Beneath the Stars: Production

Production

I completely cleaned up all of my files in such a way that every asset is referenced in the shot. I also made sure that the linking for my characters would work properly in order to ensure efficient workflow. So for example, the stars are different in every scene, but essentially they are one type of star. I have a file with a single star which is referenced in separate star scene files, if I make a change to the single star, EVERY star in the film would be replaced. That's pretty cool and nifty. I also made sure the scaling was done appropriately with the sets and characters. And finally, I made sure everything had a naming convention. This took me so long, but it's a like a junk drawer that you've finally cleaned out. You feel satisfied, and can work with a clean space.

Assets contain Characters, Effects, Environment, and Props.

Characters have all of the models and rigs organize into their appropriate files, and within those folders, is a folder named Final. The same goes for Props. That Final c4d file is the one that gets referenced in the scene.

The Overall Shots folder has four folders in that as well: Audition, c4d, Premiere, and Videos (the ones that get rendered from the c4d files).

The c4d files are organized into scenes. There's about 7 scenes in my film: 1) Beginning 2) Hanging on the Star 3) Proposal 4) Wedding 5) Baby 6) Falling Down 7) End.

Each scene file has an Environment file that contains all the assets linked, and that is the one linked into the master file, which in this case is : Scene_1.c4d.
The textures are all organized into layers as well. See, super organized. Shout out to Brent Wiley who gave me references and taught me what an XRef even was...

So these are a few stills from the movie. I took a break from characters for a few days and worked on lighting. I like to see a final image, so I know what I'm working towards. I turned everything off currently to work on characters so I can move quicker in the scene, but enjoy some nice looking foliage, benches, and lots of stars.

He would be sitting on the star looking down at her.

Wedding time!

House scene-when the star starts to lose its glow.

Hanging on a star scene - their dating phase.

Snow really does make everything better.

The baby room was one of the first shots I had, and it is still one of my favorites. There is not a pinch of blue and its overwhelmed by warm pinks and creme.

I felt it necessary to show my past failed attempts at trees and the process that went into creating the look.

I'm not even sure how that happened...

Too squishy.

Maybe better for a comic book.

I thought at one point these were it, but I realized that the lighting was just too dark in all of these. Shoutout to light dome though. That asset was a gift and made all of the outdoor scenes get a very cool color map. It is basically a giant sphere with lots of spotlights attached to it, with a gradient map texture.

OK. Now on to characters. I want to also point out that these characters were a huge process. I learned so much, and I'm still learning about them. I've never rigged anything before so this was a whole new experience for me, but I couldn't have done it without the support and mentorship of Brent Wiley, a professor at my school. It is safe to say in college you have to learn a lot on your own, which I had grown accustomed to, but to have someone who is so willing to share their knowledge and guide you through a process you have never attempted before, AND be so patient, is a major blessing and gift.

Before the "Pixar" eye.

After adding the "Pixar" eye.

There's mainly more reflections in the Pixar eye.

Tips and tricks on how to create eyelids.

Rig guide placement.

Edge loops optimized. Some of this was done by hand, and then some of it was done using ZBrush.

A reference for blending shape.

Kai and Maya Rig Setup.

Now on to Maya, my leading lady.

Edge loops optimized.

She went through a variety of different outfits. And she will as the film progresses, just to show time passing. But overall she started from wearing a dress, to wearing yoga capris, to an overall jumper.