ANATOMY & CHARACTER SCULPTURE: EXERCISES & PROJECTS
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23/04/2026 - 03/08/2026 (Week 1 - Week 15)
Irdhina binti Mazli
Sham (0366894)
Anatomy & Character Sculpture - Bachelor of Design
in Creative Media - Taylors University
Exercises and Projects
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
- Instructions
- Exercises: Fundamentals of Anatomy and Sculpting
- Projects
- Project 1: Stylised Character Blockout
- Project 2: Character Detailing and Texturing
- Final Project: Polishing and Dynamic Posture with Props
- Feedback
- Reflection
INSTRUCTIONS
EXERCISES
PROJECTS
PROJECT 1: STYLISED CHARACTER BLOCKOUT
For Project 1, we were required to create a base model for our
character design. To start off, I looked for references for how I want
my character to look like, at least for the face and body. Since I
wanted to go towards body horror, I had to look up similar models and
artworks that I think would fit as inspiration.
A particular character inspiration would be the Clickers from The Last
of Us and the Demogorgons from Stranger Things. Specifically their
faces which either have the ability or look like it can be
peeled/cracked open.
Following Mr Kannan's feedback of making a base body first before
going into the details, I finally manage to make a rough sketch of
my character as well as a rough blockout that includes the arm and
leg prosthetic.
For the prosthetics, I asked Mr Kannan how I can make them
accurate to the 2D sketch since both involved spirals. He said I
can try experimenting with the different Gizmo3D modes,
particularly Twist and then moving different parts using the
Move brush.
Since I had to come out with a way for the teeth along the mouth to make sense, I had to alter the skeleton of my character. In the sketch, I simplified it so it can be better understood.
Final Outcome:
Note: I forgot I actually gave him a name from the start so
eventually, I started calling him Prairie Moore (as a reference to him
and another character, Peregrine Moore, from my character design
module, being twins), instead of Wren Blackwood...
Maybe Wren can be his middle name instead :')
PROJECT 2: CHARACTER DETAILING AND TEXTURING
For Project 2, we moved on to giving details and textures to our
base model.
At first, I tried making the hair as a big helmet but because
Prairie's hair is long, that made it difficult to do. Instead, Mr
Kannan suggest I create the hair in chunks instead of one whole
object, which would be more suited for shorter hair and even then,
it would need to have specific styles for it to work.
Afterwards, I started sculpting the hair by smaller chunks following
the following tutorial, which was really helpful:
I actually put off doing the hair until near the end.... instead I focused more on the main attraction, which is the horror body aspect.
Afterwards, I made a base for the clothes. I also ended up redoing
the hair several times which the final can be seen in the final
outcome.
Final Outcome:
PROJECT 3: POLISHING AND DYNAMIC POSE WITH PROP
Following where we left off in Project 2, I worked further on
polishing my model. In this case, it would be fixing the anatomy and
giving details to the clothes.
Once I got the sculpt down, I moved on to doing the colours but
truth be told, it was more of a back and forth process because I
keep on seeing mistakes in the sculpt even when there seems to be
nothing wrong based on my friends who saw me do the character. I
also referred to a video tutorial on how to do the torn clothing
because the way I was doing before this was.... not
efficient.
The clothes were one of the aspects I had most trouble with because the mesh kept tearing to the point where the whole pants tore to a million tiny pieces ??? Thank goodness for Zbrush's undo history. It made me very frustrated.
I also redo the prosthetic arm as it looked too flimsy and it would seem off in certain angles.
One of the feedbacks I got from Mr Kannan was also to include gums and overlapping skin/lips to the chest-mouth and add blood/saliva strings to enhance the look. I also changed the material of Prairie's insides to make them look wet and shiny.
Once everything was set, I moved on to polygrouping the different
parts following muscle movements.
Afterwards, I started zremeshing to get the low poly for
projection. With the amount of subtools I had, the process was
simple but tedious so it took a while. I then proceeded to make the props, which were a rabbit plush and a
giant sack. The rabbit plush specifically was made in a different
file since it contained multiple subtools. These two were also
zremeshed into low poly.
Once everything was set, it was time for posing! Unfortunately, I missed the part where it was recommended to use zspheres alongside the Transpose Master so I ended up using the Transpose Master and moving the parts by masking and rotating. Any mistakes after was fixed using Move, Clay Buildup, Smooth and HPolish tool. This part was also a bit confusing because I accidentally clicked the Transpose Master button twice and it ended up disconnecting the main model with the generated mesh I was using to pose. Thankfully, I was able to figure out the solution soon after but it was worrying at the start.
Since time was running out, I wasn't able to do a very good pose as I had planned at the start. Once done, I compiled the pose with the props. Afterwards, I created the poster but later refined it as asked by Mr Kannan.
Below is the initial poster:
Final Outcome:
FEEDBACK
Week 2: Don't sculpt straight on high poly.
Week 4: For face planes, look for references.
Week 5: For the silhouette, start with a base first then do details.
If not, you'll end up focusing and solving problems on only one part.
Week 6: The chest box shape is too deep. Mr Kannan also recommend I
use the twist mode and explore how to make the prosthetics in 3D.
Week 8: Make the hand bigger in the drawing and have some supporting
structure on the prosthetic. The leg can also have a wider stance. Can go
with either one but the second option will be more challenging. Close the
mouth/chest first for blockout, then open them for detailing. Also, make it
hunched.
Week 9: The rib-teeth explanation can be used, I can also use the
ribs themselves as teeth. The rib area is too deep and fix the crotch area
because the centre was too low.
Week 11: Since the torso is only split halfway, separate them
into three parts then move the top two parts to open up the chest cavity.
Also, fix the arms and make them further away from the torso.
Week 12: Give folds to the pants, particularly where it is folding such as the crotch and knee area. Additionally, just take or rip the shirt off if it's covering the chest-mouth too much.
Week 13: Give more details to the face so it shows more and fix the anatomy on the muscles. When sculpting, make sure you see from multiple angles because if not, it will look odd. I also showed the base of the giant sack and he said can use but add more details. The arm prosthetic looks off because it has very loose form but I told him I'm planning to remake it.
Week 14: Reference Predator and he suggested I add gums to the chest-mouth to make it look more interesting. The polygroups look okay, just that I can extend the eye part a bit. He also suggested I add a bit of specularity to the skin so the material change on the insides doesn't look too drastic.
REFLECTION
Experience: This module was fun! It could be challenging at times but that was partly my fault for choosing a difficult concept, which Mr Kannan already warned me of. But I learned a lot from this project including how Zbrush's other features work such as recording the turntable and how to actually export in high resolution. I do still think their exporting process is a hassle, though, with how you need to use the mask and everything. It was also a nice break from plant-related themes because I noticed that a lot of the modules I end up doing something related to plants. So doing body horror instead was a fun alternative considering it was something I really wanted to explore on!
Observation: I keep finding myself taking the more complicated option, which is fun and I like it but at the same time because it is complicated, I end up taking more time to either nitpick every little detail while unintentionally ignoring the bigger picture or I end up looking for how to solve one issue or another, which can be time consuming. It was a nice learning experience though, hopefully I can do another project with body horror but with lesser issues in the future.
Findings: I find that having proper references really helps in developing the character more solidly. Not only that but also actual video tutorials that show the how and why really helped with better understanding as compared to just blindly following a tutorial with no explanation.
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