Senior Capstone

For my senior capstone, I created a 3D adaptation of the Pokémon character Alolan Marowak, focusing on research into the Uncanny Valley and the challenges of translating 2D designs into believable 3D forms. Inspired by examples such as the 2020 Sonic the Hedgehog redesign and Detective Pikachu, the project explored how stylization, anatomy, and texture can work together to balance familiarity with realism in character design.

Production Pipeline

Modeling & Sculpting – Built the character in ZBrush starting from a dynamesh sphere, refining anatomy, proportions, and surface details.

Texturing & Surfacing – Used Substance Painter to develop leather-like skin, bone detailing for the skull and talons, and stylized textures bridging 2D inspiration with realistic surfaces.

Rigging & Animation – Created an initial rig in Mixamo, then customized in Blender with IK/FK switches and weight painting for more natural, flexible movement.

Procedural Effects – Experimented with Houdini for procedural scaling and dynamic enhancements to reinforce stylization.

Research & Documentation – Conducted comparative studies on configural processing and perceptual mismatch, directly applying theory to practical design decisions.

This project served as both a technical and artistic milestone, blending scholarly research with a complete production pipeline and strengthening my skills in modeling, surfacing, rigging, effects, and animation.