Stray-Inspired Cozy Vinyl Record Store Created in Substance 3D & UE5

Introduction

Hi, my name is Gabriela Santana, a 24-year-old Panamanian artist who is deeply passionate about environment and prop modeling. Ever since I was a child, I loved to draw. My journey into the 3D world began while exploring 2D animation, such as Ghibli and Disney's golden age. A brief glimpse into this realm was enough to captivate me, drawing me into an even more expansive and impressive universe. I began with basic 3D modeling and texturing courses, learning at my own pace. During the pandemic, I enrolled at Think Tank Training Centre in Environment and Props for Films, a pivotal step in my journey. It was there that I gradually built my knowledge and skills, dedicating countless afternoons and evenings to practice and refinement.

Inspiration & References

Stray Cat Records is my mentorship project, and for such a special moment, I decided to combine two of my greatest passions: 3D and music, as I love collecting CDs and posters. I knew it would be a great concept to work on. I wanted to create a place that felt cozy, full of life, and somehow relatable to many people. And what could be a better setting for that than a vinyl record store?

Interestingly, the name of the record store was inspired by the game Stray (top 5 on my list!), as I was drawn to its strong color palette and vibrant neon signs. Another game that inspired me was Spider-Man 2, with its impressive quality of detail in interior modeling, not to mention the rendering and lighting.

As a mentor, I chose Jude Godin, a Senior Environment Artist, who immediately understood what I was looking for. We reviewed a lot of images of record stores (there aren't many in my country) and took some liberties when we came up with a sketch. I also used PureRef to organize and visualize the ideas before starting the project.

Blockout & Modeling

For the blockout, I used the 2D sketch and started with large basic shapes, bringing them into Unreal Engine. First, I established the largest shape of the walls and floors and then moved to the counters, shelves, and pillars. I kept everything modular to experiment with moving things around in the engine and getting the best feeling for the space at this early stage. Knowing the sizes, I exported the basic shape to Maya, made two or three basic variations before choosing the best one, and then modeled it with more detail.

I spend most time of my time on modeling, and I enjoy the detail. In my modeling workflow, I always start by placing reference images on planes within a second camera in Maya. This camera looks through the reference planes, which allows me to work without affecting my main view. That way, I don't have to worry about the object's axes moving. I also ensure that every aspect of the model is clean and aesthetic and constantly review the model from different angles and perspectives to make sure the topology looks good in all views.

Computer & Music Equipment

For the computer, I had some good references to help me figure out most of the shapes. However, only some details were viewable, so I applied common sense functionality of how this computer would be used to help fill in the rest of the model. Sometimes, you just have to make your best judgment when modeling these kinds of assets.


The drum set was modeled for a previous class, and it felt perfect to include it somewhere in my record store. My mentor suggested creating a separate section to highlight it, so I took that inspiration and made a raised "chill listening lounge" that helps create a cool, distinct area at the back of the record store. The Audio Technica headphones were another object that I enjoyed modeling. I loved adding the fine details and trying to achieve a high level of realism by focusing on the "roughness and metallic" material reads.

Retopology & Unwrapping

UV mapping is not my strong suit. I spent a lot of time between Maya and Substance 3D Painter to ensure a good texel density, and some objects (the metallic ones) didn't achieve the desired 2048x2048 resolution. Those objects (the tables) were taken to RizomUV. I tried to make the UV cuts in a way that the seams are not visible. Additionally, I ensured that the texel density was consistent across all meshes.

When unwrapping the model, I placed the UV seams in less noticeable areas for the cuts. This helps hide the seams and makes them less visible when textures are applied. By carefully planning the UV layout, I can avoid having seams in prominent or highly visible parts of the model, ensuring a cleaner and more seamless texture application.

For the texel density, I made sure that the number of texture pixels per unit was uniform across all meshes. This consistency is crucial because it ensures that textures appear with the same level of detail and scale across the entire model. If the texel density varies, some parts of the model might look more detailed or blurry compared to others, breaking the visual harmony. By maintaining consistent texel density, I achieve a more professional and polished look for the final textured model.

For this project, I decided to use Unreal Engine 5, despite not being familiar with it, because I knew of the possibilities of creating realistic, real-time rendering and quality textures. At first, it was difficult, but as I gave myself the opportunity to learn it, I realized how intuitive it was. I also used Maya for modeling and the standard PBR texturing workflow in the Adobe Substance 3D suite of tools. I used Substance 3D Designer specifically for large tileable textures like the floor and walls, Substance 3D Painter for all the hero props, and ZBrush to add height detail to some models.

Texturing

Materials and textures are aspects I always keep in mind. I like to observe how they behave under different lighting conditions. It was also important to have an HDRI with neutral lighting, keeping in mind that it should be as similar as possible to the actual location, as this helps me to recreate realistic surfaces that add depth and authenticity to my projects. Although the parameters could be adjusted within UE5, I focused on verifying the Virtual Texture Streaming, Format, and Dimensions for every object in the scene, all at 2048x2048 resolution.

I used an optimized technique to create the vinyl records to save memory on my machine during the project. Instead of modeling each vinyl individually, I started with a simple cube. Then, through texturing, I applied an image that contained the patterns and lines of multiple stacked vinyl records. This technique allowed for the visual illusion of multiple vinyl records within the scene without the complexity of modeling each one separately.

The Neon Sign

Spending time in Unreal's material editor isn't as daunting as it seems. I find that as long as you keep an organized structure and take your time, it can almost feel like a game! The glow on the neon sign was easy – just using the emissive value in a basic material to boost its brightness until it bloomed the way I wanted. The flickering in the sign was a matter of playing with some material nodes: Time, the value of the Constant, and the period of the Sine. Scalar Parameter is used for the intensity of the emissive color. These are all chained into the emissive input in the material, and then it's just about finding a visual balance and tuning the values. And that's it!

For other more complex surfaces, like the aged cement floors, a trick from my mentor was to use vertex blending to break up the roughness of the surface. This method allows you to blend textures smoothly at the edges, like mixing two colors, so that transitions between different materials look more natural and realistic. The Lerp node is crucial for blending. Connect the base texture to the first input pin (A) and the blend texture to the second input pin (B). Connect Vertex Color (Red) to Alpha. In Vertex Blending, you can do more, for instance, add multiple blending layers or use other types of nodes for more complex effects and details, but I wanted to keep the basic scheme.

I always used two textures in my materials, changing the color in Tint. The great thing about Unreal's material nodes is that you can also play with Bump and Roughness to further tune each asset's material reads in the engine, giving it that touch of difference and making it look more realistic.

Final Scene Setup & Composition

I placed all the objects and details strategically to guide the viewer's gaze and keep it balanced, using the rule of thirds and other design tricks. The lighting was prepared to highlight important points and create the desired atmosphere simultaneously. I used primary lights for the modeled objects and secondary fill lights to add depth and form. The emissive lights on the neon sign added more realism to the composition.

The good thing about the materials is that you can change the Hue and other attributes to your liking to improve the shot and make it look good on camera. I tried to touch up as little as possible to give it a natural look because the lights and atmosphere have strong colors. Playing with the attributes was more than enough not to do many touch-ups once rendered.

Cinematics

For the camera movements, I used crossfades and pans to direct attention and maintain visual interest. It was not easy to keep the fluidity between various panoramas from multiple cameras. I adjusted the focus and depth of field to highlight specific elements and give a sense of depth. Also, I planned the transitions between shots to ensure a smooth narrative. The final edit included cuts and smooth transitions to keep everything visually coherent.

Once everything was set up, I realized that the Unreal Engine camera works like a photographic camera, so I embraced the possibility of capturing every detail like a DSLR 16:9 lens. The Crop Settings were set to 2:39. I managed the cameras manually for tracking like a dolly. The Focus Method was set to Do Not Override to maintain the colors and avoid too much retouching, as it's better to handle that in color grading later on.

Lighting Setup

The lighting was fun. Since I had modeled a light rack (something I textured with an emissive), it allowed me to play with the spotlights to give that sense of focus and direction, like in a real record store. This helped highlight the texturing of the shelves. There weren't any tricks. In Build mode, to better calculate the lighting, I set it to Build All Levels. Adding other lights with soft, warm light was another plus to my scene.

In the Project Settings, under Rendering, I set the Illumination method to use Lumens. Lumens are great because they give a more accurate and realistic representation of light intensity. This applies to all lights and emissive materials casting light. Basically, it makes the lighting in the scene behave more like real-world lighting, making it easier to achieve natural and visually appealing results. 

Conclusion

The record store took me precisely seven months to complete. There were several changes during the process, and I feel that the workflow wasn't very linear, as it was more of a trial-and-error process. As a beginner in UE5, this project was a huge learning process, but my biggest lesson was that good UVs make a difference, especially for metallic materials, which includes going back and forth repeatedly and then wondering what was happening. Since it was a large project requiring many objects within the scene, I ended up learning by repetition, particularly in creating materials in the blueprint. Another lesson was not to focus solely on the creative side but also on the technical aspects. For constant crash reporting, having a good graphics card is crucial, as I had to replace mine (rendering with the cameras requires a lot of memory.)

I advise beginners to invest time in thorough pre-production for every project. Plan out each step in detail before diving in. This will save you time figuring out how to use software later on. Estimate the time needed to complete the project and focus on your strengths. It may sound cliché, but truly enjoy the process – it's a unique experience that won't repeat itself. The result will come, but the journey is one-of-a-kind. Remember, discipline combined with passion will take you further than talent alone. Never doubt your abilities, and always make time to learn something new. If you're interested and willing to learn, there are plenty of resources and a large community to support you.

One of my personal secrets is to document everything. I write down my process, noting what goes well and what doesn't. While recording mistakes might seem negative, it's actually a positive step forward. It helps you avoid repeating the same errors, saves time and allows you to move forward confidently. And when you look back, you see how far you've come.

I recommend the documentation pages, as well as art communities and platforms like ArtStation, where you can share your work and get feedback from others, which is helps improve. YouTube channels are cool for picking up specific techniques and understanding others' creative processes, which will relieve your doubts. Check out William Faucher's YouTube channel. It's fantastic for learning about good lighting. Even if you're new to lighting, he explains both the technical and creative sides in a simple and easy-to-follow way. And, of course, I advise watching online courses to update your skill levels, whether you are a beginner or an advanced animator, lighter, etc. Use whatever suits you best; keep on learning and creating. You got this.

Gabriela Santana, Environment & Assets Artist

Interview conducted by Gloria Levine