3D Animation

At this stage of the process, the client presents the main idea and the purpose of the project that they want us to create on their behalf.

Online meeting with the client after which we send a document with the details of the main idea, reference pictures and as many details as possible about the purpose of the project.

Signed contract of agreement will include the project brief, the timetable for the separate tasks on the project, the payment plan and the agreement on the terms and policies in services discussed.

The contract of agreement and all the information mentioned above will be emailed to the client through dropbox for e-signature.

* An Advance Payment of the 25% of the Final Cost is Essential at this stage. – The Deposit is Not Refundable.

At this stage the 2D designs(if any) are transferred into a 3D software to be shaped and modelled. Modelling is a demanding process and for this reason the character designs should be precise and clear in order for the modellers to understand the structure of the characters/assets.

The characters/assets are digitally sculpted using 3D software with brush tools which manipulate the polygonal geometry to create the details needed.

Retopology is the process of converting high-resolution models into something much smaller that can be used for animation and creating textures. We create another mesh that simplifies the original High resolution asset.

Modelling the environment and its objects and props, is also a time consuming and demanding process. The scale of the environment in comparison to the character, the level of detail that will include and the way it will be modelled, it depends on what purpose this environment will serve on the shot of the film that it will be created for. Scenes that have a lot of quick action and animation do not need a very detailed environment as long as the eye cannot see all that detail in such a little amount of time. It is essential that it is discussed the function of the environment before its production, in order to save precious time, work and money.

This is the Process of Unwrapping the Skin of the 3D modelled character/asset and lay it down in the 2D surface of our screen. The skin surface of our 3d model consists of polygons. Those polygons, if unwrapped and cut correctly, can fit into a 2D surface, which later can be painted and textured, so that the character can appear alive to the viewer’s eyes.

During the Texturing process, 2D digital paintings are created for the 3d generated model. Those textures should be carefully created because they will define the final look and aesthetic of the character/asset here.

Rigging is the process of the creation of 3d generated Bones and Bone structure to our 3d Models. Without this bone structure, the characters cannot perform complicated action. Rigging is a technical and demanding process and is extremely important to be completed successfully and the rig to be tested many times on the final model.

Skinning is the process of applying and bonding the bones-rig of the character, to the skin of the 3d model of the character. It is a process in which the Rigger should select by painting each part of the skin of the 3d model and chose its interaction with the bones that exist underneath. Again, it is extremely important that the skinning of the rig to the character will be done with great care and attention to detail, in order for the character to move as it’s supposed to.

After the modelling and texturing of the 3D models of the characters and the environment, the main task that the we need to do is to place the characters inside the scenes with the environment, in the correct scale and in correct position and Stage the Action of each scene, before it will get animated. For the Staging it is important to note that the placement of the cameras is very essential.

* A Deposit of the 15% of the Final Cost is Essential at this stage.

At this stage of the production process, the characters, cameras and the environment are all staged and ready to be animated within our scene. Smooth and good 3D animation takes a lot of time and the client should be aware of that before the animation process starts.

In 3D animation the use of light is a very important matte. Light has the ability to guide the eye of the viewer in the place of interest in the scene and create the correct atmosphere and trigger certain emotions to the viewer. Good placement of the lights and effects need a lot of time and testing, but is totally essential for the final result.

It is a very slow and demanding process, in which all the work created in the 3d environment, is calculated by the computer and rendered in image sequences which can be edited later to create the final animation video. Good rendering is extremely important for the final result that will be seen οn screen.

The final animated image sequences are being edited with the music and sound of the film.

The final task before the submission of the 3D animated artwork, is the creation of typography and titles. Those titles will be embedded to the moving images in the film and describe what the client needs to be said in written form to the audience.