throughout the loop, and ensuring they would not visibly jump when the loop restarted).

• How did you use camera movement to enhance storytelling?

I shook the camera to emphasize the weight of the doors.

• What part of your final animation are you most proud of?

Two parts, firstly when the chair knocks off of the desk in the scene where the doors start to open. I spent a while making it spin just right. Secondly, when the mug falls off the desk and bounces. I am proud of specifically how the mug falls, and It took me a while and a pushed a cup off my desk at home like 50 times to watch it and get it just right.