Mech Project
Post 05 5/6/2024
Animation finished, rig finished, bomb bay modelling finished, doing materials and retiming camera moves for first scene
Post 05 5/6/2024
Finished applying the old rig to the new mesh manually
Hands rigged and old rig applied to the new mesh with UVs. It can now be animated and used in Houdini.
Next is looking at the guns to make them more “kinematic”
Post 05 5/6/2024
Importing rig to new finalized mech/applying textures to matierals and testing in redshift/dynamic cloth cables
Using the rig from the old model, I am reassigning geometry to the new one. I am thinking of ways we can make this process easier but luckily the hardest part which is creating the rig in itself won’t have to be repeated.
Our zbrusher, Jordan, took to substance with the model ahead of time but I am standing behind him for more of the technical parts IE: using generators and effects while he paints. I am also making adjustments in the material editor when needed because SP and any renderer will never be 1:1.
We are wondering if the cables should have an emissive going underneath them. Rey is getting the mech to test it in the scene as well.
Post 04 4/20/2024
Starting Rig, Nearly finished modelling, Creating sound design presentation, Thoughts on Render Engine choice
Rigging model and preparing to animate for the mid term.
Nearly done with the power point to present to the sound design majors and put text in the animatic and reference material in the ppt.
After discussion we are looking at changing render engines due to high render farm traffic this time of year. For a single semester project it would be much much easier to work in UE5. We are actively researching different methods of doing smoke and pyro simulations from trying to composite from redshift, to testing how unreal handles a sim export from Houdini. I am looking into the common “light leaking” problem that UE5 has in corners and mesh’s intersecting with one another as many of my classmates have that issue and with not much luck finding viable workarounds.
Will be looking into methods later today when we meet and testing links that I will store here.
If and when we undergo UE5 I will most likely be in charge of parameterizing materials, lighting, and rendering.
UE lighting fixes and material:
https://forums.unrealengine.com/t/how-to-fix-light-leaks-lumen-ue5/691481
https://forums.unrealengine.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-light-leaking-through-the-walls/794248
https://forums.unrealengine.com/t/ue-5-1-lumen-light-leaks/694990
https://forums.unrealengine.com/t/how-can-i-fix-this-ue5-interior-light-bleeding-issue/560653
Refresher on better lighting and reflections: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTYM9TfckOQ
Lightmap Editing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rO_YJF-lYWI
Tor the bomb bay scene, I will most likely have to find a workaround when it comes to the doors opening and comp in the ground moving or somehow make the bomb bay interior excluded from the rest of the lighting outside of it. I could thicken the walls but even then, that has never been a 100% solution for me and it would be much easier just to exclude it from lighting I do not want it to be affected by.
Post 03 4/16/2024
Excel sheet for keeping track of due dates and assets
Working out exact dates but this gives us an in writing way to work out dates and what is needed.
Post 02 4/15/2024
Previs Animation | dropship interior modelling progress
Got a better previs done showcasing exact camera angles and blocks to show where the mech IK will be finalized. the area will be replaced with a cityscape possibly or a destroyed cityscape. We found the assets needed for an environment.
Post 01 4/08/2024
Previs | Mech model beginnings | dropship interior modelling | rigging practice on the mech holding mechanism
I wanted to get more done on the mech rigging side but I didn’t get it as early as I wanted. I will be working on a previs rig to be iterated on noted on how the geometry should look to be good for rigging.