As I delve into the archives of my computer, I stumbled upon a piece of artwork from my university days in 2010 that I had shared on my old website. This particular creation holds sentimental value as one of my earliest ventures into 3D art using Maya during my time at RMIT.
Back then, my grasp on modeling was in its infancy, and my understanding of Mental Ray was rudimentary at best. The rendering process was quite a challenge, with each frame taking a staggering 50 minutes due to the inclusion of intricate god rays, glows, and refractions involving crystals.
To meet the deadline for a 20-second animation and lacking batch rendering skills or techniques at RMIT, I resorted to an unconventional approach. Over the course of two days, I loaded my files onto 17 class MAC computers, distributing the rendering workload across multiple machines. This required me to stay overnight at the university, catching some sleep while the images rendered.
The effort paid off, and I received a commendable grade of 86 for Imaging and Animation. Interestingly, the piece became a reference for future learners, as my teacher used it to exemplify what could be achieved. Although it's too antiquated to feature in my current portfolio, I felt compelled to share this piece with you all.
