VFX: Unreal Engine

Week 1

First day with Unreal Engine 5.1 . I explored the capabilities of real-time rendering, a distinctive feature of the software. Unreal uses Real-time rendering which allows you to visualise changes instantly as you work on your project, providing a dynamic and interactive experience. This can be particularly beneficial for a VFX artist, allowing quick assessments of lighting, textures, and overall scene composition in real-time. I navigated through the menus. We were set a task to start building and blocking out my cabin.

Week 2

Asset Gathering and Intro to Modelling Tools

During this week, I familiarized myself with the Quixel Bridge in Unreal, delving into the process of gathering assets. Additionally, I initiated the construction of a woodland cabin and commenced the blocking phase.

Week 4

Lecture : Intro to Materials, Textures and UV

The lecture began by elucidating the significance of materials in creating realistic and visually appealing environments. Participants gained insights into the Material Editor, where they could manipulate shaders and textures to achieve desired visual effects. Texture mapping was explored, as a means to add detail and depth to surfaces within the virtual environment.The lecturer delved into the various texture types, such as diffuse, normal, and specular maps, elucidating their individual roles in enhancing visual quality

Week 5

Materials part 2 and Intro to Landscape

In the follow-up session to the introductory lecture, the focus shifted to an advanced exploration of materials, specifically Materials Part 2, and an introduction to Landscape design within Unreal Engine. The aim was to deepen understanding of materials and extend their knowledge to the creation of vast and dynamic virtual landscapes.

Week 6

Landscape Creation

The workshop covered the creation of various landscape and water tools, including oceans, lakes, rivers, and custom water features. Learning to manipulate water materials and properties is crucial for achieving realistic and visually appealing imagery. Exploring the scattering of plants and trees contributed to understanding how to populate landscapes with diverse foliage Effective foliage scattering enhances the environment’s realism, creating a more vibrant and engaging virtual world.

Week 7

Decided to make my cabin in Maya, exported it out as a obj and then later to fbx format, and finally as USDZ to import into Unreal.
Foliage test, totally stressed out my laptop system, but really think the detail of the render is unlike most 3d packages.
Cabin by the lake test

Week 8

Project Building

Began modelling tube station in Unreal for final project
What Elephant & Castle use to look like
Present Day
Test Render 1 coming together, but felt that the sky definitely needs to be changed

Week 9/10

Cameras

Test 7 added smoke, changed the sky added fog

The knowledge I gained to seamlessly integrate workflows between Unreal Engine and Maya/Nuke.

The utilisation of FBX and USD and later alembic exports, helped timing of renders to be more efficient in this important part of the project. It. came with many pitfalls, but patients and a persistent trial and error process, helped in the test created.