Having completed the 3D model within the creation pipeline for the game-ready character I wanted to then present the monk as a portfolio piece. The next step would then be post-production with the rendering of the final character model and showcasing the model through the use of lighting and a character showreel demonstrating the characters unique selling point of distortion and how I could use a game engine to present the finalised character for use within my Artstation portfolio.

Lighting

Three-point lighting

Taking experience from previous character lighting techniques learnt within the lighting process within unreal engine 4 I have researched the three-point lighting technique is the way to highlight the character model within the engine and produce realistic and natural lighting. From creating a horror character the intended use of lighting will be moody and dynamic with sharp shadows which interact with the minimal lighting displayed in the portraying of the demon monk.

Through this I wish the character to be perceived as intimidating and imposing in how the audience views the character and through the use of lighting, I will create the mood and atmosphere desired to achieve this.

Marmoset Rendering

Using Marmoset toolbag for the presenting of the finalised character for renders. I wanted to display the character model using lighting techniques within the software that would best capture the horror atmosphere of the demon monk this would best be conveyed through the lighting set-up and the techniques used to illustrate the style of the character for the audience. Using the three-point lighting technique consisted of a fill, key, and backlight, which would highlight important areas of the character and provide natural lighting for the whole of the character except for key shadows and darkness.

Having textured the assets for the model within substance painter, marmoset allowed me to have control over the effectiveness of the materials used on the model this included adjusting metallic surface shine and the flipping of the Y-axis for the normal maps creating a more accurate material for the intended texture on the displayed character.

The use of the 3 point lighting set-up helped in the presenting of the character and also provided added depth of colouration and natural light sources for the lights on display.

The use of light build-up is useful documentation as it illustrates the way that light reflects off the character and certain assets such as the medallions from the 3 point system I can view the effect that the fill, key and backlight have on the lighting of the character with the fill light providing the main light for the left side of the character with the backlight highlights the corners of the character and its backside whilst the key light served to provide the colour within the scene and show a more vibrant and brighter cool temperature for the lighting set-up of the character.

Extra lights that were added included the orange hues produced from the candle lights on each end of the character model. These lights provided additional fill lights for the corners of the model and also producing more variation in colour in contrast to the blue hue light created by the key moonlight. Having the character lit was essential in the rendering of scenes for the presenting of the character as showing the character in full and to a visible standard is important in presenting the textures and character model created for this module whilst also conveying the horror aesthetic and themes illustrated through the use of colour and shadows.

(Update) originally the lighting used was much brighter with a brown tone behind the fog effect this added more visibility for the character but on reflection took ways from the horror element for the demon monk and showed less notable shadows a feature I wanted to convey as the dark atmosphere is a way to convey the horror style to the audience and this use of brightness takes way from the experience I feel.

The use of shadows is important for the character as it will illustrate the light hitting the surfaces of the character and clothing in these original renders I had an issue with the back of the hood showing light within it this was a problem as it was not realistic with how light interacts with cloth and also showed more of the character in an area that is best shown with harsh shadows to enhance the horror aesthetic. Knowing this issue I decided to rework the lighting on display and creating a set-up that better enhanced the darker tone required for the character and which would better convey the use of shadows darkness

Having chosen to remake the light for the marmoset scene I chose to display the character with a more toned down saturation through the use of a darker blue backdrop which would bring the character more to the foreground and highlighting the textures of the model. I still utilized the three-point light system with only changing the vibrance of the hue's behind the colouration and by also fixing the lighting reach which caused the issue behind the light showing the back of the hood which now shows the hood better positioned in shadow realistically showing the reach of the light hitting the character model.

The turntable within Marmoset has allowed me to observe the finalised character in all angles of the 3d model this is useful in showing the developed character model from a production standpoint and serves to present the monk in its final textured form. I have also created a wireframe turnaround that serves to demonstrate the poly count of the model illustrating its game-ready functionality and how it if taken further would be animated and placed with a game engine in this static state for implementation with programming the character to server as a game enemy character which it is designed to represent.

Material Layers

The use of layers has served to convey the material on display in the final character model and illustrate the textures and topology of the model. Areas of the production pipeline that shows the model in more depth thanks to this feature within marmoset for showing the breakdown of layers that make up the demon monk character model.

With the theme of the monk being distorted and wanting to convey the demonic monk with having an effect on the environment around it which would serve to involve the player and audiences in the experience of the interaction between the monk and them. In order to convey this stylistic choice in a unique selling point for the character model, I used the marmoset's distortion function with the camera of the scene.

This allowed for effects such as chromatic aberration and pincushion which alters the panning of the perspective camera and haziness of the models outline the alteration of the RGB also provided an effect of 3D for the observing of the character which enhances its effectiveness in illustrating its theme of distortion and conveys the feeling of unease intended for the audience to feel from the viewer of the character as in a game setting the monks are used to produce an effect such as this when looked upon by a player giving the audience a more personal relationship with the character and making the character a more engaging and interesting enemy character model through its unique selling point of distortion.

Wanting to present the Unique selling point of the character being distortion I created a turntable of the model with the inclusion of the distorted camera filter within unreal engine. This feature helps demonstrate the USP and the effect that it has on the target audience with its 3D perspective produced by the RGB.

This additional turntable with the inclusion of its effects presents the posed character model in a more complex and interesting manner which further conveys the chosen style and themes which is useful in presenting my development of the character and the systems I have portrayed through the post-production process for this module and the progression of the demon monk.

In-Game Implementation

One feature in my proposal for this module was the implementation of having the character model demonstrated within a game engine this was important as having the monk shown to be of use in a game scenario conveys its usefulness as a game character and completes the pipeline of the creation of a game-ready model following my process of development and documentation of the practices and pipeline used to produce the demon monk.

Using unreal engine 4 for the game engine provided a real-time system for the adding of the character and implementations of certain blueprints and lighting systems which would help in the presenting of the character. From these screenshots, I have placed the model with the engine and have documented its process within an engine which if taken further would serve to make the character an intractable enemy character fulfilling the design of the monk and its use as a game-ready character model.

Unreal engine Lighting

Wanting to illustrate the character being worked on within a game engine provided an opportunity to create real-time lighting systems for the presenting of the character and convey how it would look within an engine such as unreal engine 4. With this practice of using different software for lighting and presenting the character, I was able to compare and contrast the systems available to me and the best way in which to present the final character model.

The use of a game engine also allowed for video rendering of the full 3d model and gave me the opportunity to produce a character to showreel which would further enhance the present go themes and atmosphere meant to represent the character model of the demon monk.

Whilst I used alpha maps to create the flame texture shown within marmoset I used a different practice for the lighting shown in Unreal engine this was the use of particles systems made in-engine. This allowed for a more adaptive and realistic approach to producing natural lighting for the lights displayed and adds to the complexity of the model. This process was created through the use of blueprints found in Unreal which produced the flame particle effect which generated the warm hue temperature produced by candle lights.

Following the same principles of lighting used with the Marmoset lighting for the character seen in figure 3. I used similar blueprints and added additional lighting effects such as fog and dragonflies which attracted to the light of the flamer adds more depth and detail to the lighting shown on the character. The usefulness of using real-time lighting within a game engine has served to show the enhancement and development that can be used when lighting and presenting a character model when it comes to promoting the character and using it as a portfolio piece meant to attach the attention of the target demographic.

Whilst originally intending to use a dynamic split light set-up which utilized a variation in lighting hues of warm and cold temperatures shown with figure 41 this original render of the character within unreal engine produced a scene that I felt over-lit the environment and gave the lighting more focus instead of the character model. This is one reason I chose to scale back the lighting and focus on a single cool temperature for the blue moon and give shadows the opportunity to form sharper and more defined in areas where light could not reach. An improvement I believe is demonstrated in the final finished renders and use of dim light atmosphere lighting creating through this change.

With intending to present the character and produced a showcase of it to the audience and fellow artists for my portfolio I used the sequencer within Unreal engine which allowed for the movement of the camera in which I could take shots of the monk character and produce a video which highlights its important areas and convey the atmosphere and themes presented through its design.

With creating a character showreel I have researched other artists reels which are used to present their characters design and unique features wanting to present my demon monk the same I chose to use closer perspective angles for the video made and which focuses on the character more unique and important feature, for example, the medallions on the front and the candles on the shoulders. Having created an evil creature character for this module I wanted the video to also illustrate this which is why I avoided clear shots of the face and far away shots as I feel a more claustrophobic camera system helped convey the horror aesthetic and adds to the mystery of the character reveal.

With gothic horror being a key influence with the demon monk I wanted to illustrate this through the atmosphere created for the character in the engine. This included adding blueprints such as mist which gave the backdrop and environment around the character more depth and also highlight the themes conveyed through the monk's design.

The use of natural simple lighting helped to also present the monk as being outdoors and more night focused furthering the backstory developed for this character and its influences and objective of illustrating a horror creature with clear gothic and horror aesthetic influences such as vampires and demons.

The Character showreel of the monk in unreal engine is used to convey the atmosphere and themes found in my production pipeline used in this module. In the video, I utilized the use of close-ups and showing the full 3D character model keeping a sense of intrigue and oppressive atmosphere to highly the gothic horror aesthetic discussed in my research and planning for this character. Wanting to also illustrate the use of distortion for the character I used editing tricks found in premiere pro to add effects like glitching static and sound files such as Whispering to use within the video to further fit the style and theme of distortion highlighting the horror atmosphere and creature aesthetic found from the design of the demon monk to appeal to the target demographic through these features.

The use of static frames and sounds were used to convey a 4th wall effect between the viewer and monk illustrating how the character is portrayed and its unique selling point which helps in the presenting of the character and the best way to convey these features in the creation of a character showcase which highlights the characters strengths and presents it in an engaging and unique fashion for use in showing my professional skills and abilities within character art and presentation.

Glitching renders

Distortion being the main focus in regards to the characters unique selling point marmoset gave me the opportunity to highlight this feature through camera perspective and effects in these renders I have conveyed through the use of twisting the orthogonal renders and having an effect that gives off a feeling of unnaturalness a design chose that furthers the chosen style and theme for the monk.

I have used photoshop which some of the renders in the software to emphasise this further which includes static overlays and wording across the screen this design is used to convey the 4th wall breaking element of the character shown through the 3D effect and further develops upon the theme of distortion which includes not only the character renders but also the audience's engagement with the character as a result of this choice. The glitching effect serves to provide context behind the monk demonic design enhancing backstory but also gives the character a unique element of which stands it out as a unique enemy character for a game.

The same technique was used for the Unreal engine renders with photoshop provided extra overlays for conveying the glitchy static aesthetic which blueprints and time could not allow. These renders serve to highlight the distortion effect and how it adds depth to regular renders making them more engaging and unique for the target audience to view.

Whilst the two software uses the same character, textures and light set-up it is clear that it produces slightly different results and this experience has demonstrated the differences between software and how to best utilize them for use of presenting a character model

Photoshop Editing

The creation of alpha maps served to add more detail to the character and further enhance the presentation of the model. The creating of the alpha maps began in may which required a simple plane that would then need a material attached for the texture, in this case, a flame.png image which when added to the plane would mask out the shape of the plane and show the flame texture only.

This is what's used to portray the flame on the candles for the monk and is a common illusion used by artists as it keeps the poly count low and is quick to implement as a small feature to enhance the character model in areas such as candles or the pentagram texture shown in figure 65.

Photoshop has allowed for editing with the renders I have taken producing more advanced and detailed final production renders for the character. The use of properties such as levels, vibrance and exposure shown in figure 69 gave me filters in which to enhance the imagery and create renders that are useful for product displays and marketing to the target audience as having renders that are engaging and eye-catching to the audience is important when presenting my finalised character and how it's perceived.

Development Sheets

I have created production sheets for the character to serve as breakdowns and presentations for the character model showing the best renders of the monk and to also provide more technical production imagery to add context and provide development process for the creative workflow that was taken in the making of the final character model.

The character sheet is used to show the game-ready character model in it's final textured form displaying both front and back of the model with the inclusion of a wireframe overlay used to highly the poly count for the character. This character sheet is useful in the development process as it shows the audience the whole character and conveys the theme and atmosphere required for the horror aesthetic.

The other production sheets I created including presenting the character in more technical terms with illustrating the texture maps used for each asset that make up the character model and also the use of material layers which show the character breakdown of textures and model.

These sheets provide more depth into the functionality of the character model and also highlight the development pipeline used in the creation of the monk. These development sheets serve as useful documentation of the pipeline followed throughout this module and can also be useful for anyone interesting in understanding my process and workflow which has produced my final character model and these sheets help to illustrate the development I have made in the creating of my game-ready character.

Taking a multitude of renders within the software has allowed for development and exploring interesting angles and perspectives for the presenting of the finalised character. I have used a variety of angles some close-ups and perspective shots in ways that capture the atmosphere and design of the monk to further convey the feeling of horror and intimidation meant to be conveyed through the style and design of the monk. One render that I took of the monk included the brown textured design a monk variation created to explore the inclusion of a hierarchy of monks adding to the background and lore behind the character as an enemy type within a game.

These renders are useful documentation in the process of illustrating the many renders takes used in finding angles for presenting the character and whether they add to detract from the experience in regards of the brown textured monk I feel they may take away from the focus of the main red-cloaked monk and for this reason, I used them as an additional feature and not a core at the presenting of the demon monk.

Presentation of the Monk

The use of creating a bio has helped in adding context behind the characters design and its purpose within a game scenario this being its unique selling point being the distortion effect the character will produce for the player.

I have also used it to present the posed character model and to include its tris count for demonstrating its functionality. The use of adding backstory behind the characters abilities is useful in building intrigue in the monk with the target audience and allows for further development in the marketing of the model within the post-production pipeline.

Finalised Renders

Having the character presented to a professional standard was an important aspect of my proposal plan with this I wanted to have the character and its features presented in a way that best captures the themes and atmosphere of the monk as well as accurately illustrates the 3D model to the concept art provided to me in pre-production by Ross Delaney.

Using Artstation I created renders with serving as production shots of the model and its technical function which provides information about myself for the audience and allows for contact between myself and other artists. This is useful in networking and sharing art content as I can receive feedback and comments regarding the monk and through this develop it further and improve the work I produce in future as a result. These production renders have been to the culmination of all the processes and pipeline completed in the creation of the character and for the presenting of the demon monk in a way that best illustrates its themes and quality as a game-ready model.

Future Potential

Future development of the character is a useful idea to consider this is because having the character been used in games helps to convey its value as a game-ready model.

If I had more time with this module I would have liked to have contacted a game designer and discuss the function of having the demon monk become an actual in-game enemy with interactions with the player showing the full potential and usage of the distortion theme of the monk. This would elevate the character model to a more practice demonstration for the presenting of the character as a professional and usage asset however due to scoping of the project and time constraints I decided not to take it to this extended function and focus on the presentation of the model as a portfolio piece and demonstration of my knowledge of the character artist pipeline and practices.

Taking this character further I would focus on the use of it within a playable setting through a demo scene in which to have the character serve as the enemy creature it is designed to represent. This would require more collaboration with my animator as having the character displayed in motion has been a feature I have wanted to illustrate in the presenting of the model. However, if I were to take the monk further through development would like to see more animations and movement for it when implemented within a game engine demonstrating it functioning which serves to best capture its game-ready functionality and complete the model's transition from presentation piece to game interaction for the audience players

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