Tar Monster – Technical Art
This project is a Technical Art designed to showcase my abilities in creature
modeling, rigging, animation, shader creation, and VFX integration.
It features a custom-made monster I modeled and rigged from scratch, animated using root motion for
precise and natural movement.
The monster’s tar-like texture is procedurally animated through vertex displacement, giving it
a dynamic, organic surface.
Additionally, it has Niagara-driven tentacles with physics-based movement, adding an unsettling
sense of life and chaos.
Key Technical Features:
- Custom character modeling and rigging workflow.
- Root motion animations for controlled movement.
- Procedural tar shader with animated vertex displacement.
- Niagara tentacle systems with secondary motion and collision.
- Extra scene details through custom shaders and ambient VFX.
Technical Art Carousel
Full Creature Preview
Showcase of the tar monster with procedural animation and root motion in Unreal Engine.
IK animation, rig and model
Implemented inverse kinematics (IK) for realistic limb movement, along with a custom rig and model for the creature.
Tentacle VFX
Implemented dynamic tentacle VFX using Niagara for fluid, organic movement. Is made by using n particles to represent each part of the tentacle, and then using spline meshes to connect them.
Tar Pit Material
Showcase of the tar pit material vertex animation in Unreal Engine.
Candle VFX
Showcase of the candle VFX in Unreal Engine. Using a flipbook texture for the flame animation.
What I Learned:
- Advanced shader creation with vertex animation techniques.
- Integration of Niagara systems for procedural secondary motion.
- Root motion workflow for Unreal Engine animation.
- Balancing visual fidelity with real-time performance.