#061 GAD BA7/8: Studio - Self Promotion Documentation

For my website I wanted something plain and simple. The whole idea of a website is to showcase your work, so having something that distracts the eye is simply not a good choice.

I began with a plain black background, framing it with the horizontal dark grey border. I then added in my page titles as well as a link at the bottom to my Facebook page, LinkedIn page as well as my student Blogger. I wanted there to be an instant visual impact, so instead of having the about section on the front page, I decided instead to have a image slideshow with a few of my choice images.

The next page was the About page. I had my photo taken by a professional photographer and then cropped it to size to fit in at the side of the text. I spend a good amount of time writing my personal piece, I wanted it to reflect not only my personality but also how I am as a person.

In the 3D page I have a gallery, this will include all of my 3D work. Again I went for a simple gallery, allowing users expand the images with a single click and browse through the images with their arrow keys as well as clicking on the arrows on either side.

The next page is the Game Demo page. While I do not have any content for it yet, I have put it as a place-holder for when I embed the unity web player with my own content.

On the Showreel Page I have my submitted showreel. To keep it clean looking again, I have told the media player to auto-hide the bar control at the bottom unless the user puts there mouse over it. The video also auto-plays, which usually I would not do, but as it is a single page dedicated to the video it should be okay.

The last page is the Contact page, where I have created a form that people can fill out which will then send the message directly to my email address. I have also included a note that details my email address if people wish to contact me for whatever reason that way.

For my business cards I have imitated the overall feel of my website, plain black with white text. I have used the same font that I used for my website, which is called "Jura". Only the front of the card has any information on it, the reverse is plain black.

Not only have I created a personal website, I have also created both a LinkedIn page as well as a Facebook page. My Facebook page is pretty simple, it lists information about me such as how to contact me. I have kept it up to date as possible since it's creation, but it will be a constantly evolving page.

My LinkedIn profile is less about my work and more about myself as an individual. I've tried to provide as much information as possible, including where I have studied, past jobs, experience as well as references.

#060 GAD BA7/8: Studio - Showreel Process

For the two assets I will be showing in my reel, I have created two 10 seconds version of each asset. One version is just a plain Lambert with Ambient Occlusion and the other version is the fully textured asset. The turntable starts with the 1st version, then half way through the turntable the fully textured version fades in over the top, creating a seamless changeover.

The first asset being shown in my showreel is the quad tracked dual barrel tank that I created for BA8. Below are two images taken from each of the turntable renders, one of the AO and one of the Textured asset.

For the next asset, I decided to show one of my previous projects I was happy with, the Mechwarrior Catapult. Below are two images taken from each of the turntable renders, one of the AO and one of the Textured asset.

After the two turntable assets have been shown, it will then move on to my main piece of work, the underground environment. This section of the showreel is much longer, using around 1,500 frames running for a total of 60 seconds. Between the first pan shot and the second, I added in a little cross-fade, making a nice seamless transition between the two.

I started off by importing all of my sequenced images in to my composition as well as a base backdrop and my chosen music. I started by editing the audio, lowering the overall volume as well as having it face in a few seconds after my showreel starts.

I then added a introduction screen, using the same font as I have used for my business cards and my website.

I dragged the first turntable sequence down in to the timeline, positioning it just after the introduction screen fades away. I faded the turntable in from black, giving a nice smooth transition. I then had the AO turntable fade out to reveal the textured version below.

I repeated the same steps as I did with the tank for the Mechwarrior Catapult, fading in and out at the beginning and end as well as a smooth transition in the middle going from the AO to the textured asset.

With the turntables done, I then added in the first pan from my underground environment. Just like the turntables, I faded it in and out, creating a smooth transition

For the second pan, I again very simply faded it in at the beginning and then faded it out to black at the end.

The last stage was to finish the Showreel with the music credits. As Frank Klepacki requested, I have included his name, track and album.

#059 GAD BA7/8: Studio - Rendering Process P1

I began first with my turntable part of my showreel, setting up a basic scene with 3 point lighting with the asset on top of a plane that had been assigned a background color. Instead of animating the camera to move around the asset, I chose to have the asset rotate itself. The reason for this is so that as the asset rotates while the lighting and camera remain stationary, the shadows from the asset transform and change, creating a very nice effect.

As I mentioned previously, due to lack of time I will be rendering at 720p instead of 1080p. I went through the process of setting up the render settings, starting with the naming prefix, and frame padding. I then set the frame range and selected the camera. The last step on this tab was to select the HD 720 from the drop down menu, setting the resolution and DPI to the pre-defined settings.

For the quality I adapted the "Production Quality" preset, upping the quality to 2 from 0.60 as well as the minimum samples from 1 to 10.

Below is an example of a still frame from one of my turntables.

#058 GAD BA7/8: Studio - Showreel Planning

For my show reel I am going to split it in to two parts. One part containing some quick turntables of 6 chosen assets at 10 seconds long, then the second part being a 45-60 second pan of my overall environment. Due to time, I am rendering out my work at 720p as opposed to 1080p. This slight adjustment will drastically reduce rendering times while still maintaining high definition. The turntables of my assets will include the base mesh as a Lambert, then transition seamlessly in to the fully textured and lit version (see video below). Each asset will rotate once in it's first stage, then again in it's second, taking 5 seconds for each rotation to allow the viewer to see as much of the details as possible with the time that I have.

For the audio of the showreel, I decided to try and see if I could use some music created by Frank Klepacki, who is one of my favorite video game music composer. He was behind the majority of the music from the entire Command & Conquer series as well as other well known games and movies such as Star Wars: Empire at War, Blade Runner and the Lands of Lore series.

Despite the chances of being able to use his music were slim to none, I decided to give it a try and sent an email to him. Below is the message I sent to him and his prompt response:

From me:

Dear Mr Klepacki,

My name is Nathaniel Russell and I am a student at Norwich University of the Arts in England, studying Games Art & Design. For my final year's project I am working on a environment revolving around an underground Russian bunker, complete with vehicles. To display our work we have been instructed to create a show reel, displaying our work. Being a huge fan of your work from C&C: Red Alert, I would love to have the chance to be able to use one of your track, named Hell March in my show-reel. I understand there might be some complications since it has been used in a game and the licenses might not belong to you, but I thought that contacting you directly would be the first step to getting permission to use your music.

Our show-reels will be displayed at our end of year exhibition, as well as shown in a private viewing at a local cinema. I will be more than happy to credit you for the music, and ensure that it is made known that you are the creator of it.

I hope that you will be able to grant my wish, but if not I will completely understand.

Sincerely, Nathaniel Russell

From Frank Klepacki :

Hi Nathaniel,

I'm afraid I don't have authority for C&C track permissions, EA controls that. But I do control my solo CDs which are similar in style, (Morphscape, Rocktronic, Virtual Control, Infiltrator, Awakening of Aggression, Viratia, Conquering 20 Years) so if you own a copy of any of them, you may have my permission to use any tracks from those if you like, a credit to my website, the track name, and CD it's from is fine. :)

If you're looking for heavier style tracks to choose from specifically, check out my songs Rocktronic, He Lives, Machines Collide, Epic Destruction, Smackdown, The Reaping, Ownage, Kill, Vengeance Beast, Bring The Fight, Take Me, Sonic Pain, Crank, Vigilante, Rage and Fury.

Thanks for writing!

- Frank Klepacki

Mr Klepacki was kind enough to respond to me within 24 hours, and as you can see, gave me permission to use some of his work as long as I had purchased it. This was incredible news, a lot of Klepacki's music is very dark and aggressive, which would be perfect for the sort of environment I am working on.

After sifting through his various works, I found a track named "INSERT TRACK NAME". It starts off fairly calm, then progressively builds up to something a bit more faster. The overall track is pretty much exactly what I wanted, something that toes the line between just a simple background ambiance and some dark and aggressive war music.

#057 GAD BA7/8: Studio - Assembly

With all of the individual assets completed I began to assemble them together. I created what is essentially a mash-up screen, individually importing each asset in to the scene. 

I began with the first modular section of the base, importing it and then mirroring it along the X axis. I then grouped the cross-section and duplicated and positioned it in to place. I repeated this step again to create the final length of the first module.

I then moved on to the second module, importing it and positioning it in to place next to the first module. I then duplicated it and mirrored it. I then cut out an area one on side that the staircase would fit in to, preserving the UV map so the textures would still be in place.

The third module is a relatively small section, bridging the gap in the wall. Originally this piece was going to include a small command centre station, however due to lack of time I had to cut back on my overall project.

The last module was the underground rail system. I imported in to the scene and duplicated it along the width of the base. I then removed one side of the modules wall, allowing access to the second module.

With the base structure complete, I began importing the remaining assets. I started off with the bay doors, importing and positioning them in to place, covering the holes cut out in the walls.

I then began importing the vehicles, alternating between the two variations of the tanks I created.

For each of the tanks, I slightly adjusted all the positions. This included the overall rotation of the tank, the position of the tank, the turrets rotation as well as the barrels drop/height.

I repeated the process several times, posing each of the tanks in their own unique way to create the perfect composition.

I then began on the components higher up in the environment, starting with the rails for the crane.

After positioning the rails, I imported the two sections of the crane, positioning them in to place on top of the rails I added earlier. I then adjusted the cranes hook, ensuring it was at the right height and wouldn't knock in to the parked tanks when it moves along the base.

I imported in the beam support roof structure, positioning it so the top edge is aligned with the roof height.

Using a grid template, I then added in the ceiling lights. Each one is perfectly aligned in between the beam structure, then duplicated on the opposite side and then down the length of the base.

One of the last ceiling pieces to import was the ventilation system. I imported the vents and then positioned them in to place, having to adjust the length of the supports slightly so the ventilation system did not intersect with the ceiling support beams.

I then added the modular emergency fire sprinkler system, again having to adjust the position very slightly so it didn't interferer with the ventilation system, base beams and lighting.

I recycled some of the wiring that I created for the base railway system module, positioning it in conjunction with the imported electronics.

One of the last wall pieces to import was the larger internal pipes that run along one of the walls. I imported the pipes in to place, then positioned them in to an aesthetic configuration, fixing them along the wall.

I then imported the crate assets in to the scene, recycling a strip from the railway module section to create a harness. For this particular crate I have it positioned under the crane as if it is lifting it.

I then proceeded to dissect the crate to move it into a unique pose. For this particular one I raised the supporting arm from the crate holder and removed two of the crates, stacking them with a 3rd crate from another area of the base.

For the other crates I positioned them in a variety of locations and positions.

With a decent amount of crates in the scene, I then added in some of the smaller assets. I began with the gas canisters, arranging them in to groups or 2-5 and putting them in to corners around the base.

I variated the location, amount and rotation of the canisters, having some laying down on the floor and others in an upright position.

The last minor asset to add in was the oil barrels. Just like the gas canisters, I grouped them together but this time in a wider variance.

This time I varied the barrels in groups numbering between 3 and 8, similarly positioned in different variations just like the gas canisters.

The very last asset to put in is the crane maintenance ladder, positioned just under the crane at the far end of the base, allowing personnel to climb up on the the cranes gangway.

#056 GAD BA7/8: Studio - Modularity

Modularity within this project was a major point, re-using multiple assets throughout the scene. It will allow me to fill the environment with the same set of assets, creating a busy looking scene without having to create hundreds of assets.

The image above shows how I have grouped sections of my assets up and also how I have recycled sections of the asset multiple times. This of course goes down to a much deeper level within those sections highlighted above.

Taking a simple example of a section above, you can see how each part has been separated in to their own groups. This allows me to use the duplicate special tool to use the same parts throughout my model. In this example the barrels have been duplicated using the duplicate special tool, as well as the two hooks on the base of the barrel.

As the image above and below shows, this process can be applied throughout the entire environment. Throughout the model the same assets have used in different variations and combinations to create a dynamic looking scene.