The Making of 'Dirge'

Personal project. Two minute animated loop created to be displayed at 2560x1600 on a wall mounted and framed 30" display. So this is 1/4 resolution if viewed on Vimeo in HD... Made with Maya, Zbrush, Photoshop and After Effects. This is a fully 3D scene with some live-action elements. For the framed monitor, I figured it would be best to have a locked camera so that it feels like a window, but I can fly the camera through this place... which I will probably eventually do out of curiosity. To see a high-res still, check my website!

In this extensive eight-hour DVD, Alex Alvarez delves into the the creation of 'Dirge', his hellish new animated personal project. Created as a high-resolution two-minute animated loop at 2560x1600 for viewing on a 30" framed display, 'Dirge' was created using Maya, ZBrush, Photoshop, After Effects and Mental Ray. The entire workflow will be explored, including character and environment design, modeling, sculpting, texturing, shaders, dynamic effects, rigging, animation, lighting, volumetric effects, and compositing. As this project represents a diverse range of tools and techniques, it is an in-depth look at the process with an assumption that the student has an intermediate understanding of the tools. Anyone interested in creating a dynamic and cinematic 3D digital environment will benefit from Alex's approach and breakdown.