Environment Art & Engine Scenes

Props, Level Design, Set dressing, Integration, Modular and Procedural, Lighting

The Alchemist - Master's Thesis Project Environment (UE5)

This environment is a part of a study on esoteric history and knowledge central to my thesis. With a mix of scans, Substance Library items (my authored textures) and my authored 3D models, the focus was placed and emphasized for VFX and real-time lighting & rendering in Unreal Engine 5. Volumetric rays, fog, dust particles and Niagra fire, Particle Smoke (the torches and bowls), this antiquated theme was carefully built with regard to the period aesthetics in a rustic narrative. The study covered a design for the era, mystique of the mystics and CG (shaders) centralized storytelling. Below is a fly-through in UE5 and partial breakdown in Substance Painter to show steps were taken to keep the asset polycount, in an engine friendly mid/low count, for optimization purposes.

Art Dump & Breakdown

Evelyn's House - Master's Thesis Environment(PBR) for UE5

This environment is a part a production pipeline for Cinematics in Unreal Engine 5. This thesis project is a trailer serving as a reel for the summation of research but also portfolio. The narrative drives the concept of the environments based on the storyboarding process. This render is an iray assembled in Marmoset 5. This concept for the scene to be integrated in Unreal Engine and lit with using Lumen.

Renders (Lighting & Mood)

The Wellhouse - Neibolt/Pennywise (UE5)

This project was a single level, displaying the multi-subobject architectural components, honoring the details of a Victorian-Era home. Choosing and old, haunted and ominous asset was a texture and modular workflow study for Unreal Engine 5 environment tools and advanced lighting techniques. In addition to this, the study covered material creation for blending and painting on the terrain with optimization techniques applied in the node network. Future iterations will include more epmhasis on HDRI/Skybox/Render target attributes for CGI Lighting.

This project includes original asset development infused with utilization of MegaScans foliage. Alterations have been added to provide more variation. I intend to create more from this motion picture film.

The Well House_SubstancePainter_Preivew0.png

Fire Science Simulation (UNITY 3D - URP)

Fire science simulation of a forest fire. The user must determine where the fire originated. I created two states of assets for the environment and used terrain tools in Unity to match the location.

Asset Production & Management
Integration/Set Dressing
Terrain Editing and Painting
Foliage/Biome Editing and Replacement
Use art to signal player investigation of fire origin
Highlight scene where lightning strike occured

Before Forest Burn

Cabin Render 1

Cabin Render 2

Carved Tree Render

Cabin Render 1

1/13

After Forest Burn

Burned Cabin Render 1

Burned Cabin Render 2

Burned Carved Tree Render

Burned Cabin Render 1

1/9

VFX ELEMENTS

VISUAL EFFECTS GRAPH (URP)

VFX/Environments

Environment Background

Topological scan from USGS, converted to height information for 3D Sculpting, optimization, HDRI for skybox and PBR or scene placement in game engines (DirectX or OpenGL).