Dragon Age: The Veilguard Official Reveal Trailer
Rally the Veilguard and defy the gods.
Role
Cinematic Artist
Project type
Cinematic Trailer
Date
Summer - Fall 2023
Responsibility
Animation Applying, Lighting, Set Dressing, Camera and Timeline Works, Pre-production and Tech Support
A Cinematic Trailer Project
My role as a cinematic artist is to deliver high-quality shots with my team. Within our pipeline, I serve as a generalist, taking on responsibilities across various disciplines such as lighting, animation, and more. This multifaceted position allows me to either create content or provide assistance throughout the pipeline process.
See the Process
Process and Responsibility
I was mainly responsible for four tasks on several shots, including unpolished ones that I cannot share: background character animations, lighting, camera and timeline works, and pre-production tech support.
1
Background Character Animations
Make the scenes more dynamic
Intensify the mood
4
Scout and catalogue
Pre-production Tech Support.
2
Lighting
3
The key of cinematics
Camera and Timeline Works
Background Character Animations
Make the scenes more dynamic
I was working on some of the background characters in the scene below, making the bartender in this tavern scene react to the situation and start to flee. I worked on this project mostly during my onboarding time, so these tasks were arranged to be entry-level to help me become familiar with Frostbite, its cinematic toolset, and the team's pipeline.
Lighting
Intensify the mood
I worked on the lighting of several shots and contributed to the iterations toward the final lighting. I utilized cinematic lighting techniques such as key, fill, and rim lighting to intensify the mood and convey the mysterious tone of certain shots, for example, the close-up of the hero's face.
I also worked on part of the cinematic re-lighting of this market scene, focusing on the lanterns. Since game lighting design serves different functions compared to cinematic lighting, we usually strip away the game lighting and re-light the entire scene to serve cinematic purposes.
Set Dressing, Camera and Timeline Works, Pre-production and Tech Support
Some works here are not released, so I cannot share them here. Let's briefly talk about them.
I worked on clearing and creating environments in the Frostbite Editor and was responsible for the camera work on several shots.
During the pre-production phase, I assisted in scouting potential locations and built a catalogue of game assets we might need for production.
Take-Aways
Accomplishments and Skills Acquired
I love RPGs and Bioware's Mass Effect, so the opportunity to work on the next Dragon Age is both exciting and challenging. This is my first time stepping into the pipeline of an AAA title, and the onboarding process was smooth thanks to my welcoming colleagues.
I had the opportunity to engage in a variety of tasks that introduced me to the engine and its toolset. I was able to apply my cinematic knowledge to tasks such as lighting. Additionally, I gained experience in fitting myself into a professional pipeline and effectively communicating with the team to successfully complete the assigned tasks.