WEEK 1: Matte Paintings

Matte painting is a visual effects (VFX) technique used to design realistic and immersive environments—such as landscapes, cityscapes, or entire settings—for movies, television, and video games. In the past, artists created these scenes by painting on glass or canvas, but today the process is mostly digital, utilizing tools like Adobe Photoshop, 3D rendering, photography, and video. These digital matte paintings extend physical sets or create completely new worlds that would be too expensive or impractical to construct in real life.

1. Skyfall (007)

 

CyberPunk

 

Savanah

 

I have been given a task to develop my Skyfall (007) matte painting

Then I start with my choice of photos:

“This matte painting is a photo-bash combined with digital painting. I blended multiple mountain and waterfall elements, added atmospheric perspective with layers of fog and mist, and painted snowflakes to unify the scene.”

“I kept most of the palette in cold grays and blues, with just two points of color contrast: the red star, and potentially one highlighted paratrooper if I were to refine further.”

• Atmosphere: The snowy mist, falling snow, and subdued color palette create a very moody, cinematic feeling. It feels cold, foreboding, and mysterious.

• Composition: The cliffs on either side draw the eye straight toward the futuristic structure with the red star in the valley, making it the natural focal point. It’s a real Building called Budzdludja.

• Blending: The integration of the waterfalls, mountains, and mist is seamless. It feels like a real world.

• Details: The car in the foreground adds a narrative touch — it feels like we’re arriving at this place, which gives the piece a sense of story.

• “The cliffs on either side naturally frame the valley and lead the eye toward the focal point — the tower with the red star. The waterfalls add motion and contrast, helping balance the composition.”

• “In the foreground, I placed a car in the snow to give a sense of scale and a hint of narrative: someone is arriving or spying on this base.”

• “If you look closely in the sky above the mountain, you can spot parachutists descending. They’re subtle — intentionally almost lost in the snowstorm — because I wanted the viewer to discover them gradually.”  The subtle paratroopers make the scene feel more alive and dangerous, like there’s an operation unfolding in the distance, without breaking the calm mood of the valley. “This adds tension: the installation isn’t just sitting there; something is happening. It suggests a military operation unfolding.”

“Overall, my aim was to create a cinematic still that could easily belong in a film or game — something that feels mysterious at first glance, but reveals more story details the longer you look at it.”

 

And here is the Breakdown

 

Frankenstein (inspired by Del-Toro)

Angel – comp, and filming

Luca – 3d models (environment models)

Greta – 3d Models (frank head ina  jar)

camera used is Blackmagic 4k

 

 

started with choosing a character for the shot, this was one of my work colleagues.

previsualisation in photoshop

color scheme

 

Filming and Comping

We have booked the actor, his name is Marcus, who will be Victor Frankenstein, its booked for Thursday

Luca is doing the enviroment in maya 3d

Greta is doing the 3d Head of the Creature

 

here is a filming storyboard that i made

will be using the green room and the blackmagic camera + Iphone synched together

 

camera move to the Head  , Im going to use locked camera and make the movement in comp.

 

 

 

Presenting the Frankenstein Shot and comp:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ambient

studio lightings

 

 

 

Presentation video:

 

This project is a compositing-focused showreel piece produced as part of a group project, where my primary responsibility was the integration of live-action footage into a fully CG environment. My colleagues provided access to the CG environment and rendered passes, while I handled the green screen shoot, keying, and final compositing to achieve a cohesive and believable result.

The process began with filming the live-action plate on green screen. During acquisition, I focused on achieving even green screen coverage, controlled lighting, and consistent camera settings to ensure the footage was suitable for professional keying and integration. The plate was then prepared in compositing through colour balancing and organisation into a structured node-based workflow.

Keying was approached using a layered method rather than a single key. Separate mattes were created for the core subject, fine edge detail, and problem areas, supported by garbage and holdout mattes where required. This allowed for greater control over edge quality and spill suppression. Despill, edge refinement, and subtle light interaction were applied to better match the CG lighting present in the environment.

Once the key was established, I integrated the live-action subject into the full CG environment using the provided render passes. I balanced exposure, contrast, colour temperature, and grain so the actor sat naturally within the scene. Depth cues such as atmospheric adjustment and selective softness were applied to reinforce spatial consistency between the foreground plate and the CG background.

To enhance realism and prevent the environment from feeling static, I animated a candle flicker effect using curve-based animation, introducing subtle, irregular light variation over time. This contributed to a more organic and believable atmosphere and helped unify the lighting interaction between the live-action subject and the CG scene.

Overall, this project demonstrates my ability to collaborate within a team-based pipeline while independently managing green screen acquisition, professional keying, pass-based CG integration, and environmental enhancement through compositing.

VIDEO PROCESS EXPLAINER

FINAL VERSION:

*note (please change the quality to full hd or 4k before you watch it )

 

Cinematic inspired by Alice in Wonderland.

Angel – comp, and filming

Luca – 3d models

Greta – 3d Models, and a Model

camera used is Blackmagic 4k

Alice – Green Screen to CG Environment

Project Overview

This shot is a compositing-focused project where I filmed a live-action performance outdoors using a portable green screen and integrated it into a fully CG fantasy environment. The aim was to demonstrate green-screen acquisition awareness, professional keying, and complex live-action/CG integration.

 Filming the Plate

The live-action plate was filmed outside in a park using a portable green screen setup. Filming outdoors introduced additional challenges compared to a studio environment, particularly inconsistent natural light, wind movement, and green spill.
During filming, I prioritised:

• Even green screen coverage behind the actor

• Clean separation between the subject and screen

• Camera stability and consistent exposure

These choices were important to ensure the footage remained usable for high-quality keying and compositing later in post-production.

Plate Preparation & Keying

Once imported into compositing, the plate was first balanced and organised before keying. Due to the outdoor conditions, I avoided relying on a single key and instead used a layered keying approach:

• A core matte for solid areas

• Edge mattes for hair and fabric

• Garbage mattes to isolate problematic regions

Additional despill and edge refinement were applied to remove green contamination, especially on skin tones and lighter costume areas.

 CG Integration

The keyed live-action plate was integrated into a fully CG mushroom environment. I worked with CG renders/passes and focused on making the actor feel grounded within the scene by:

• Matching colour temperature and contrast

• Introducing atmospheric depth and haze

• Adding soft glow and light interaction from the environment

These steps helped unify the live-action and CG elements into a single visual space.

Final Polish & Result

In the final stage, I applied overall grading, subtle lens effects, and depth adjustments to ensure visual consistency across the shot. The completed composite reads as a cohesive fantasy environment rather than separate elements.
This project demonstrates my ability to handle outdoor green-screen filming, complex keying, and detailed compositing to achieve believable live-action and CG integration.

VIDEO PROCESS EXPLAINER

FINAL VERSION:

*note (please change the quality to full hd or 4k before you watch it )

 

Christmas advert

Angel – comp

Luca – 3d

stock footage and some 3d elements – Evanto market

 

The shot begins with the original stock footage of the interior cabin environment. At this stage, the plate is presented clean to establish the original lighting conditions, lens characteristics, and camera movement. This section reflects the footage used for the initial camera track and demonstrates that the base plate contains sufficient parallax and detail for a reliable solve.

As the camera movement progresses, the tracked camera data becomes the foundation for the CG pipeline. The camera was solved from the stock footage and exported to the 3D department, allowing CG assets to be accurately placed within the scene. In the breakdown portion of the reel, visible tracking points confirm a stable and consistent solve across the environment, particularly along the walls, ceiling, and floor planes.

CG elements begin to appear integrated into the live-action plate, including the Christmas tree, fireplace fire, and additional set dressing. At this stage, the compositing work focuses on spatial alignment and scale accuracy, ensuring the CG assets remain locked to the tracked camera without sliding or drifting. Lighting consistency is addressed by matching colour temperature, contrast, and exposure between the CG renders and the original plate.

Integration refinement becomes the priority. Depth cues such as atmospheric balance, softening, and subtle lens response are applied so the CG elements sit naturally within the room. Grain is matched across both sources to unify the image. Occlusion and layering are adjusted to ensure proper interaction between foreground live-action elements and background CG.

In the final composite, the scene reads as a cohesive environment rather than separate elements. A final quality control pass ensures there is no tracking drift, flicker, or temporal inconsistency. The completed shot demonstrates successful live-action and full-CG integration through camera tracking, inter-department collaboration, and professional compositing techniques.

 

VIDEO PROCESS EXPLAINER

 

FINAL VERSION:

*note (please change the quality to full hd or 4k before you watch it )

 

Final Showreel: