See How Previs & Layout Were Done in KPop Demon Hunters
The team used Unreal Engine to simply draw crowds.
KPop Demon Hunters changed the narrative and attitude toward the genre of music for many people, and Unreal Engine helped create this stunning experience with its tools, transforming previs, layout, and iteration.
In a new behind-the-scenes video, the artists working on the movie show how easily they could just draw crowds with a simple stroke and add VFX in the early stages of production already. The creators would change outfits and hairstyles to populate busy concert halls with ease.
“We just needed to create one body type and a bunch of hairstyles,” said Lillia Lai, Rigging Development Lead. “Then we could swap out the hairstyles and clothing in any combination we want, and pair that up with Unreal’s Foliage Mode to quickly populate a whole stadium crowd.”
Sony Pictures Imageworks
“The fight sequence in the bathhouse blew my mind, because we were really able to dial up the materials—make everything feel wet and reflective and foggy,” says Jason Baldwin, Real-Time Supervisor at Sony Pictures Imageworks.
Sony Pictures Imageworks
This was the first time Sony Pictures Imageworks used real-time volumetrics, "creating a dense, steamy bathhouse atmosphere with soft, diffuse lighting that filters through the billowing clouds of vapor."
Sony Pictures Imageworks
UE really sped up the development, according to the team: “One of our layout artists, who was new to Unreal Engine, blocked out the main action in about a week,” shared Adam Holmes, Head of Visualization.
Sony Pictures Imageworks
Sony Pictures Imageworks used Maya for animation, and combining it with Unreal Engine was extremely important for them, so they created several scripts to automate that process.
Sony Pictures Imageworks
Adopting Open USD also helped bring the results faster: “Our initial export time was six to eight hours per sequence,” says Jonghwan Hwang, Real-Time Pipeline Supervisor at Sony Pictures Imageworks. “But accessing the source code is a big deal—we were able to reduce this down to 30 minutes, and now we’re exporting sequences in five minutes.”
Sony Pictures Imageworks
"KPop Demon Hunters exemplifies how powerful, cutting-edge technologies are revolutionizing the way animation is made," Epic Games writes. "The project saw Sony Pictures Imageworks revamp its entire CG layout pipeline to modernize various areas, combining a formidable blend of real-time technology and USD frameworks and connecting its departments in ways it couldn’t before."
Sony Pictures Imageworks
You should definitely watch the footage, as seeing the characters fighting with impassive, unfinished expressions is hilarious. Almost as fun as KPop Demon Hunters' reference videos and other exciting behind-the-scenes parts.
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