Week of 11/5: (Interactivity – Camera moving around points of interest on character, Rotating 3D Objects)(Character Rigging/Posing)

Week of 11/12: (Model, UV, Texture Objects on character – belt, pockets, wallet, etc.) (Intractability – Make interactive points selectable, bring up rotatable objects)

Week of 11/19:  (UI) (Model Surrounding Environment)

Week of 11/26 onward: (Revise textures and models/add more detail)

In attempting to flesh out the interactivity of my project I have come across a few flaws with the way the piece is currently projected to become. One thing I have an issue with is that the concept’s strength relies on the written word I choose for the piece. As a visual artist I would rather it be the case that the visuals communicate the message I am trying to get across. I also have a problem with the message itself as it seems to be convoluted to a lot of people and I am struggling to make it more clear. I proposed that I change the concept to resolve these issues to one of my professors and they agreed that it would be a strong move forward. My new concept retains all of the assets that have yet been created, but “re-brands” them to be used for a different purpose.

My new concept is now centered on the idea of viewing a 3D character the moment before they meet their apocalyptic demise. The viewer will have the chance to dissect key points of interest on the character including their posture, clothes and the way they wear them, and items on their person. Each will be revealing of their personal identity in addition to revealing of their role in society. The concept is largely inspired by the eruption of mount Vesuvius in Pompeii and how the magma froze citizens in their final moments. Archaeologists study these characters to find out more about the society and day to day life of citizens at the time. My proposed project will offer viewers the opportunity to learn about a fictional character, their fictional society and their role in it, all based on their appearance and personal belongings. The viewer is meant to ask themselves: If the world were to end right now what would my appearance say about me and my role in today’s society?

The entire model has now been textured using the workflow I discussed with my adviser. The base color for the mask has been revised to be more detailed. I plan to achieve the same level of detail with the remainder of the textures, but for now I plan to move on to rigging and coding interactive elements as the texturing has reached a reasonable level of detail to continue.

I had some problems getting my textures to work properly. Before the mask looked too dark, and too much like metal. After I discussed the problem with my adviser, I had a better understanding of how to approach the problem I performed some experimentation with the materials and arrived at a satisfying result that should make the remainder of my texturing workflow a quick and mostly painless process.