The Art of Manmade Horrors

Early on, we collectively decided on a framework of a journey through various, distinct set pieces, focusing on scale contrast and the sense of a world larger than the story. As this was our first time with 3D animation, I aimed for a visual language that would be easy to pick up and optimize. I settled on a dark, biomechanical look for the characters due to overlapping interests of teammates, and as at the time, animation seemed more straightforward if they are largely made up of inflexible pieces. This design style also lent itself to the second optimization strategy, which was darkness and fog. In my early sketches, I framed compositions and character designs with careful consideration to silhouettes, clear motion and mood instead of focusing on minute details.

The Courier: Built For a Bygone World

I designed the protagonist, the Courier, to serve as a point of contrast with the world around it. I made this choice over a more traditionally “cool” protagonist, largely to create empathy for the Courier’s struggle and to emphasize the intimidating nature of the other characters. Making them small helped with this, as everything being scaled proportionally helped sell the concept of existing in a world normally incompatible with life. The first of these, the Soldier, is based on the initial idea I had for the Courier.

Lonely War Machines

The antagonists were designed to be hostile and imposing without going as far into outright violent designs, reflecting the purposes they’ve carved beyond their initial functionality. I modelled the soldier and bird myself, while providing concept art for team members to handle other characters.

Overseer

The separation of locations between scenes was intended largely to compartmentalize work avoid accidentally stepping on each other's progress. I worked on the bird chase scene and the laser cannon, while monitoring progress on other scenes. When teammates needed clarification on direction for environment and character positions and lighting, I provided supplementary sketches and photo references. Additionally, I provided feedback on pacing, I started video calls to walk through where camera cuts should be made.

The Skyline Chase

When animating this scene in Unreal Engine, my main point of reference was the famous scene in Alfred Hitchock’s North by Northwest (1959). Due to the bird’s weapon of choice being the machineguns on its sides, looking at footage of planes was the most logical, with bird-like movements and characterization added after the core movements. I realized, however, that it was more effective if it behaved predictably how a bird would at first, then gradually show more of its tricks. I took advantage of its mechanical nature when it turned after the initial swoop, with its segments all rotating in a slightly out of sync chain starting from the head. I followed this up with the reveal of the machineguns to ramp up the threat factor and force the Courier deeper into the city.

Autoviscera

I made a new word for this project, which became the main motif for the story I aimed to tell. If I were to define Autoviscera, it would be a self-perpetuating system of violence. The characters are all bound to this concept, waging war and predation as a means of seeking purpose where there is none. I wanted the logo to reflect this nihilism and brutality, so I opted for an aggressive but archaic looking Goudy Old Style SH font, and overlaid high photos of gears and cables. These elements together give the image of a weathered, ancient machine still chugging along. Then, I added the spikes and hanging cables to mimic the Citadel, cementing this logo as a representation of this world as opposed to a vaguely mechanical styling.

What Makes an Awesome Team

This has easily been the best team I’ve had the pleasure of working with, and it’s thanks to a few key ingredients: Clarity, humility, and purpose. We organized our chain of command based on experience, which meant having clearly defined creative and technical directors. This meant that if a shot needed direction or technical feasibility or workflow needed assessment, all team members knew who to ask. But of course, direction can only be given to those who seek it. With every team member, willingness to learn and not only take feedback but internalize it made this project a success. This flexibility was enabled by our scene-based separation of tasks, as ensuring cohesion came before emotional investment in our individual parts. Before we began animating, the first thing we decided was who did what shots, using the storyboard as reference, which ensured a laser-focused workflow. Overall, I’m extremely proud of my team for what we’ve created with the time and resources we had.

The Arrow of Time

From day one, we were keenly aware of how little time we had to realize the vision of Autoviscera, just three months from conception to the final cut. We optimized as much as we could and wrapped before the deadline, but that meant compromising on detail and preparation. While providing direction and cursory sketches to my team, I was modelling the warbird, laser cannon and environmental assets for the cityscape. This meant that I was unable to provide more detailed reference material. Most concept art was done in lab sessions in between exercises and passed across the table. Many of the environments, for instance, were less detailed and compositionally detailed in the final product than I had envisioned. This can be remedied by having a stricter, more focused role structure. If I were to handle preliminary material, I would aim for it to be my sole focus of time and effort and trust my collaborators’ translation skills.

"We Aren’t Making WALL-E"

Although most of the team was on the same page with tone and story intent, there were occasional misalignments. I had to clarify to an animator that the Courier was not a particularly whimsical, curious or emotive character. If this discrepancy came up in pre-production, it wouldn’t have been an issue. However, he had only asked for feedback after large chunks of animation were completed, so hours of extra time were spent adding, then removing slapstick and meandering elements. While discussing these changes, I learned that he was inspired by Pixar’s Wall-E (2008) after a friend pointed out the surface-level similarity. This highlighted the importance of providing adequate tonal reference, as well as frequent checkups and real-time communication. It's extremely important to ensure that all team members are aligned in what they should be aiming for.

The World to Come

We're not done with the world of Autoviscera. There are still many corners to explore and stories to tell. Based on our skillsets, developing a game about the Couriers is the next likely path.

Earliest Sketches

The Courier

Citadel Buildings

Storyboard, Page 1

Storyboard, Page 2

The Warbird

Necromancer (scrapped character)

Storyboard, Page 3

The Reservoir (Future Concept)