Old Lady Character for "Beyond the Door" Short Film

This is the breakdown of the Old Lady character that I made in the "Beyond the Door" short film that I was a part of. Due to this film being part of a school assessment, everything was made from scratch, inclusive of the rigging.

We did the usual workflow of: ZBrush Sculpt > Maya Quad draw Retopo for Base Mesh > Maya Manual Rigging > Texture in Substance Painter

The character is based on our research of old Chinese women that we commonly see in Singapore. It was a challenge finding a balance to retain defining characteristics without turning it into a full on caricature that might seem offensive.

We focused on features such as prominent cheekbones, deep laugh lines, neat hair (short or in a bun) and the end of the eyes which drooped down giving a weary look. On top of that, for the clothing, we saw a heavy focus on small/clustered floral prints with wide-necked collars, and a boxy silhouette with short sleeves.