[Overview]

 The Last Circus was created as a representation of what I imagined a liminal space to be:  a transition between two different phases, such as life and death. This short integrates the ideas of what "was" and what "could be". Regardless of the fact that the circus was forgotten, the circus continues to perform with a life of its own. Suspended between the echoes of previous memories, the circus longs for one last performance. This environment was created for my Visual Effects 210 class, where the task was to create any immersive environment that resonates with me.

[Inspiration]

Before the project task was presented, I had just attended Universal Studios Orlando for Halloween Horror Night. As a horror fan, I was truly infatuated by the Circus performance we attended inside the park towards the end of the night. The lights, music and actor were all in theme. Their storytelling inspired me to recreate a similar experience as a 3D environment. I wanted to capture the duality of abandonment and festivity, blurring the lines of horror and nostalgia.

[Challenges & Growth]

The greatest challenge during this project was becoming comfortable with 3D Modelling in Maya Autodesk, which later on became my favorite 3D Modeling software to use. With a specific vision in mind, I knew I wanted my horror circus to simulate a liminal space. With space for narrative and interpretation from the viewer. To do so, I modelled and textured the circus assets to have an abandoned yet festive look to them.

• Modeling and Texturing: Creating circus assets that felt abandoned yet retained a festive, eerie feel.

• Visual Storytelling: Exploring storytelling through inanimate objects, allowing viewers to interpret the story of the abandoned circus.

• Atmosphere: Exploring the balance of lighting, textures, and composition to evoke a sense of a liminal space.

• Rigging: Learning how to rig hard-surface objects for then animating them in Unreal Engine.

With many hours of practice, I was able to become comfortable with the Maya to Unreal Engine workflow.

[The result]

I was able to create an immersive environment through exploration of visual storytelling. I was also able to create a 3D modelling workflow that creates efficiency for collaboration between Unreal Engine and Maya, as well as learning rigging and animation.

3D Models

The 3D models include a circus wagon, a cannon, a circus tent, a Ferris wheel, and an eerie circus sign. All these props are modelled using Maya Autodesk and textured using Substance Painter with materials created on Substance designer. The props were then migrated to Unreal Engine 5.4 with a lambert material. The set design was really enjoyable and experimenting with lighting in unreal engine along with the power of post process volume.

Ferris Wheel Rig

For this project, I learned the fundamentals of rigging and animation in Maya Auto desk. For the rig, I had to ensure that the gondolas were apart from the Ferris wheel structure and had good topology.

Wheel Setup

• Created a central control object for the Ferris wheel.

• Parented the wheel geometry to the control for seamless rotation.

  
  

Gondola Rigging

• Added individual controls to each gondola and parented them to the wheel.

• Applied Aim Constraints to maintain gondola orientation during rotation.

  
  

Animation & Polish

• Animated the wheel’s rotation using keyframes.

• Refined the rig for smooth motion and realistic gondola behavior.

[Key Takeaways]

• Developed skills in Maya Autodesk for 3D modeling and texturing.

• Explored the blend of horror with visual storytelling.

• Learned to balance the workflow of 3D Modelling, texturing, rigging, and animating to bring an environment to life.