Rendering with SketchUp + Animator
Posted: Tue May 31, 2022 12:19 pm
I wanted to share a presentation video for a recent project, which uses the incredible Animator plugin by Fredo6. The video is not a work in progress, but I am still trying to refine the methods used to produce it, for which I hope I might receive some feedback here.
The functionality of the SU model is for it to be universal, in that the same base model can be styled for all drawings, visuals and video. Twilight is not used for photo realism (at this stage at least), but instead to enhance the SU standard output; adding lighting, reflections and ambient occlusion.
The video was animated in ~30 sequences split across ~25 models; rendered at 720HD @30fps, and each frame took 1-2mins on average, with batches varying between 2-15 hours depending on length and content. This was fast enough that I could re-shoot sequences as the video evolved, and the whole thing can always be remastered later to increase the resolution or improve render setting.
The biggest issue I had to overcome was regarding consistency: the need for render settings that cover both internal and external scenes. This could have been avoided with separate render settings and then transitioned in post-production, but that would be at the expense of overall efficiency. My current render settings are based on the "experimental" Ambient Occlusion, which I understand is not actually supported, but came over from Kerkythea. Regardless, the soft shadow combined with some Tone and Bloom effect, provides a contrasting light map to be multiplied with the SU viewport. For me it simply adds depth to the otherwise flat style of SU.
Unfortunately it's not perfect, there is some flickering in the soft shadows, which can't be avoided by reusing the light information due to the animation, but I hope it is not overly noticeable. I expect there could be ways to improve this method, and I'd welcome any tips or feedback on this matter, or the video in general.
Cheers