Magazine SO-EN, January 2024 issue: Interview VOL.5 Creation of 3D avatar service
※This article is machine translated.
Thinking with Cocone
How to become a fashion designer working in the virtual space?
VOL.5 Creation of 3D Avatar Service
Today, attention to ” avatars ” for spending time in virtual spaces is growing much more intense. In this context, the work surrounding avatars is being hotly regarded as a profession for the new era. In this series of articles, we will learn about the work of avatar designers together with Cocone, who is famous for their Pokecolo series. In this fifth installment, we will tell you about the creative process of 3D avatar services, which are attractive because they can be enjoyed from any angle, through the stories of people on the frontlines of production!
Process Pokepia’s Chikage Miyamoto teaches how 3D avatars are created.
2D and 3D design drawings of the gacha “Angel’s Healing Singing Voice” that Ms. Miyamoto worked on. The detailed arm decorations were individually drawn. Angel wings are a popular item, but one of the most difficult to express in 3D, and the artist worked to ensure that the texture of the wings would not be lost even when rotated 360 degrees.
Pokepia’s production process that values teamwork
It takes about two and a half to three months to complete a single gacha. It all starts with a theme proposal meeting held once every two months by 2D’s product planning designers. As with other services, ideas are brought together and discussed while researching trends in the market and subcultures. Once the director decides on a theme, the actual production begins, often with a three-person team consisting of one 2D designer and one each of a fashion designer and a 3D designer in charge of backgrounds. In addition, a technical artist handles the technical aspects and a motion designer handles the animation. The product lineup is determined and design drawings are made, taking into consideration the strength of the items for sale and the rarity of the items. Basically, three views of the front, sides, and back are drawn, but in some cases, parts may be omitted. 2D drawings are not complete, so it is important for the 2D and 3D staff to communicate and work out the details. Basically, 3D production proceeds in the following order: modeling, color and texture texture, and animation, and is released after a sales promotion meeting and quality check.
Chikage Miyamoto
Joined Cocone in 2014. She is the leader of the ” Pokepia ” product planning and design team.
The most exciting part of the production process is when the 3D model is finished. Pokepia was the first 3D avatar service that I was involved in, so I had a lot of difficulties in the beginning. Pokepia has received a lot of positive feedback for its themes that allow users to become more deeply immersed in the world. In setting a theme, it is also important how to take out the youthful spirit within yourself and make your fantasies explode (laughs). And to enhance the sense of immersion, the size of the items and the way they look from different angles are points we place particular emphasis on when designing. We have been able to realize the texture of materials such as glass and lame, which are difficult to express in 3D, by exploring them as a team. I hope that we can continue to expand the range of expression and make Pokepia a place filled with customers’ “likes”.
How do 2D and 3D designers work together?
Right: 2D Designer Mai Kamba
Joined Cocone in 2014. Creative Director of ” Pokepia “.
Left: 3D Designer Chiaki Shimizu (Pseudonym)
Joined Cocone in 2022 and is the 3D Design Team and Character Modeling Leader.
Exploring the Possibilities of New and Cute Fashion Expressions in 3D
Kamba: Ms. Shimizu and I have been working together on ” Pokepia” since June 2022.
Shimizu: I joined Cocone because I like cute things, so I enjoy making everything, but I especially like making hair.
Kamba: If you model the hair according to the 2D design, it may look like a rope, but Ms. Shimizu directed me to make the hair thicker and the hair thinner, which made it look much better.
Shimizu: When modeling wavy hair, how do you curl it? I think about how to curl hair. When hair is wrapped around a hair iron, the inside of the hair becomes a little flat and the outside is rounded, right? If you don’t think about this and create a three-dimensional shape, it will look uncomfortable. A difference of a few tenths of a centimeter can make a big difference in the impression.
Kamba: Pokepia has been gradually improving its level of quality. For example, a voluminous skirt; a voluminous skirt that looks very cute in 2D may have too much curvature in 3D and the inner lining may be visible when viewed from the side, or the arms may be tucked inside. …… So for a while, we had to reduce the volume of skirts across the board, but after consulting with Ms. Shimizu and others, we gradually found a solution and were able to create cute volume skirts even in 3D.
Shimizu: I think about how to express it in 3D while keeping the impression of the cute front design drawn by the 2D designer. Since the listed company also specifies the texture of the material, when I was in charge of the same mess, I started by researching the fabric.
Kamba: That was one of the good things about attending a clothing school (Bunka Fashion College). Also, Pokepia has cute shoes! When Ms. Shimizu directs, it’s impressive how the slightest slant of the heel can really make the shoes look great.
Shimizu: When you are creating an avatar, you tend to focus on the face, but if you like fashion, you are more interested in the shoes. When modeling pumps in 3D, we actually check shoes with similar heel heights. The shoes themselves are cute, but the bulge on the back of the foot that is created when wearing pumps is also cute, so we look at that as well. I look at everything in front of me, not only shoes, from the viewpoint of “can I make it look three-dimensional?”.
Kamba: Cocone is aiming for a higher level of existing cuteness. What Ms. Shimizu creates goes beyond 2D design, and because it is a 3D avatar service, I feel that it has the potential to reach “higher levels of cuteness”.
A gacha created by the tag team of Ms. Kamba and Ms. Shimizu
Shoes that Ms. Shimizu is particular about! Whether it is a pair of high-tech sneakers reflecting a street mood or cute pumps with bows, the 3D representation is sure to tickle your fashion sense and desire for ownership.
Cocone’s 3D Services
Pokepia – Pokecolo Utopia
3D avatar dress-up service for smartphones to be distributed in March 2022. Users will be able to enjoy fashion and interior styling in a 360° digital world while retaining the cuteness of Cocone’s popular ” Pokecolo ” service!
C.A.T. Club
A new service released in September 2023 as a secret club for collecting digital art toys and enjoying exchanges among collectors. The appeal of this service is the high design quality of the digital art toys, which were created with great care by a team of creators.
Summary of this month
New cuteness is created when 2D and 3D designers respect each other!
Click here for a list of Designer jobs
