Artist Shows How to Build a Dystopian Sci-Fi City With UE5 & Nuke

Gal Ravid-Tal, an experienced 3D/Unreal Generalist and Compositor at Platige Image, takes us behind the scenes of his latest project — a mesmerizing Sci-Fi City realized in Unreal Engine 5 and Nuke. He provides a comprehensive making of and breakdown of the process, sharing invaluable insights into each step, from the creation of height textures to the final layout and lighting.

Building a city from ground zero starts with the creation of height textures. For this, Ravid-Tal utilized Jsplacement, a free, procedural displacement map generator tool that can generate detailed height maps. This laid the foundation for the city's diverse landscape, setting the stage for the metropolis that would rise from it.

Next, he proceeded with displaced planes using the height textures. This technique involves mapping or 'displacing' the texture onto a surface to create a realistic 3D appearance. The result was a more in-depth and detailed landscape, which added authenticity and complexity to the city's terrain.

The essential phase of lighting and look development tests followed, where Ravid-Tal experimented with multiple lighting scenarios. In look development or lookdev, he fine-tuned the city's appearance in various lighting and environmental conditions, ensuring it looked beautiful and believable at all times.

The city's infrastructure was then developed using a combination of Kitbash and CGTrader models. All these models were textured using a procedural master layer material, implying the textures were generated using mathematical algorithms, resulting in a highly detailed and realistic cityscape.

With the models and textures in place, the focus then shifted to Unreal Engine 5 for the final layout and lighting. Known for its powerful rendering and real-time 3D creation features, Unreal Engine 5 allowed for an impressive assembly of the city, complete with dynamic lighting that highlighted the intricate details of the sci-fi city.

Finally, Ravid-Tal used Nuke for post-production. His Nuke script helped in refining the visuals and polishing the final output to meet the high standards of professional, realistic 3D rendering.

Creating a Sci-Fi city in Unreal Engine 5 and Nuke is no small feat, but Ravid-Tal's detailed making-of and breakdown provide a clear roadmap for anyone looking to venture into similar projects. 

You can follow up Gal Ravid-Tal on ArtStation to check out more of his art. Don't forget to join our 80 Level Talent platform and our Telegram channel, follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn, where we share breakdowns, the latest news, awesome artworks, and more.