PORTFOLIO

gabriella_diaz04@hotmail.com

DEMO REEL

PROJECTS

March - May 2025

3D Environment Design

"The Cabin Suite" 3D Environment Project

Concept and Digital Development: Gabriella Diaz

Working as the concept artist and modeler, I used this project as an opportunity to create a story that was visually interesting and technically achievable within a 10 week turn around. I needed a controlled environment, where the props and camera position could be at their strongest. This inspired the train cabin setting in which I could make full use of duplicate assets. Because a robbery would be taking place, I wanted the setting to be as elegant as possible, leading me towards late 1920's Art Deco as the furniture inspiration. I referenced multiple furniture archival books to design the props in the earliest stages of sketching.

Having done more cartoonish styles in past projects, I challenged myself to lean into realism. This was both a fun experiment and obstacle to pass. The velvet for example, is a multi-layer texture I created in Substance Painter, layered on top of Maya's velvet preset. Maya's present didn't provide the roughness real velvet looks to have, so I played with different height maps to achieve the desired look.

Software used: Autodesk Sketchbook, Maya 2024, Adobe Substance Painter

January - March 2025

3D Environment Design

"The Wizard's House" 3D Environment Project

Concept Artwork by: Andreea Barbu

For this project, I tasked myself with recreating the concept artwork as closely as possible, while also pushing the story further. With that in mind, I designed the model to be "In the process of Organization," meaning that many props were right in the middle of being messy and clean. For example, you can find the same mugs scattered all over, fallen sunflower petals, and varied dirty dishes. A favorite addition of mine are the small cushion ties on the yellow chair. Details such as these make the space feel lived in, and for this project I wanted to emphasize that.

A highlight of this project was also creating the "Bubble Effect" using Unreal Engines Niagra Particles system. Using UE5 nodes, I designed the material as well as the particle system to create cartoon bubbles that would float on their own. Through this material you can determine the sharpness of the bubble outline and the speed of their movement

Software used: Maya 2024, Adobe Substance Painter, Unreal Engine 5.0, Premiere Pro 2024

Re-animated Short

September - November 2024

"What About Him?" Original Movie and Audio Clip: 10 things I Hate About You (1999)

"Detectives Cameron and Micheal are urgently hiring, but something seems off about their most recent prospect, Patrick. Rumors of crime and hard times follow him, but is it true? And is he really the best fit for the job?"

With this project, I used a 30 second clip from the mentioned film but completely reimagined the visual story. I started by listening to the clip, eyes closed. These characters sounded like detectives weighing their options and afterwards I couldn't think of them as anything else.

In order to make sense of this idea, I had to take the viewer through a whole story. This involved modeling multiple environments and props, animating distinct personalities, and clear direction.