3D Environment Modeling

The Wizard's House

January 2025 - March 2025

Modeler/ Texture/ Set Dressing

Concept Artwork by: Andreea Barbu

For this project, I tasked myself with recreating the concept artwork as closely as possible, and adding design elements that further supported the work. 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.

Responsible for modeling, unwrapping, texturing, set dressing

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

Process and Documentation

Blocking and Asset Prioritization

As there were so many details to this concept art, I began by labeling and prioritizing props that needed the most attention. I knew the stairs and their tricky geometry were going to be a particular challenge, so I marked that first and went from there. This helped me later on as I began budgeting my time.

Creating the Bubbles: Material and Niagra Particles

A highlight of this project was also creating the "Bubble Effect" using Unreal Engines Material Nodes editor and Niagra Particles system. Using UE5 nodes, I designed the material as well as the particle system to create cartoon bubbles that would "float" and regenerate.

Fresnal nodes allowed me to control the sharpness of the bubble outline, providing me with more flexibility in aesthetics. To create the natural ebb and flow of bubbles, I also used GrassWind nodes to manipulate their wobbliness and wind speed. subtle

Once the material was complete, I assigned the geo to a "fountain" particle generator that would automatically regenerate the bubbles in an upwards motion.

Reference Images

With so many assets, I focused on finding specific item reference for modeling and generalized reference for textures.

This distinction kept my modeling believable and the texturing stylized.

Modeler/ Texture/ Lighting

Cabin Suite Robbery

March 2025 - May 2025

Concept Development: Gabriella Diaz

Working as the concept artist and modeler, I used this project as an opportunity to focus on story telling and create a visually interesting piece. Within teen weeks i decided on a controlled environment, where the props and camera position could be at their strongest. I settled on an elegant train car that has just been robbed, allowing me to delve into a different design style and provide the view tons of details to get lost in.

Responsible for modeling, unwrapping, texturing, lighting

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

Process and Documentation

Reference Images

Finding specific inspiration for the furniture proved difficult online, so I went back to more traditional methods of research. I checked out two books covering furniture from the 1920's and a digest of different interior design styles of the 1900s. These books were perfect for gathering reference.

I started with a detailed line-art piece that I could refer back to as I modeled, and then set a value key as well as a local color key for texturing/lighting reference later on.

Texturing and Design

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.

Responsible for All

"What about him?"

September 2024 - November 2024

Original Movie and Audio Clip: 10 things I Hate About You (1999)

This project holds a special place in my heart, as it is the first time I ever made ANYTHING in 3D. I had no idea what Maya was, and knew much less how to use it. In the effort to try absolutely everything, I used a 30 second audio clip and completely reimagined the visual story.

Responsible for modeling, unwrapping, texturing, lighting

Software used: Maya 2024, Photoshop, Premiere Pro

Process and Documentation

Reference and Design

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 having a clear direction.

Since I was a beginner, I embraced the shape language of my low-poly characters, and carried that into the environments and texturing. Everything was stocky and upright, all except for that mischievous otter.