Concept Generation

Ever since I first watched Dragon Ball as a kid, I’ve been a huge fan. The incredible world of Saiyans, the intense battles, and, of course, the iconic Kamehameha beam have all been a huge part of my childhood. Dragon Ball has inspired me in so many ways, teaching me values like determination, perseverance, and the power of growth. And since that very moment, I have dreamed of becoming a Super Saiyan!

Now, with the skills and knowledge I have gained over the years studying Visual Effects, I’m ready to bring that dream to life. For my major project, I’m taking on the challenge of recreating the legendary Kamehameha beam attack in live action. This isn’t just about making something cool—it’s about making my childhood dream a reality. I can’t wait to combine my passion with the technology and creativity I have learned to create something that truly honors this incredible series. Get ready for an epic journey, because this is going to be one unforgettable experience!

Ethics Form

Reference Shot From Anime

Mood board

Colur Pallette

As to begin with, I did some experiment using the Magic Beam Project I made for the Previous Module. And than I Shot myself through Phone camera and tracked the data in nuke and took it to Houdini and than created a path for the beam and readjust the position and brought again to Nuke to combine both the footage.

Live Action Footage

 

Beam

 

Final

 

Idea Presentation

Road Map

 

Basic Work to get the clear Idea

Filming in green Screen

 

Stock Image Environment

 

Output

 

Unreal Engine Environment

Using Unreal Environment with the Beam

 

Houdini Beam Progress

 

Beam Render

 

Made few Changes

 

Initial Start with particles

 

Test Presentation_Week03

Story board for filming the shot

Week 04 

Major Project Presentation Assignment 

Test 03 Compositing

 

Frieza

For my project, I used a Metahuman character as the base to create the Frieza character. This provided a solid starting point, especially in terms of proportions like height and hand size, which aligned closely with the look I was aiming for. However, since it wasn’t an exact match, I brought the model into ZBrush to further sculpt and customize it, enhancing muscle definition and reshaping the body to achieve Frieza’s more stylized and deformed physique. I also gave it basic textures at this stage and focused on blending the facial features seamlessly with the modified body to ensure a cohesive design.

Once the sculpting was complete, I exported the model to Substance Painter for detailed texturing, where I applied refined surface materials and color maps. After finalizing the textures, I imported the model into Maya for rigging. There, I built a custom skeleton and added IK handles, particularly for the tail, allowing for more dynamic and expressive animation.

Draft 01- Animation

 

Developed Storyboard

Aura Simulation

 

Different Approach

 

Week 08

Final Major project Presentation

 

Draft Comp Shot 02

 

Improved Approach

Shot 01

Starting with the first shot, I found the animation looked too cartoonish, so I made several improvements to enhance its quality and achieve a more cinematic feel. I began by adjusting the camera animation, opting for a simpler pedestal movement that added a more refined and cinematic touch. To improve the tail animation, I separated the tail from the main model and created a new mesh. This allowed me to set up new IK handles that operated independently from the body, giving me greater control and fluidity in the tail’s movement.

With this new setup, I reanimated the tail, giving it a more natural and polished motion. I also added subtle hand animations to bring more life to the character. Once the animation was finalized, I moved on to lighting the scene in Maya, where I was able to achieve strong visual results that complemented the animation beautifully.

Camera Pedestal

 

 

Freiza  Tail Animation

 

Freiza Animation

 

Final Animation

 

Environment

I created the environment in Unreal Engine using 3D assets sourced from Sketchfab. To build the look of a destroyed city, I combined building models with Megascans debris and rubble, crafting a realistic and immersive post-apocalyptic setting. I then imported a camera track from Maya to accurately replicate the camera movement within Unreal Engine. This allowed me to render all three shots with consistent cinematic motion and seamless integration between animation and environment.

 

 

Final Shot 01

 

Shot 02

This is the main shot of my project, and it involved a complex VFX pipeline. I created a pyro beam simulation in Houdini and developed particle effects for the energy ball to enhance its impact. To add more depth and intensity to the beam, I also created a particle-based beam that seamlessly blended with the pyro simulation, resulting in a much stronger and more dynamic visual effect. The addition of these particles significantly elevated the final look. I then brought all the elements into Nuke, where I composited and fine-tuned them to achieve a cohesive and visually striking result.

Beam Simulation

 

Energy Ball

 

Environment

 

Shot 03

This shot was created to complete the sequence with a dramatic finale. I animated the Frieza model in Maya and re-rendered the beam from a front-facing angle to make it appear as if it directly impacts Frieza, enhancing the sense of impact and storytelling. I began with the character animation, then used the same camera setup in Unreal Engine to capture the matching environment frame, ensuring visual consistency between the elements. With all components in place, I brought everything into Nuke for compositing, where I seamlessly integrated the animation, environment, and effects to deliver a powerful and cinematic conclusion to the sequence.

 

 

Compositing in Nuke

To finalize the sequence and create a visually impactful result, I brought all the elements into Nuke for compositing. Starting with Shot 01, I color-graded the character to ensure it blended naturally with the background. To draw the viewer’s focus toward the center of each frame, I added a vignette effect across all the shots. This not only helped emphasize the main action but also balanced the lighting by darkening areas that were initially too bright.

For Shot 02, I incorporated stock video elements such as embers, dust, and blowing smoke to enhance the atmosphere and add depth to the scene. To further increase realism, I used a Noise node in Nuke to create subtle heat distortion effects and applied film grain across the shots to give a cohesive, cinematic look.

Additionally, I used camera shake selectively to emphasize key moments. In Shot 02, the camera shake enhances the force of the beam as it fires, adding a sense of impact and urgency. Similarly, when the beam hits the character and passes through the camera, the shake reinforces the dramatic intensity of the moment. These finishing touches helped bring the entire sequence to life and tied all the visual elements together seamlessly.

Shot 01

Shot 02

 

Shot 03

 

Major Project Final Draft with Music

As part of our major project, we collaborated with music students to produce an original soundtrack. I had the pleasure of working with Sophie Crowe, a second-year Music Technology BA student, who created an outstanding track that significantly enhanced the overall quality and impact of my project.

First Draft

Based on the references, the first draft provided a strong foundation and a clear direction for how the soundtrack should feel and evolve.

 

Second Draft

The second draft convinced me, as it was nearly complete and featured my own recorded phrases, which helped preserve the originality of the project. The only remaining task was to fine-tune the timing, which we planned to finalize once the main parts of the project were completed.

 

 

Final Major Project

Here is the final version of my major project, complete with the finished soundtrack and visuals. This project has been an incredibly rewarding experience, bringing to life a vision I had as a child and turning it into reality. Throughout the process, I have applied everything I have learned during this course, pushing my creative and technical boundaries further than ever before.

While the course equipped me with essential skills, it also challenged me to go beyond the basics, especially by taking on the ambitious task of creating an entire live-action sequence inspired from anime. It taught me not just advanced techniques, but also the importance of storytelling, consistency, and perseverance. This project stands as a true reflection of my growth and passion as a VFX Generalist.

Alongside the final piece, the breakdown provides an in-depth overview of how I approached and executed each aspect of the project.

Major Project With Breakdown