Creating hair for a 3D character with Autodesk Maya, XGen and RenderMan

In this thesis I make hair for a 3D character for a CG animation. I’m using the following softwares: Autodesk Maya, XGen and RenderMan. Maya is the 3D studio I’ll be working in from to create the hair till rendering it. With XGen I’ll generate and shape the hair strands. I’ll animate the hair with Maya’s dynamic simulation tools. With RenderMan I’ll shade and render the hair. The end result is almost realistic hair in CG animation. My workflow is pretty straightforward. First I explain through my software choices and starting scene. After that, I explain and show the steps, and reasons behind them, of making the hair while creating it. At the end I analyze the result and explain how I would continue the process.Tässä opinnäytetyössä teen 3D hahmolle hiukset lyhyt animaatioon. Käyttäen ohjelmistoja: Autodesk Maya, XGen ja RenderMan. Maya toimii 3D työtilana hiusten muotoilusta kuvantamiseen. XGen:illä generoin ja muotoilen yksittäiset hiukset. Animoin hiukset dynaamisen simulaation keinoin Mayan työkaluilla. Sävytän ja kuvannan hiukset käyttäen RenderMan:iä. Lopputuloksena on melkein realistiset hiukset tietokoneella tehtyyn animaatioon. Työnkulku on mahdollisimman suoralinjainen. Ensin selitän ohjelmisto valintani, sittenaloitus tiedostoon jo asettamani asetukset ja elementit. Tämän jälkeen siirryn hiusten tekoon ja työvaiheiden selittämiseen. Lopuksi pohdin lopputulosta ja kuinka parantaisin sitä

Procedural Spanish Moss Renderman Shader

This thesis discusses the creation of computer generated photorealistic Spanish moss, a plant that grows in trees in the American Southeast. In order to replicate the plant, a Renderman procedural shader was used that included hair-like qualities in order to replicate the surface properties of Spanish moss. The necessary attributes, how they are used in the code, and final results of the shader applied to a moss model are included in this paper

Scientific visualization using Pixar\u27s RenderMan

This thesis will attempt to visualize astrophysical data that is proprocessed and formatted by the Spiegel software using Pixar\u27s RenderMan. The output will consist of a large set of points and data associated with each point. The goal is to create images that are both informative and aesthetically pleasing to the viewer. This has been done many times before with software rendering and APIs such as OpenGL or JOGL. This thesis will use Pixar\u27s Photorealistic RenderMan, or PRMan for short, as a renderer. PRMan is an industry proven standard renderer that is based on the RenderMan Interface Specification which has been in development since 1989. The original version was released in September of 1989 and the latest specification, version 3.2 was published in 2005. Since aesthetics is a subjective quality based on the viewers\u27 preference, the only way to determine if an image is aesthetically pleasing is to survey a general population. The thesis includes an experiment to assess the quality of the new renders

The Texture Animator

This paper discusses three distinct techniques for animation of procedural textures and describes the assisting software tool. Animation is attained by moving the rendered point before texture evaluation, changing the definition of texture space or changing the texture colour mapping. Examples are given for textures that base on noise and turbulence functions in order to simulate natural phenomena. Some phases of texture animation process can be automated by using the code generator supported by a library of animation effects. Aspects of practical implementation are discussed and Renderman compliant code is presented

An Approach to the Procedural Generation of Worn Metal Surfaces

Motivated by the phenomenon that wear and tear tends to happen more near sharp cornersof a surface, this thesis presents a method for procedurally generating photorealistic metal surfacesbased upon evaluating curvature values. The thesis describes the development of eight metal shadersthat are used to replace the manual texture painting typically used in production. The approach isdemonstrated by applying these metal shaders to a robotic dog model from a short film involvinglive action and CG elements. Frames from a short animation of the robotic dog are presented, anda discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of this methodology

Особливості визначення спекулярної складової кольору з використанням нової дистрибутивної функції відбивної здатності поверхні

Запропоновано методи для корекції значень апроксимаційної функції ДФВЗ Фонга. Розроблені методи дозволяють формувати реалістичну дзеркальну складову відблиску поверхні з вищою швидкодією порівняно з ДФВЗ Фонг

Perception based heterogeneous subsurface scattering for film

Many real world materials exhibit complex subsurface scattering of light. This internal light interaction creates the perception of translucency for the human visual system. Translucent materials and simulation of the subsurface scattering of light has become an expected necessity for generating warmth and realism in computer generated imagery. The light transport within heterogenous materials, such as marble, has proved challenging to model and render. The current material models available to digital artists have been limited to homogeneous subsurface scattering despite a few publications documenting success at simulating heterogeneous light transport. While the publications successfully simulate this complex phenomenon, the material descriptions have been highly specialized and far from intuitive. By combining the measurable properties of heterogeneous translucent materials with the defining properties of translucency, as perceived by the human visual system, a description of heterogeneous translucent materials that is suitable for artist use in a film production pipeline can be achieved. Development of the material description focuses on integration with the film pipeline, ease of use, and reasonable approximation of heterogeneous translucency based on perception. Methods of material manipulation are explored to determine which properties should be modifiable by artists while maintaining the perception of heterogenous translucency

Photorealistic Rendering for LIve-Action Video Integration

Exploring the creative and technical process of rendering realistic images for integration into live action footage

Surfacing Jellyfish for Peanut Butter Jelly

This thesis discusses the surfacing techniques and process used in the creation of two main characters and the supporting crowd characters in the short animation, Peanut Butter Jelly. The goal was to create a custom RenderMan shader that could be used for both characters, and that had qualities of refraction and subsurface scattering, to allow the characters to appear soft and translucent like jellyfish. Shader writing in RenderMan, map painting in Mari, and design decisions are covered to explain the way the goal was achieved. The process for creating an interesting secondary character that cooperated seamlessly with the main jellyfish to form its eyes is also discussed. Ultimately, these visually cohesive and engaging characters lend to the overall success of the final renders