This was a short-term collaborative project with a classmate. By the time I joined, my partner had already completed the overall script concept and storyboard. I added some extra details to the story, such as including a scene where the robot scans a toy to bring some humor and give it a touch of “emotion.” I also introduced the use of different colored “X” marks to represent different processing methods, which served as a setup for the later conflict.

In terms of responsibilities, I mainly worked on cinematography, compositing, editing, color grading, and sound design, while my teammate, Jin Ling’an, handled modeling, texturing, and animation.

Compositing

During compositing, one of the biggest challenges was the large number of shots combined with noticeable lighting changes during filming. Since the robot character had a metallic surface, it needed to accurately reflect the kitchen environment and lighting, which made maintaining color consistency across shots difficult. To make the footage appear more natural, I added subtle camera shake to simulate handheld shooting.

In addition, I created several “robot vision” shots in After Effects, using the Form effect to overlay a texture that resembled an LED screen, further enhancing the technological feel of the film.

Editing

The main challenge in editing was the heavy reliance on sound effects to make the visuals feel realistic and alive. At the same time, I aimed to keep the atmosphere in the first half of the film lighthearted and energetic, so that it could create a stronger contrast leading up to the final conflict.

Reflection

The biggest strength of this collaboration was how well our skills complemented each other. My partner was strong in modeling, animation, and VFX, while I took care of shooting, compositing, and editing. Thanks to this combination, we were able to produce a short film with a complete storyline and decent quality within a limited timeframe.

Technically, the compositing process itself didn’t present too many unsolvable problems. However, we underestimated the workload in the early stages, which resulted in a very tight schedule towards the end. This experience made me realize that accurate project planning and clearer communication are essential for efficient teamwork.

Although our project management skills still have room for improvement, I truly felt the power of good collaboration and complementary strengths. Even under constraints, teamwork enabled us to achieve more than we could individually. Moving forward, I will carry this lesson into future collaborations, not only focusing on creativity and execution but also improving my planning and management abilities.

Final Work

Breakdown

In this collaborative project, my main responsibilities included story design, cinematography, compositing, editing, and sound design. I mainly focused on controlling rhythm and emotion to enhance the overall sense of immersion in the film.

Cinematography

For cinematography, I used a Sony FX3 with a stabilizer to complete all shot recordings. I also handled lighting setup and captured HDRI environment maps on set. For certain shots, I deliberately used exaggerated focal lengths, such as ultra-wide angles, to enhance both dramatic effect and storytelling power.

Background Creation

In the middle part of the film, I used Unreal Engine to build the background for a fully CG sequence. This ensured that the character models and visual effects were consistent with the intended atmosphere and design of the project.

Compositing

During post-production, I completed around 90% of the VFX compositing in Nuke, focusing mainly on colour consistency, depth of field, masking, and subtle camera shake effects.

Editing

In editing, I focused on the progression of emotions and the contrast before and after emotional release. The build-up was mainly driven by the rhythm of the background music and the gradual increase in intensity. To reinforce the tension, I layered environmental and special sound effects such as hurricane and thunder sounds.
After the conflict ended, I shifted the colour grading in the latter half from a cool, bluish tone to a warm orange tone, symbolising a transition from despair and loss to hope and vitality.

Reflection

One of the most noticeable issues we faced during this project occurred after shooting, when I created a rough cut for the VFX artists to work on. Due to my lack of experience and poor communication, the VFX artists were not clear about which sections of the video they should apply effects to. As a result, many of them started working from the first frame of each clip, which meant several effects did not appear in the right places within the footage. This caused significant problems in post-editing and production. I consider this a major collaboration error and a lesson I will carry forward into my future career to avoid repeating.

Fianl Work

Breakdown

Inspiration

The inspiration and direction for this project were established during last semester’s UE cabin project. First, I wanted to continue developing the cabin scene I had previously created. Second, I didn’t want to waste the stunning reflections created by the unique salt lake terrain. Therefore, I added a storyline to rationalize the scene: a man, rushing to make it to his anniversary date with his wife, drives his car into the salt lake.

In my previous cabin project, I struggled to achieve a calm and reflective water surface effect for the salt lake. Instead, I resorted to using a flat plane to simulate the reflection, which resulted in the loss of the lake’s unique textures and details.

However, with the help of a friend, I discovered a suitable terrain material that not only preserves the reflections but also retains the distinct texture of the salt lake. This discovery has been crucial for the smooth progression of this project.

Modelling&Landscape

Since the model continued to use the cabin project’s original design, I created a simple road in the terrain to serve as a transition between the city and the salt lake scenes. For the environment, the focus is more on creating the overall sky atmosphere. I aim to capture the feeling of “golden hour” when the clouds in the sky turn into pink, fiery hues.

Vehicle&Character Animation

In this short film, there is a brief climax where I need a relatively realistic car animation. I believe that using keyframe animation alone cannot achieve the effect I’m aiming for. Additionally, I’ve included some character animations in the film. Due to my technical limitations and for the sake of convenience, I divided the car animation into two different systems.

The first system focuses on the vehicle’s movements, such as the rotation of the tires and steering direction. Following a tutorial, I built a car movement system in UE, which allowed me to control the car like in a game and record its motion. I could then create cameras to capture the desired sequences.

The second system doesn’t require showing the car’s movement—I simply keyframe the position of the car’s static mesh and attach the character to it, allowing me to focus solely on the character’s facial animation. For the character’s face, I used a MetaHuman asset, which stands out due to its ability to work with Live Link Face and UE5 for real-time facial expression capture. This feature has saved me a significant amount of time in creating detailed facial animations.

I also created a transparent material and used vertex painting to remove the animated character’s head, replacing it with a MetaHuman face that supports facial motion capture. This approach allowed me to seamlessly integrate the real-time facial performance with the character’s body animation.

Finally, I created several props to support the storytelling, such as a bouquet of flowers with an “Happy Anniversary” card and a phone with a green screen for replacing the navigation display in Nuke. I also used Nuke to add some camera shake effects to enhance the dynamic feel of certain shots.

Final effect

Breakdown

Nuke Exercise

Roto Running Man

Shoting & Retime Exercise

Maya Exercise

Moodboard

Dunhuang culture, a gem of the ancient Silk Road, is best known for the Mogao Caves. Its blend of Chinese, Indian, and Persian influences is highlighted by the iconic celestial dancers of Dunhuang art.

Working Process

Roto mountains

Modeling

At the start of the project, my design direction was cyberpunk, so I used cyberpunk balloons as reference images for modeling. However, during production, I switched to a more suitable style.

Texturing

Animation in UE5

To add rotation animation along with lighting and shadow effects for the hot air balloon, I created a simple rotation and ascent animation in UE5 and exported a sequence with a transparent background. The process was quick, convenient, and delivered ideal results.

Workflow in Nuke

Merge celestial dancers in Premiere

Final Work

Inspiration & Reference

I was inspired by a video of Bolivia’s salt flats, where the sunset seamlessly merged with the water and sky. This led me to design a scene focused on the salt flats and sunset—after all, a salt flat is still a kind of lake, right?. The wooden cabin, influenced by European styles, combines practicality and elegance to evoke a warm, inviting feel.

Modeling & Blocking

Scene Layout in UE5

Landscape & Material

I tried applying a salt flat texture to the lakebed, but after adding the water system, the results didn’t meet my expectations. Perhaps my understanding of the material isn’t deep enough yet. I hope to explore solutions as I continue learning.

Lighting & Atmosphere Design

Interior Decoration

Final Result