We were fortunate enough to receive another opportunity to develop a music video for the Foo Fighters. This time around, we were presented with an intriguing technical challenge. Our objective was to replicate an entirely 2D style, reminiscent of the iconic ‘Yellow Submarine’ animation.
As a 3D studio, we aimed to achieve this solely through 3D techniques. After extensive research and development, I decided that using Toon shading within Arnold was the most suitable approach to achieve the desired outcome within our time constraints.
As well as making and overseeing these key technical decisions in regards to the development of the project, I was also heavily involved in the production work itself, ranging from environment build, texturing, lighting, rendering and simulation.
Two of my favourite simulations to work on throughout the video. The first is the liquid effect that features heavily throughout the first section of the film, created in SideFX Houdini using a combination of particles, particle trails and VDB meshing to create the smooth fluid like motion.
The second is the cactus transformation, which was created using VDB morphs, blend shapes, lots of point deformation to fix technical issue and some basic motion graphics.
It proved a huge technical challenege to optimise each character to a level where I could run a stable RBD simulation on the moving characters. It was important to maintain large shapes and keep the fracture clean in order to be able to clearly read the action and effect on screen clearly.
The second breakdown is the simplest from my FX work but quite possibly my favourite. The goofy cactus was made with some basic motion graphics, aim constraints for extra goofiness and some VDB meshing to create a seamless look.
I was also tasked with hand painting and shading the characters in the video, which in particular was a challenge for the uniquie style. Aside from tattoos and artwork, I painted all aspects of the characters, including Taylor’s Eddie Van Halen boardshorts which I was later inspired to purchase for myself!
A significant technical hurdle that we had to overcome was incorporating certain 2D line art elements into our character textures. This was essential to ensure that key features of the characters were accurately represented in the final renders, and to maintain their likeness.
Towards the project’s conclusion, it was a pity that the exceptional 3D elements created by the team couldn’t be seen in all it’s glory. As a solution, I took the initiative to create a series of clay renders for every character. By utilizing the existing models, assets, and animation featured throughout the video, I created a series of clay renders with unique composition, with an emphasis on some of the unique situations that the characters found themselves in.
You can watch the full video in its entirety below, and for project breakdown and full list of credits, visit Bomper Studio.
