Can you tell us about your journey into 3D character modeling and how
you discovered your passion for digital art?

I think specifically my interest in 3D sparked when I was on my second year of collage. I wanted to become an illustrator or a concept artist and I enrolled in video game development as a career. In there we not only learned about 2D but also we started leaning about coding and stuff and eventually we had to learn about 3D too. It was there when it started, I founded much more fun developing stuff in 3D and I also felt 3D had way more techniques and tools to develop than 2d art. Don`t get me wrong, I still draw and paint, but I like to think about as a complimentary discipline that helps me a lot into developing my final product, which normally is more related to 3D (characters or environments).

My passion for digital art comes from even before. As a kid I was a huge nerd and I loved videogames , comic books, fantasy movies etc. All the basic nerd pack. I think all my family and friend new even before my self that I was going to be an artist as an adult.

I remember exactly when I decided I want to work in this too. There is a game made from Ubisoft called "Sphinx and the curse mummy". I think I was 11 or near that age when I played. When you finished the game for the first time, in the main menu it would appear an extra option where normally there was the "start game, options, save game , etc" The extra option (called "extra" by the way) sent you to a "making off" video on how they developed the game. They showed the concept art, developing the environments , programming the game, etc. That is where I realized that this was an actual job, and I found fascinating to see all those artist with sketches pined to boards and screens with turn around and scripts written all over the table that immediately the though just appear and stayed for ever. "I wan´t to do this when Im older".

Your facial modeling and texturing work is incredibly detailed and
expressive. What's your process when working on a realistic human
character?

I really like to trace back to techniques used in portrait painting. They work really well when applied on 3D modeling. This is when Im working from scratch that is. I dedicated quite some time to also develop some bases for my self ( human base heads, hands, etc) that I used and manipulate any time I want to create a new character. This is because the starting from scratch becomes a bit boring for me at first. Blocking and proportions feel very automatic and I want to skip that part as soon as possible to jump into what I find more fun, details and personality. There is mostly a pipeline of looking for reference and letting your imagination loose.

Which software and tools are essential in your pipeline? Have any of
them become your personal favorite?

My mantra is always the same. I believe there is a " indispensable pack" for any 3D generalist like me. This must include, the generic 3D development program (im including here the rendering software too), the texture development software and the compositing software. That is the pack that I fill its necessary to be a successful generalist. Of course this is just my opinion.

For me, my 3D development software to start is Blender. I had the chance to work with Maya, 3DS Max and Blender and In the end If I can only keep one this will be it. For me it feels the most versatile and the most artist friendly and honestly, its just the most fun to use.

For texturing I kind feel a bit traditional. I have substance painter as a backup plan but normal I try to do all my shading in graph editors such as the material editor but still, If I had to choose an external one, maybe susbtance painter feels like the best option.

Lastly is compositing. For me I use mainly After Effects although Im trying to force my self to switch to Davinci Resolve. I have the most experience with AE for the longest time and sometimes is just a matter of speed and familiarity.

Now this with be the "Tri-force" of my pipeline tools, but still of course I have many other things I like to use in my work. I want to make a special mention to Krita, lately for stylized work specially it has become a software that really helps to develop visuals and textures in a different ways.

Last but not least right now Im also learning Houdini and, oh boy, am I going to include this software in my future projects for sure. I mean its just undeniable that this tool is just to powerful and it really can offer a solution for many many obstacles to can fin in developing any 3D related project.

How do you approach the balance between artistic interpretation and
anatomical accuracy in character modeling?

I must confess I sometimes feel im not the most "creative person" in the world. I feel a lot more safety in trying to replicate the real world than trying to create things for scratch. For me, when bases are solid then everything new will fit by it self. This said I rely a lot in reference trying to really understand the context of every small detail available. Once this is settled I then feel comfortable separating my self form "what will always work" and give myself a chance to experiment and get creative.

To give a more visual example of this. Before creating a stylized character with deformed proportions I always try to create something anatomically correct and functional. When Im sure that everything I've done makes sense (hands are not to big, nose is correct in the face...etc) I then start working around deforming stuff until something really may feel of. If that is the case I can always go back and look it from another angle. This is my way of working comfortably, always relay on bases to assure success in creativity.

What's your biggest challenge when working on look development for
characters, and how do you usually overcome it?

I really have a hard time knowing when to stop in giving my characters "defining detail" Sometime you try to give your character a really differentiating look and it end up feeling like a cluttered person with too much stuff going around its self. Unreadable. Normally to avoid this is always looking out for reference. If my character is inspired on something else (normally its always the case) y really deconstruct the reference and set my self unbreakable rules in the development.

If my reference only has 2 defining details that really stand out from the character then mine will also have 2. No more.

Are there specific references or artistic sources that influence your
visual style or guide your creative decisions?

Its hard to say specific because you always find new stuff that inspires you and you feel like "wow this style is my new favorite thing from now on and its going to define my whole style "until the next big inspiration piece appears and so on.

If I had to stick to something with something very generic is that im always consuming animation and video games to start with. Is a medium that I really like to consume and helps me a lot on always trying to have new ideas and ambition to work on new stuff. Its kind not letting my younger self passion die. When I was very young I really wanted to work in this because I loved the stories I will read, watch and play. This feeling hasn't change at all even 20 years later.

For more specific reference stuff I really like to be apart of artist communities and forums. Of course places like pinterest, artstation ect is going to be flooded of work and media that can give you ideas to work with, but sometimes people can share stuff with you that you would never have thought about ant that can spark things much more incredible and unexpected. Im part of many forums and discord groups where people share their art, ideas etc and get into discussion a lot of time. That is where many time I find the motivation to keep on going to in this professional path.

Can you share a project you're particularly proud of and explain what
made it special for you?

Yes I have a few I really love more over all of the other stuff I worked in my life.

One project Im really proud of to this day is this one.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AfQXgvuj_zk

Honestly I think its because its one of the projects that become more visible and kind of trending when I published it and really helped me be noticed as an artist. When I was doing it for me it didn't feel much at the time. Its something that I've done a hundred time in my line of work and I just wanted to give it my own personal style as a little fun side project. It turned out people love it much more than I though and that made me really proud

Its not my best work, its not something that I want to make again but for me it still covers a core thing inside my line of work that I never want to loose. This short movie I made about the three main Disney princess getting drunk in a bar bitching about their husbands was done for my final project in my animation degree. The thing is even though the audio is not the best, I recorded the voices of my 3 best friends for this video and it was the most fun I had in my life making the project. For mi this was the core of it, the fun I had. It wasn't to get the best grade, I wasn't being a perfectionist. I wasn't exploiting my self to create something that I wanted the world to like. I was having a lot of fun making a small animation with my friend, nothing else and to me this is something that I hold very dear to me. Never stop having fun working in this. To this day we still watch the short from time to time and laugh about it.

How do you keep your skills sharp and stay updated in a fast-evolving
industry like 3D art and VFX?

In my case I feel its easy.

I really liked what the artist Will Anderson said on his BlendCon conference of 2024. He said something like "im not great at this, im just enthusiastic about it" and that really resonated with me.

I really like all the world surrounding 3d art and development. It really takes a bit part of my interests, so Im normally reading a lot and informing my self about a lot if it all the time. I normally follow different YouTube channels where they talk about different news regarding 3D software (not only tutorials and so). Tools that may be in development or projects that really stand out in this line of work. For me, keeping up to date is easy just because I like to keep up to date. In terms of skills is the same thing. I look around other fellow artist and what they can do and if something they created or discovered catches my eye I normally want to replicate it too which means many times having to sit down to study some new technique or tool or way or tackling you own way of working.

Probably if I wasn't that interested I would now if I would be as up to speed with everything that is going on.

What advice would you give to aspiring artists who want to specialize in
character modeling and texturing?

Well of course I will also repeat kind of the stuff you always hear when you are in this business.

Using reference is key, practice makes perfect, try to keep up to date with the tools and what studios are up to be able to related and become a valuable asset to work with. This are quite common.

In my case I will like to give a more poetic advise, because sometimes(specially this days) the business is ruthless and can make anyone feel very pessimistic to become part of this.

My advice will be to always take care about the core concept that made you want to work in this in the first place, to not let that spark of passion die, the same one you once had that pushed you to sit down for hours and learn 3d and art, and composition and rigging and all that stuff.

Because learning this is hard and this industry is ruthless sometimes, but we should not let it kill our desire to create which is the reason we got into this (I want to believe that ).

I want to say if you are the kind of person that only got into this for the money, its not really the best option. Not because we are poor or anything, its because like business wise its hard to work in this. Sorry but it true, but still many people want to do it, so believe its not only for that fact that maybe you will become a successful artist with millions or prestige, I think there are easier jobs for that.

So don't give up, think about why you got into this, and if you are having a hard time finding a job, that should not stop you from creating anyway. Build you skills because you want to, not because you have to, because if not then that when you have to think about that maybe this wast for you.

What are your current or upcoming goals as a 3D artist, and is there a
dream project you hope to work on in the future?

For me, my main goal is that im always chasing projects that I feel I would be very proud if I managed to be a part of. I have some personal projects that im trying to develop to keep doing things I like, im also a part of a project with a good friend of mine that is a musician where he contact me to create video lyrics for him to present his new album and that is turning out to be pretty fun.

Right now Im at an impasse as an artist, because I am working on a full time job as an art lead for a phone game company but deep inside Im sorry to say I kind of hate it ( I know some people may think of my self as selfish because Im at least working in the business). The truth is im working on design interfaces for casino games and Its something I don't have the slightest interest about, so im trying really hard to jump back into the animation and cinema industry which is really the job that I really really wish to have. That why Im trying to work on so many personal or side projects as possible, so I don't lose myself into something im not really interested in and keep doing what I like, creating characters, modeling environments and telling stories.