You're reading from Virtual Filmmaking with Unreal Engine 5

Product type Book

Published in Feb 2024

Publisher Packt

ISBN-13 9781801813808

Pages 480 pages

Edition 1st Edition

Languages

Concepts

Animation

Author (1):

Hussin Khan

Table of Contents (23) Chapters

Preface

1. Part 1:Pre-Production: Project Development and Gathering Resources

2. Chapter 1: Getting Started with Unreal Engine

3. Chapter 2: Understanding the Principles of Photography, Film Cameras, and Lenses

4. Chapter 3: Understanding the Art of Storytelling and Creating Your Storyboard

5. Part 2: Production: Creating the Environment

6. Chapter 4: Importing 3D Objects and Creating Levels

7. Chapter 5: Creating Environments with Quixel Megascans

8. Chapter 6: Creating and Applying Materials to 3D Meshes

9. Part 3: Production: Adding and Animating Characters

10. Chapter 7: Creating Actors with Unreal Engine MetaHumans

11. Chapter 8: Retargeting the MetaHumans for Unreal Engine 5

12. Chapter 9: Adding Animations and Facial Expressions to Your MetaHuman Characters

13. Part 4: Production: Shooting the Scene

14. Chapter 10: Adding and Animating Virtual Cameras Using the Level Sequencer

15. Chapter 11: Enhancing Set Dressing, Retiming Shots, and Adding Niagara Particles

16. Chapter 12: Setting the Mood with Lighting and Adding Post-Processing Effects

17. Part 5: Post-Production: Adding Post-Processing Effects and Music

18. Chapter 13: Exploring Color Management, Additional Camera Settings, and Rendering Your Shots

19. Chapter 14: Adding Sound and Finalizing Your Virtual Film

20. Index

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21. Other Books You May Enjoy

Appendix: Creating Material IDs Using Blender

Understanding compositions

As I mentioned in Chapter 2, the camera is a powerful storytelling tool, so when used creatively, you can convey the exact message of the narrative.

For example, in this film, I wanted to convey a feeling of everything being mysterious – what’s happening? Who are these two characters in the cryogenics chambers? Where did they come from? It is not until the end that the answers will be revealed, and even after that, I still want the audience to be asking questions – are these characters the original Adam and Eve? Or are the names just a coincidence?

This leads us nicely to composition.

In a nutshell, composition is the arrangement and placement of visual elements within the frame of the image being captured by the camera. It is a crucial aspect of visual storytelling as it helps create the desired mood, convey emotions, and direct the viewer’s attention to specific elements of the scene. Every shot is carefully planned...