XPARX is a music video animation made in Maya and unreal engine 5.

Official release in January 2023

FirstLook

CHARACTER DESIGN:

The character design is mainly inspired by the xenomorph queen from the Alien franchise. I wished to create SOMETHING that IS FORCED TO LIVE iNSIDE an ‘UNNATURAL” body. The character’s motion design should reflect such DISCOMFORT. The second edition added textures and bumps on limbs. I liked how the skin seemed heavier to carry around.

RIGGING & ANIMATION:

Rigged both the first and second editions for more options during the animation process. The rigging process was quite exhausting, After a month of youtube tutorials, I had gotten comfortable with restarting the rigging process immediately when I spot an overlooked mistake. One extra twist in the joint axis could result in unresolvable animation failure later in the stage. After more than 20 times of rigging and rerigging, the skeleton was finally ready to be animated.

After hearing the lyrics of the song, I decided to add in the second edition skeleton and create a new choreography that embodies feelings of guilt and shame. More specifically, I wanted to visualize the sticky texture of guilt that leaves a lingering weight inside one’s gut.

PICKING THE TEXTURES:

The two characters are codependent, bleeding into each other’s existence and finally creating a new form of life. To achieve this visual effect, I used a material that mimics the sweet and gooey texture of syrup.

LIGHTS & ENVIRONMENT