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Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Thu, 27 Nov 2025 07:30:36 +0000

FMP – Final & Refection Final Reflection Lookin […] “”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Thu, 27 Nov 2025 05:49:20 +0000

FMP – VFX & SFXVFX In terms of special […] “”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Thu, 27 Nov 2025 04:47:29 +0000

FMP – Movie Render […] “FMP – Movie Render”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Thu, 27 Nov 2025 04:42:50 +0000

FMP-Animation In terms of […] “FMP-Animation”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Tue, 11 Nov 2025 10:01:09 +0000

FMP-Vehicle After careful […] “FMP-Vehicle”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Tue, 04 Nov 2025 09:54:24 +0000

FMP-Characters Metahuman […] “FMP-Characters”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Tue, 28 Oct 2025 04:52:05 +0000

FMP-Environment In scene […] “FMP-Environment”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Tue, 07 Oct 2025 02:10:15 +0000

FMP – Story&Concept Story 毕设剧本enDownload Brief The officer drove to the village to recruit soldiers The officer found that the village was full of disabled people whom unsuitable for military service. The officer found an old man and ordered him to join the army, but he refused. The officer insisted, but the old man continued to refuse The officer suspected that the old man want to defected to the enemy and intended to arrest him, but found that the old man could not be touched, like a ghost. The old man explained that he couldn’t join the army because he is died at the war, same as all people in this village. The officer was shocked and confused, and the old man explained that it was because the officer was also dead. The officer turned around in shock and saw a drone had crashed through the front windshield of the military vehicle, emitting a burst of flames, which froze the officer’s terrified expression on his face. Storyboard Concept Generated by Midjour […] “FMP – Story&Concept”

Jinduo Zhao and Jiawen Yin are now friends

Tue, 23 Sep 2025 01:59:00 +0000

Jinduo Zhao posted a new activity comment

Thu, 18 Sep 2025 20:25:07 +0000

Your airplane is impressive too!

In reply to - Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog Personal Project – Video Editing to final Editing & SFX Although the AE–Blender–Nuke–DaVinci workflow meant that I had to render each shot four times […]

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Thu, 18 Sep 2025 14:51:15 +0000

Personal Project – Video Editing to final Editing & SFX Although the AE–Blender–Nuke–DaVinci workflow meant that I had to render each shot four times whenever I made changes—an exhausting process—the final result turned out fairly well. Paired with music that matched the emotional beats of the story, the overall viewing experience wasn’t as rhythmically chaotic as I had feared. For the sound effects, I used foley recordings I made myself. These included a subtle “pop” sound when the model appears out of thin air on the desk, and the sound of rubbing clothes to mimic the noise of the duvet. These handmade effects helped the audio match my intended emotional tone much more closely. Final Breakdown Reflection Although the production schedule for this project was repeatedly delayed, I fortunately managed to complete it on time. I’m aware that I need to learn from the overly complicated workflow I designed for this project and avoid switching between multiple software platforms in the future, which wasted significant time during the video export process. Overall, the final output largely met my expectations. As my first project involving VFX compositing, the integration between different stages of the workflow went relatively smoothly. While the complexity of the model and environment didn’t fully showcase my capabilities in that area, I believe the short film successfully met the goals of this assignment—which emphasized live-action com […] “Personal Project – Video Editing to final”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Thu, 18 Sep 2025 14:33:32 +0000

Personal Project – Composing & Fluid Simulation For compositing, I used Nuke. Its Defocus node allowed me to achieve smooth and realistic depth transitions in several shots. As for fluid simulation, considering the time cost of using Houdini, I opted for Blender’s FLIP Fluids add-on instead. With added material and texture work, I was able to produce […] “Personal Project – Composing & Fluid Simulation”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Thu, 18 Sep 2025 14:31:19 +0000

Personal Project – Animation In terms of animation, the workload for this project even surpassed last semester’s cowboy duel project. There were 14 shots, each requiring varying levels of skeletal and facial animation, which significantly increased the amount of work. Facial animation For facial animation, I used After Effects, which excels at motion graphics. I created expressive looks for the little character through animated oval eyes and mouth movements. Skeletal animation For skeletal animation, I continued using Cascadeur—a powerful tool. Although its latest update introduced AI interpolation, the extreme proportions of the robot made the interpolation results unu […] “Personal Project – Animation”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Thu, 18 Sep 2025 14:24:52 +0000

Personal Project – Modeling&Rigging As for the model design, although I had a completed model, it wasn’t suitable for rigging due to the limitations of 3D printing. To address this, I adjusted the position of the upper thighs and closed the large opening at the top of the head that was originally intended to fit a s […] “Personal Project – Modeling&Rigging”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Thu, 18 Sep 2025 14:21:20 +0000

Personal Project – Storyboard Optimizing Due to various factors, I was only able to start filming after moving into my new home. The spatial layout of the new place forced me to replan the shots, and since I had to handle both the performance and the filming on my own, I could only use fixed camera angles in the redesigned storyboard. My Panasonic camera performs unreliably in low-light conditions—its autofocus often malfunctions and struggles with subject detection. As a result, I had to use a mobile app to manually control the focus point, which added an extra layer of difficulty to the s […] “Personal Project – Storyboard Optimizing”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Thu, 18 Sep 2025 13:57:52 +0000

Group Project After our […] “Group Project”

Jinduo Zhao posted a new activity comment

Wed, 17 Sep 2025 16:33:25 +0000

Amazing!

In reply to - Xin Jiang wrote a new post on the site VFX – Xin Jiang Personal Project- Doodle Introduction We started this project with a simple idea: that every step of your journey, no matter how difficult, has made you who […]

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Thu, 26 Jun 2025 08:39:46 +0000

Reflection about Critical ReportIn the Collaborate Unit, I attempted to write a story for a game for the first time. During this process, I discovered that the narrative logic of games differs significantly from that of films. Films, as single-core narratives, have all their elements serving the story itself, creating a self-consistent experience. Games, however, are different—they must balance both narrative and gameplay, requiring players to assume roles while simultaneously advancing the story through their actions. This forces players to constantly oscillate between the author’s intent and their personal interests, resulting in a sense of experiential dissonance. I realized that this is an inherent limitation dictated by the interactive nature of games, which motivated me to explore this topic further to deepen my understanding. After reviewing numerous sources, I found that existing research categorizes game narrative models into four types. However, the in-depth discussion of gameplay design involved in these categories exceeded the scope of what I could explore at this stage. Therefore, I further consolidated these classifications, focusing primarily on analyzing the characteristics and case studies of linear and non-linear narrative models. The research process led me to revisit several exemplary narrative-driven games in my mind. By combining others’ critiques and analyses, I gained a deeper understanding of these games and genuinely felt my own growth. Before conducting this research, I was unaware of the existence of narrative strategies. However, a considerable amount of literature discusses these paradigms, which caught my attention. Upon deeper exploration, I learned that narrative is not purely about creativity—there are underlying techniques that can be applied. As a result, I decided to incorporate this aspect into my research. Looking back on the research process, it was an opportunity for me to examine storytelling from a completely new perspective. By the end of the study, I had also completed an iteration of my own understanding. Analyzing specific game case studies provided a solid foundation for my writing, ensuring it remained grounded in reality. However, due to limited time and effort, I believe there is still room for broadening the scope of my literature rev […] “Reflection about Critical Report”

Jinduo Zhao and Hsuan-Hwa Chu are now friends

Wed, 25 Jun 2025 22:11:37 +0000

Jinduo Zhao and Natalya Buchanan are now friends

Wed, 25 Jun 2025 13:59:02 +0000

Jinduo Zhao and Junbing Zhang are now friends

Mon, 28 Apr 2025 11:38:49 +0000

Jinduo Zhao and Qian Deng are now friends

Mon, 14 Apr 2025 08:37:54 +0000

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Fri, 11 Apr 2025 20:56:47 +0000

Personal Project – Idea & Storyboard Idea After I owned a 3D printer, I suddenly thought one day: if the models in my computer can be converted into real objects, then isn’t manipulating my computer somehow manipulating the real world? I used this as a metaphor to write a short story for the little robot I printed out, in which this naughty guy uses my computer while I’m sleeping, and ends up causing a big mess. Event List I printed a little robot, put it on the table and went to sleep. The Little robot accidentally discovers he can change his body colour with the mouse and has fun with it. The Little robot nearly wakes me up by playing with objects in my bedroom through 3D software. The Little robot turns on Houdini and the next morning I find my bedroom […] “Personal Project – Idea & Storyboard”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Fri, 11 Apr 2025 20:37:35 +0000

Machine in the ruin References 3D Tracking Modeling & AOV Rendering Composing in Nuke

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Fri, 11 Apr 2025 20:22:38 +0000

Points Remove Practice

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Fri, 11 Apr 2025 20:18:07 +0000

Green Screen Practice

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Fri, 11 Apr 2025 20:05:14 +0000

Houdini Practice

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Fri, 11 Apr 2025 20:04:16 +0000

UE5 Lighting Practice

Jinduo Zhao posted a new activity comment

Mon, 13 Jan 2025 16:23:02 +0000

Love from LCC

In reply to - Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog Cowboy Duel – Final & Breakdown https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ekI6FcHdtE

Jinduo Zhao changed their profile picture

Mon, 13 Jan 2025 15:04:39 +0000

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Mon, 13 Jan 2025 02:29:53 +0000

Cowboy Duel – Final & Breakdown

Jinduo Zhao and Peiyao Wang are now friends

Mon, 13 Jan 2025 02:29:25 +0000

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Mon, 13 Jan 2025 02:26:05 +0000

Cowboy Duel – Color Grading & SFX Color Grading In terms of color grading, I used the Kodak Gold 200 film simulation preset from VSCO Film and baked it into a LUT. Due to time constraints on this project, I opted for a unified color grade across the timeline rather than grading each individual clip. Among the four nodes I used, the first was responsible for adjusting overall exposure, contrast, and white balance. Since I had already fine-tuned the lighting and exposure in UE5, I only made slight contrast adjustments at this stage. Among the four nodes I used, the first node was dedicated to adjusting the overall exposure, contrast, and white balance of the footage. Since I had already fine-tuned the lighting and exposure in Unreal Engine 5, this step only involved a subtle shift toward warmer tones. SFX For sound effects (SFX), I primarily sourced materials from Aigei.com, incorporating background music (BGM), ambient sounds, mechanical noises, footsteps, and necessary transitional effects to enrich the film’s narrative. Notably, the BGM was a combination of three different pieces of music. By utilizing crossfades and applying music theory, I created a seamless and perfectly tailored soundtrack that […] “Cowboy Duel – Color Grading & SFX”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Mon, 13 Jan 2025 02:24:24 +0000

Cowboy Duel – Composing Since I needed to create particle effects but had limited knowledge of Nuke in this area, I ultimately chose After Effects as my compositing software. Although I didn’t create a particle trail effect due to time constraints, I enhanced the visual impact of the fireworks by emphasizing the glow […] “Cowboy Duel – Composing”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Mon, 13 Jan 2025 02:22:32 +0000

Cowboy Duel – Light & MovieRender Queue Set In terms of lighting, I drew inspiration from various real-world cases used by professional film crews. I noticed that modern cinematography often excels at concealing light sources, creating the illusion of natural lighting. This means that many lights appear to come from logical sources within the scene, but are actually produced by artificial lights placed off-camera. I believe this is a key technique that gives modern film lighting its natural and textured quality. For this project, I used spotlights to enhance the sunlight coming from the direction of the sun. This ensured that the characters’ faces wouldn’t be completely obscured by shadows cast by their hats, while still maintaining the realism of the lighting. This approach allowed the facial illumination to appear natural and justified within the s […] “Cowboy Duel – Light & MovieRender Queue Set”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Mon, 13 Jan 2025 02:00:19 +0000

Cowboy Duel – Animation I dedicated a significant amount of time to creating keyframe animations and experimented with Cascadeur, an emerging software. Its Auto Posing system was incredibly helpful, making the process much more efficient. However, I chose not to use the Auto Physics feature to assist with keyframe interpolation, as I realized that animation often needs to deviate from strict physical laws to achieve more visually pleasing results. Despite having extensive experience in motion graphics, this was my first attempt at creating character animations. During the process, I discovered that driving motion through specific key body parts is essential for achieving natural character movement. For instance, when a character turns, having the feet lead the movement, followed by the waist, then the chest, and finally the head and arms, creates a more rhythmic and dynamic twisting […] “Cowboy Duel – Animation”

Jinduo Zhao and Hao Tan are now friends

Sun, 12 Jan 2025 17:24:49 +0000

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 21:54:38 +0000

Cowboy Duel – Build Wild West Town Landscape build (with World Creator) Far-range terrain Blocking Add Rocks Add groceries I believe the key to achieving visual consistency is a scene lies in the seamless integration between elements. For instance, when placing a house on the terrain, it’s important to avoid jarring intersections as much as possible. During the terrain creation process, I intentionally placed miscellaneous items near the base of the building walls to mask the neat and monotonous boundary lines, ensuring a more natural and cohesive appearance. Add Foliage Add wheel tracks and horse footprints Decorate with w […] “Cowboy Duel – Build Wild West Town”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 21:45:49 +0000

Cowboy Duel – Storyboard Optimization I realized that the previous version didn’t fully capture the tension of an impending battle. In this version, I refined the progression of micro-narratives, including skirmishes, confrontations, and gunfire. By employing increasingly compressed scenes and dynamic changes in camera movement, I gradually heightened the tension, driving the film towards its […] “Cowboy Duel – Storyboard Optimization”

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 21:36:17 +0000

Cowboy Duel – Bot2 Rigging Rigging Test

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 21:33:26 +0000

Cowboy Duel – Bot2 Texture

Jinduo Zhao wrote a new post on the site JinduoZhao's blog

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 21:21:53 +0000

Cowboy Duel – Bot2 UV & Baking After trimming the UVs of Bot1, I discovered that despite using an advanced relaxation algorithm, the texture still exhibited significant stretching, leading to a serious waste of texture pixel utilization. Therefore, when unwrapping the UVs for Bot2, I explored new methods. However, tools like ZenUV, UniV, and Packmaster3 in Blender failed to meet my expectations. Eventually, I learned about industry-standard UV mapping practices through tutorials and turned to specialized software, RizomUV. During the process, I straightened all UV islands wherever possible and leveraged RizomUV’s multi-quadrant auto-packing feature. This improved the UV map utilization from 75% to 81% while avoiding potential UV seams during the baking […] “Cowboy Duel – Bot2 UV & Baking”