💀 Diablo IV: Necromancer and Ruins
| Realization of a 3D rendering accompanied by animations and visual effects from artworks related to Diablo IV.
https://www.carlierjulien.com/en/gallery-diablo4-necromancer
Overview 🔎
Diablo IV is an “action RPG (Hack ‘n’ Slash)” video game developed and published by Blizzard Entertainment and whose release date is in 2023. The game refers to the universe of angels and demons, and offers players to explore a story through an open world populated by various creatures, through a character with abilities that depend on the chosen class.
The project aimed to develop a scene through the assembly of several artworks – one representing a location and two others featuring characters – all taken from the video game Diablo IV, integrating a 3D effect, adding special effects, and animating certain elements (characters, vegetation, …).
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Process 🛣
In order to realize this project, I went through several well-defined stages.
1. Realization of the scenarios (3D, VFX, Animations, Editing) in order to clarify the direction of the project and to know all the elements to be produced.
2. Creation and configuration of the composition within After Effects: dimensions of the production (1920x1080 px), choice of the number of frames per second (60 FPS), duration (30 sec.).
3. Cutout of all the elements through After Effects in order to constitute the plans of the 3D part. Deletion of elements, additional adjustments and retouching were necessary to perfect the plans, using Photoshop.
4. Insertion of the plans previously cut in the 3D space then configuration of the camera and its path.
5. Color correction of the characters for their good insertion in the environment.
6. Creation of the different animations.
7. Design of the visual effects (VFX) using plugins.
8. Editing of the production: Intro & Outro, thumbnail, general color correction and details enhancement.
9. Editing of the production on Premiere Pro: Research and addition of the soundtrack and sound effects (SFX).
10. Production export (H.264): 1 video file (.Mp4); 2 cover pictures (JPG & PNG).
Audiovisual production details 🎞
🎞 Composition
Dimensions: 1920x1080 px.
Frames per second: 60 Fps.
Duration: 30 seconds.
Composition: 3D editing with a shot by 2-nodes camera.
An adaptation of the scale linked to all the artworks was carried out in order to insert them within the composition. The number of FPS has been set at 60 for the sake of fluidity when watching the production. Finally, the principle of “looped video” excluding intro & outro was used in order to appreciate the 3D effect.
🪄 Photo retouching
Suppression of some parts of the vegetation and ruins
Suppression of trees
Reconstruction of certain parts hidden by elements in the process of creating the various plans for the completion of the 3D rendering
When making the cutouts in order to obtain the different plans to create the 3D part of the production, it was necessary to proceed retouching to faithfully reconstruct the plans behind each cut element.
Moreover, significant color corrections have been made to creatures and the necromancer, which originally reflected a reddish coloring. The intention behind this operation was that they could fit into the environment of the scene – in dark, virid, grayish and bluish tones – on the one hand, and that they find a more realistic appearance – the whitish-colored bones of the skeletons, outfits and armors in dark and black tones, and the darker blood of the golem – on the other hand.
✂ Cutouts (from the foreground to the background)
1. "Diablo IV" logo (out of 3D)
2. The two skeletons in the foreground
3. The corals and objects (on the left and the right)
4. The skeleton on the right holding his sword and shield
5. The pillar with its vegetation on the left, the head of a demolished statue on the right and a part of the ground and the watercourse
6.1. The law wall with the gate, its demolished pillar and the dead tree just behind, in the center
6.2. The demolished pillar on the right and a part of the ground and the watercourse
7. The dead tree on the left
8. The head of the skeleton that protrude from the low wall, on the left
9. The skeleton holding his two-handed sword, on the left
10. The dead tree with a part of the ground, on the right
11. The specter to the right of the necromancer
12. The specter to the left of the necromancer
13. The necromancer
14.1. The facade and entrance to the building behind the necromancer, and a part of the ground and the watercourse
14.2. The tree behind the pillar of the low wall, on the left
14.3. The first tree (whitish / grayish) in the background on the left
15. The golem
16. The skeleton standing above the entrance to the building
17. The interior of the building entrance
18. The ruins above the building and a part of the vegetation in the background on the left
19. The background facades of the ruins
20. The building in the distance on the left and its mountain on which it rests
21. The mountains and the sky
The cutouts within this production were particularly numerous and demanding, especially those related to the vegetation (trees, foliage, …). This was the part that required me the most significant time of realization.
✨ Effects & Elements
○ Transitions
• Black thumbnail in Intro
• Outro in fade to black
○ Color grading
• Color corrections
• Slight details enhancement
○ Visual effects (VFX)
• Appearance of the "IV" (logo)
• Magic emitted by the eyes and the body of the skeletons
• Magic emitted by the eyes and the breathing of the golem
• Summoning spell cast by the necromancer
• Magic related to the specters summoning
• Mist (x3)
• Light rain
• Thunder in the clouds
All the elements and effects were made in After Effects by hand and using plugins.
I have also reworked the basis of a visual effect created by myself in order to obtain several different versions and updated, to dedicate them to the casting of the specters summoning spell by the necromancer.
⚙ Animations
○ Camera
○ The skeletons
○ The golem
○ The specters
○ The arms and weapons of the necromancer
○ Some parts of the vegetation
○ Appearance of the Logo
All the animations were made by hand, some of which required additional cutouts in order to animate a very specific element without hindering other elements (eg: the right and left arms of the necromancer).
🎚 Sound effects (SFX)
○ Light rain
○ Thunder rumble
We will agree to affirm that the immersion is different with and without the dimension of sound. I thus took the liberty to insert below the soundtrack a sound effect of a light fall of rain accompanied by the rumble of thunder coming from a few kilometers where the shot takes place.
🎵 Soundtrack
"Mistral woods" from Blizzard Entertainment | Diablo IV (Original Soundtrack).
Takeaways 📣
The completion of this project confronted me with patience and high standards. On a personal level, I particularly appreciate the Diablo universe and I am admirative with the quality of the work provided by Blizzard Entertainment in the realization of Diablo IV. Thus, I had to respect this same quality in the development of this production, despite my level, the equipment, and the tools at my disposal.
The cutouts were numerous and painstaking, the color corrections were tricky to adjust – I was also able to deepen my practice related to this stage within this project –, the visual effects were complex to achieve and adapt, then the animations were meticulous to establish. Finally, a significant amount of time was required for the exportation of the composition.
The realization of this type of project allows me to learn more about myself, since confronted with different stage sometimes difficult to accomplish, I explore my ability to always find solutions to achieve my goals and to demonstrate my perseverance. This leads me to commit myself to ever more ambitious projects to materialize and thus to sharpen my skills and approach my approaches from different angles.
Julien Carlier Productions
2023