Lead character artist.
Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader?
I led a full stylized character production for the latest (at the time, 2022) game of the “Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader?” IP. Delivering 14 cast members (and alternate costumes!) on a tight production schedule of 18 months.
I worked closely with the art director to keep high visual fidelity from art direction and concept art.
We defined an art style that would translate well the concept art to 3D and giving the cute child-like vibe of the show.
I was the most proficient person in our small team on Zbrush and character pipeline, so it gave me the possibility to think through how production would be like. Especially in 3D modeling and sculpting.
I was also in constant communication with our animator to make sure that the models would look seamless with the animation and to make her life easier.
Retopology of every character was entirely done by me.
The cast was huge AND all the kids had alternate costumes, so it basically doubled the quantity of work. By that time I was given a hand by another team mate and a contractor so we could finish in time. Since the 3D style was based off of my first sculpts, I had to document the stylization for them and do a few pass overs on most of the models to ensure visual consistency.
All costume sculpts presented here were done by me. Texturing was a team effort.
And some concept art:
A few little concepts that I made during pre-production that I liked :>
Studio: Massive Miniteam GmbH
Team size: 12-13 (total), 1-3 (character team)
Timeline: 18 months
Scope: 14 characters with alternate costumes
Game: PC/console
This was the first big game I shipped. It was a great opportunity working with Massive Miniteam.
Working with a known IP demands some strict visual consistency. MGM and Handy Games (our publishers) appreciated what we proposed and that was really cool because it let us confirm professionalism and visual direction.
I was given a lot of trust and responsibility even as as a junior and it played off amazingly. I learned so much from my team mates and all the people who were involved in the production of this game. Your feedback and input were extremely formative to the artist I am today <3
You can check out and play AYSTA5G? on Steam!