Interview with Yoomin Bae

Hello, my name is Bae Yumin, and I recently completed my studies at SF Film School after submitting my personal portfolio.

A well-made film not only provides a visually enjoyable experience but also delivers fun and emotion to its audience. I believe that visual effects play an important role in bringing the worlds of these films to life. I was fascinated by the idea of creating worlds that do not exist in reality but that people can imagine and wish to see on screen. This led me to become interested in Computer Graphics, with the goal of contributing to the creation of visual effects that can move and inspire audiences.

Although I am still a beginner with no professional experience, one thing I have learned through my own experience is that when a task becomes difficult, it is more important to finish it rather than skip it and move on to something else. Even if you are unsure what the final result will look like, completing the work to the end is valuable. Even when the result is not completely satisfying, the process itself becomes an important learning experience.

I am currently at the beginning of my career as an entry-level artist. Because of this, I do not want to simply remain focused on the vague goal of creating impressive films or advertisements. Over the next three to five years, I would like to develop myself as an animator using Maya, focusing on creating realistic movements for objects and characters. I want to study animation in depth while also learning how to use various plugins and effects. To achieve this, I believe it is important to carefully observe real-life movement, analyze a wide range of motion references, and continuously learn different tools, plugins, and techniques.

If I have the opportunity in the future, I would also like to gain experience in other departments. By experiencing different areas of production firsthand, I hope to develop a better understanding of the overall production process. Ultimately, my goal is to become a planner who can establish the direction of a project and lead it from beginning to end. To achieve this goal, I believe continuous self-management and consistent learning are essential.

While creating my portfolio, I also helped my classmates with their shoots. Even though it was a little embarrassing, I sometimes acted in front of the camera myself to help them with their projects. I enjoyed traveling to different locations to film and helping each other throughout the production process. It was a different kind of fun from working alone, and it allowed me to experience the value of collaborating with others.

The concept of my portfolio is “A Robot Living Alongside People.” The overall production process was: storyboard development → reference gathering → modeling → filming → rigging → animation → tracking → texturing → lighting and rendering → compositing → editing.

The concept and storyboard were inspired by my previous experience working as a Taekwondo instructor. I remembered thinking about questions such as, “What kind of video could attract more students?” and “How could I make it easier for students to learn Taekwondo?” These experiences became the starting point for developing the concept and story of my project.

During the reference-gathering stage, I wanted to create a robot character that felt similar to a human while also having a sleek and agile appearance. I searched for a variety of videos and visual references to establish the overall look and environment of the scenes.

For modeling, I used Maya to effectively express the mechanical characteristics of the robot. During the rigging stage, I built a skeletal structure similar to a human skeleton in order to create movements that felt natural and human-like. Through test rigging, I identified and corrected unnatural interactions between the model and its movement, while also setting up the necessary controllers.

During the animation stage, I manually set the keyframes to bring the character to life and complete its movements.

For tracking, I used SynthEyes to create a background that would naturally match the live-action footage. I tracked the camera based on the filmed footage and connected the real-world shooting environment with the 3D space.

For UV mapping, I used Headus UVLayout to create the UVs and Photoshop to add colors and image details to the textures. I also adjusted the Blinn material settings to give the robot a metallic appearance.

For lighting and rendering, my goal was to recreate lighting that closely matched the live-action footage. I used Maya’s Direct Light to establish the key lighting and create the necessary light and shadows, while using Point Lights to compensate for areas that needed additional illumination. I then generated various render passes required for compositing.

Compositing was done in Nuke. I added effects such as motion blur and relighting to make the 3D elements blend naturally with the live-action footage. Finally, I used After Effects to edit the video and create a breakdown showcasing the different stages of the production, completing the project.

While working on the project, I generally spent at least five hours a day working in the lab. The time I spent working at home was essentially extra, and when the workload became heavy, there were times when I stayed up all night to finish my work. On the other hand, there were also days when I did not feel like working and spent a long time doing nothing, constantly thinking, “I should be working.” Everyone has a different way of working, but I believe that, ultimately, the amount of time and effort you invest is reflected in the results.

There are three things I would like to tell the students who come after me.

First, I believe that the foundation of any project is research and reference gathering. I do not think something completely new suddenly appears out of nowhere. New results are created by studying what already exists, adding your own ideas, and transforming those references into something new. I recommend collecting enough high-quality references for your project, establishing a clear direction based on them, and then beginning the actual production.

Second, I believe that with passion and consistency, there is very little you cannot accomplish. Before coming to SF Film School, I worked as a Taekwondo instructor with no connection to VFX whatsoever. Yet I was eventually able to complete my own project and graduate from the school. I do not think many people are good at something from the very beginning. If you continue learning and keep working consistently, you will eventually be able to create something of your own.

Third, if there is something you are curious about, ask as many questions as you can. Above all, take good care of yourself and your health. When working on a project over a long period of time, managing your own condition is just as important as learning technical skills.

The reason I initially chose SF Film School was because, while looking through countless student portfolios, I felt that the quality of the students’ work stood out the most. After attending the school myself, I found that one of its greatest strengths was the opportunity to experience and personally work on the various stages required for 3D video production, at least once.

When looking through portfolios from other educational institutions, I sometimes found projects that focused only on specific aspects required for a particular field rather than allowing students to experience the entire production process. Of course, having in-depth knowledge of one specific area is important. However, I came to believe that becoming familiar with multiple areas and understanding the overall production workflow can help me become a better planner in the future.

Since I had the opportunity to experience various types of work at SF Film School, I want to continue expanding my understanding of different departments rather than limiting myself to a single field. Step by step, I hope to broaden my skills and knowledge and move closer to the goals I want to achieve.