During college classes in 2018 with other 3D and video artists, I acknowledged how many of us students were filming VFX shots on a DSLR camera, opening them up in After Effects, and only then start thinking about how our 3D elements would fit in to the live action footage. It was the definition of “We can fix it in post” and many times, we could not fix it in post.
But I knew that it didn’t have to be that way. In addition to being a pocket computer with a camera, most phones have incredible tracking technology that go unnoticed and unappreciated. So I developed Cute Things, an AR app that leveraged AR functionality to help visualize VFX shots early and accurately.
Below are some of the test shots I created and exported out of Cute Things:
Lighting and Shadows
Before filming, users can define a lighting direction and drop in 3D objects to create quality previews.
Fence shadows were added to the ice cream cone by creating a group of thin, invisible cubes as shadow casters.
Reflections
By adding a ground plane and changing material properties, reflections can be added and dialed to better ground an object in scene.
Evan Wehmeyer 