Tutorial: Make Hi-Res/Low-Poly VR Chat Avatars with MasterpieceVR

Hey ya'll.

I wanted to share with you my VR workflow for creating some of my recent VR Chat Avatars which are low-poly but still incredibly detailed. Let me re-iterate, this is a Virtual Reality workflow which I found suites my particular style of art. I've been sculpting and painting since birth so if you'd prefer I just make a model for you...then that's a different conversation altogether (hit me up). But if you're like me and you have a VR rig, MasterpieceVR and love to paint and sculpt then listen closely (video coming down the line). There's many ways to get to Rome but this is the way I did it.

Software needed:
MasterpieceVR ($30)
MeshLab (Free)
Tiltbrush with Poly Account ($30)
3D Coat (Free Trial...Windows 3D paint might work too...don't know)
Unity 5.6.3 with VR Chat SDK (Free)
Internet Access

STEP 1: The first thing I did was sculpt the avatar and left the eyes out so I could add them in Tiltbrush. I painted my model but you don't have to since you'll be doing that in 3D coat. 

STEP 2: Export your humanoid. I did it as an OBJ but as of writing this, I see that MasterpieceVR has a new export option which wasn't available. 

STEP 3. Import your mesh into MeshLab and go to Filters/Remeshing, Simplification and Reconstruction/Simplification - Quadratic Edge Collapse Decimation. A pop up will appear asking you what your target number of faces are. VR Chat restricts you to under 20k so I did mine at 15k and it was just fine. I didn't push it to 20k because I'm going to add some brush strokes in Tiltbrush and want to leave some wiggle room.

A pop up will appear. Set target number of faces to under 20,000 for VR Chat.

STEP 4: Upload the model into Poly and then open Tiltbrush. 

STEP 5: Load your model into the default scene. You'll notice on the floor that there is a square with 2 lines marking the dead center of the environment. Turn on Mirror Mode and line it up directly over this point. Now bring your T-pose model so he is centered with his feet on the floor. The mirror mode helps because it adds a y-axis which helps you with your placement.

Tilt brush has a number of great brushes but many of them add a ridiculous amount of polys. Seriously, the toon brush can add thousands really fast. I suggest using 'WIRE' or 'FIRE' as fire is really just a .png and wire is low poly.  EXPORT from the Labs (see video) and then bring that .FBX file into 3D Coat (or similar painting program).

I love 3D Coat because I don't have to do anything special to prep the .FBX I outputted from Tiltbrush and it has a Photoshop style interface which is intuitive. I used the 'PER PIXEL PAINTING' option when painting this and you should too.
 

For the rest of the tutorial please refer to this video, cheers:)

Getting the model painted and into UNITY

More in depth video of using the SDK in UNITY.

New Characters for New Story

See me rollin' by TheSpiritAmbassador on Sketchfab

Last year, I began recording several hours of conversation and just put it out there in podcast land. I didn't have an underlying theme and even listening to them now...and it's only been a year, I can't help but laugh at myself for the shit I put out there. I recorded my last episode before I built this computer and bought an HTC VIVE, since then I've been immersing myself in VR making art. In fact, I showed my first VR designed imagery at GOOGLE in SF in December and in January, I showcased 'Big City Nights' in New York. 

Prior to VR, I often spoke of using the medium for revolutionizing education and now having been immersed for months, new ideas of just how this can happen continually begin to focus. 

I have been pumping out art and really love creating characters and scenes and am interested in at least the short term, in story telling.

With that said, I temporarily removed the podcasts from the header because I'm going to create an online comic and use the podcast to tell the stories. It's no longer going to be about my life or my thoughts. It's going to be stories with scenes you can visit in VR and bad ass characters.

Animation Test with 15k Poly VR Chat Avatar by TheSpiritAmbassador on Sketchfab

I needed to get those crucial hours of dialogue out of my system. It was therapeutic for me and I hope that someone got something worth while from 'em.

I'm excited for the new direction and am happy to share these photos.

See me wear this Avatar in VR.

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Speed Sculpt: "The Garden" WIP

An AR to VR workflow with Tiltbrush + Unity & Vuforia SDK

I made this video to show you how I used Tiltbrush ($29.99) & MasterpieceVR ($29.99) and free software to make this smartphone app which triggers an animated scene whenever the camera is locked on to the label.

Using Tiltbrush to create characters

"ADAM" SPEED SCULPT VIDEO

SPEED SCULPT VIDEO
SEE IT IN VR: https://skfb.ly/6wXCp 

ADAM by TheSpiritAmbassador on Sketchfab

This is my first take at making a Tiltbrush character. I called him Adam (Atom?) because he's so earthy. 

Artist Spotlight: Ian Crighton

"ZOMBIE"

The first time I saw a video of Tiltbrush, I knew that I could finally push my craft forward and online, I've been blown away by what other artists are doing with these new tools. One of the most active artists engaging in the online community today is Ian Crighton, a freelance illustrator based in Scotland who is weaving his creative flow and presence across the metaverse. Ian's ability to quickly visualize concepts in 3D space is inspiring and I felt that he deserves to be the focus of the first Artist Spotlight.

Spacewalk by Ian.Crighton on Sketchfab

Here's a little bit about Ian:

"I live in and work in Scotland just outside of the city of Glasgow. I am an avid fan of all things Cyberpunk and SCI-FI, Which is reflected in my musical and art tastes. I absolutely love creating pieces of art that are both dark and dystopian, leaning mostly to the macabre.

I worked in traditional pen and ink mainly before VR , Which I still use to draw up concepts before applying to design. I am hoping to explore the idea of shared VR creative experiences within the meta verse."

CONTACT IAN VIA: 
info@icrighton.co.uk
OFFICIAL WEBSITE
SKETCHFAB PORTFOLIO
INSTAGRAM

Reducing Violence: The Long Game on Raising the Lowest Common Denominator

Tiltbrush scene inspired by 'Mi Casa' where you'll find me in the Metaverse

2016 was charged. I remember living in liberal San Francisco having a conversation with my beautiful, hot and sexy yet slightly right of center baby's momma about solutions. While in SF, she was living in Dallas which is culturally very different than CA. For example, at the Houston Space Center they serve food on styrofoam plates and had one recycle bin among 18 trash bins. I counted the bins because I was surprised because that was banned in CA a long time ago and a brand as forward thinking as NASA should know better. Since I was 7 years old, I was indoctrinated by the the idea that we need to be conscious about our waste. The people I choose to spend my time with practice radical self reliance and value companionship, love and growth. They are healers, teachers, shaman, creators, lawyers, CEOs and entrepreneurs...all of them, beautiful and silly creatures.

One thing that unites us is our culture of acceptance and community which in many cases opens you up to the unseen bond between us all. This happens because the spirit of collaboration, and collective strength can only be felt when its created.

In the question of how to reduce violence, I believe the long game involves creating a world where we exercise this spirit and we can do this today with Virtual Reality. We can create the greatest educational experience that will nurture the respectful and creative culture we all truly deserve. VR has it's own strength and the art of teaching will be mastered through immersive storytelling, VRPGs and a gamified curriculum.

RAISE THE COMMON DENOMINATOR and with it the math starts to work out in our favor. If every single child in the world, from THE SAFETY of their own homes, had access to the Hogwarts...better believe we'll see some magic.

I have a theory...

I call it Emotional Resonance.

Imagine you are a radio and you tune into frequencies that resonate on an emotional spectrum. Angry emotional energy creates a frequency filled with that dark resonance that enforces negative thinking. Opposite that is the frequency of happiness which at it's highest level, is filled with gratitude and love.

Ever walk in a room and 'feel the tension?' Earth feels like that right now and I know some of you can feel it. Ever really 'feel' the 'good vibes?'.

I can prove this now. Join me in VR Chat and we'll dance mob the metaverse, spread silliness and report whether you felt the good vibes.

Easy. You can do it whenever you want really. I dance to a beat I make in my head all the time and I'm always happy.

Wasn't always the case. If you're a podcast listener you'll know I used to be a meth smoking, coke snorting, liquor & trigger loving teenager in the 1990's. If you want to know how I went to hell and back and found strength in a vision then you can listen to the first podcasts episodes or reach out via the links in the footer.

Let's talk about it, better yet lets virtualize and actualize the 'good vibes.' 

Seeing is believing.

Altered Carbon on Netflix is GREAT sci-fi

I cruised through all ten episodes over the course of a week after reading a review. There is so much to like right from the start. It does a fantastic job realizing a future where AIs run businesses, VR is used to interrogate captives and drugs are both ingested and worn like contacts to Augment Reality.

The story explores a world where the wealthy can afford to live forever and what happens to the psyche when the fear of death is all but a thing from the past...if you're rich.

I don't want to dig too deep. It's action with a good story, great effects and good acting. Nuff said.

Third Eye Pinecones

I always get compliments on my necklaces and I'm always telling people to check out Third Eye Pinecones. Each necklace is made from a pine cone slice and they plant a tree with every purchase (so they say). I've just sent two back to get re-finished and they came back BEAUTIFUL. The customer service is TOP NOTCH and I know a lot of people who work with the brand. It was founded by a friend of a friend named Carl and his craft has come a long way since the days I first saw them 5 or 6 years ago when I got my first (one of the pieces that was refinished).

Breaking Bad habits

2016 made me a news junkie. Every day I'd keep up with the political side show wondering where this Shakespearean drama leads. I noticed myself always looking at my damn phone and after hours in VR my eyes were feeling strained.

So I decided I would remove Facebook from my home screen, turn off notifications and that I would get a Kindle and subscribe to a news source I felt was truly balanced. 

And it's great. I was already getting sick of seeing the same misinformation and sensationalized headlines and my eyes are thanking me.

I got the Paperwhite Kindle, which illuminates the page without shining a light in your face.

Funny story, I was running outside to catch a Lyft and completely fell on my ass at the curb. My shoes had zero grip and it was rainy. Apparently my Kindle flew out of my pocket and I didn't realize until I got home later. I retraced my steps and saw it in the gutter, safe and dry (mostly dry). After MacGyvering a mop handle, I successfully got my Kindle back and though a little scratched up from the affair, it charged and now has a little character.

That's my Kindle down there.

Shave like a boss

While Xmas shopping last year, I was with my son and noticed the Art of Shaving store and wanted to check it out. I'm not a 'hairy' person but I shave. I like a clean upper lip and let the beard do it's thing mostly. 

So I'm at the store and looking at these things. They don't have tons of information, just pretty displays so I ask, "Whats the difference between the 60 dollar razor and the 300 razor if they're all using the Gillette Quad razors?"

"The handle...that one is plastic and that one is unicorn horn."

Alright but I wasn't satisfied. I couldn't understand why someone would pay such a premium if the razor itself is something you can get at CVS. I ended up on a Reddit group, reading exchanges from shaving enthusiasts and I ended up at Maggardrazors.com ordering myself and my baby's momma, shaving kits.

What I learned is this: The weight of the handle drives the blade on a soapy surface and that all the shaving enthusiast end up at one point or another shaving with a safety razor.

What is that? Well, it's a razor with a head and stem which separate from each other, allowing you to place a double sided blade, safely within.

I used to not love shaving but I love the whole ritual of soaping my face up. The included soap makes me smell good and my skin and facial hair is soft and growing in a more uniform fashion these days. 

My sons mother, sent me a pic of her freshly shaved sexy legs and told me she loved her razor too.

So these days after I put my kid to sleep, I draw a hot bath and bring my laptop next to the tub and throw on some Netflix and shave in the dark. I cut my nose a little bit the first time but you get used to the razor pretty fast and for me, I already know by feeling what I'm cutting. If I need to do a lining up of the beard, I'd definitely need light and a mirror but I only go that far once in a while. For the most part I just clean my mustache area.

Here's a link to the kit I got for myself (with the MR5 handle) and momma bear.

 

How I made a low-poly Avatar for VR Chat

I recently discovered the awesomeness of VR Chat, a hub for VR users and non-VR users to come together. In these digital worlds, users occupy the space in avatars and the appeal is the randomness of each experience.

My first time in, I picked from a varied and fun selection of stock avatars that blink and move their mouths but as I saw the varied and incredibly diverse population of VR Chat, I decided that I just can't do it stock:)

So my first thought was to use something I made in MasterpieceVR but the way the files save requires a few more steps to retain color info, etc and while it's definitely on my agenda, I thought I'd take a stab at making my an avatar in Google Blocks. And to my surprise there was a recent update that allows for much more precision.

Now if you go to the 'labs' at the bottom of your panel palate, you can switch on new features. There are four dots that represent the center divide for the block you're creating in so setting up a few poles for reference is easy.

I made a dope avatar that was too big for the SDK so be warned, VR Chat has a 20k poly limit, preferably 10k.  Don't spend hours on anything too elaborate. In fact, keep in mind the design process and see if you can extend a shape out as opposed to adding one. It's fun (for me at least) to work within a limit and I'm happy with the result. He comes in at about 7800 polygons and is a feather weight file wise. 

If you'd like to try him out you can download him here and use this video to learn how to upload using the VR CHAT SDK.

 

Revolting Rhymes on Netflix: Dark yet pleasant

As I was editing this site I passively watched 2 episodes and it's great. Since I'm exploring story telling/kids/fairy tales, it interests me that these stories would probably scare the helicopter parents out there but for thousands of years, humans have used stories to teach children about the world and when the world was a more savage place, the stories were often dark with life and death on the line.

Disney made his name telling these stories to a more light hearted generation and REVOLTING RHYMES confidently has fun with itself, spinning and remixing characters in a Poe meets Shrek kind of way.

I used to go watch Freddy Kruger movies with my sister when I was 4 so I don't think this is going to ruin your kids but viewer be warned, characters are killed/eaten. It's playfully done and not gorey for gore's sake but I only saw two episodes and have no idea of the finale drops the mic.

Sculpting out a tree in VR with MasterpieceVR

Just wanted to share how amazing it is to make 3d assets in VR.  This was made using a dope program called MasterpieceVR. Here's a pic of it in my Tiltbrush scene 'Mi Casa es su Casa.'

The tree on the left with the tire swing is the same one sculpted above. It was uploaded to Poly so I could use it again and again in Tiltbrush VR.

Quetzacoatl

From Wiki: "To the Aztecs, Quetzalcoatl was, as his name indicates, a feathered serpent, a flying reptile (much like a dragon), who was a boundary-maker (and transgressor) between earth and sky. He was a creator deity having contributed essentially to the creation of Mankind."

I created this after spending time drawing out some art based on the story of Mayahuel, the beautiful goddess of agave. He was depicted as a humanoid in the original version to capture his sorrow but this rendition is ferocious and captures the rage of a powerful and dignified god, moving towards some great purpose.

Sean Ludford of Bevx.com offers a beautiful recount:

"Long ago, in earth earliest days, humans found their world bathed in darkness. The evil goddess Tzintzimitl had consumed the sun and all its light. Quetzalcoatl, the god of redemption and giver of life, was angered by Tzintzimitl’s deed and ascended to the heavens to give battle. While pursuing Tzintzimitl he discovered Mayahuel, her beautiful granddaughter who was being held against her will.

Quetzalcoatl instantly fell in love with Mayahuel and returned to earth with her at his side. This infuriated Tzintzimitl and she searched everywhere for the pair. They were forced to hide and scurry from place to place keeping one step ahead of the evil goddess. Weary of running, Quetzalcoatl determined to disguise himself and Mayahuelas branches on a tree carefully positioned so the breeze would cause the two branches to sweep and caress each other. This scheme was eventually discovered and in a fit a rage Tzintzimitl ripped the branch possessing the soul of Mayahuel from the tree and broke it in to tiny pieces. Devastated, Quetzalcoatl slew Tzintzimitl returning light to this world but his love was gone.

He buried the pieces of the broken branch and drenched the ground in his tears giving life to the first agave plant. Quetzalcoatl drank the plant’s sweet nectar but it gave him little joy until the gods bestowed “special” properties to the agave to comfort Quetzalcoatl’s heart and soul."

Welcome to the Spirit World

This was a brand related experience, recreating the imagery from our tequila label into immersive art. I was motivated by color and music and wanted to experiment with leading a viewer thru a piece by leaving maps and clues which leads to nooks you wouldn't otherwise see at first glance.
 

Story Telling in Extended Reality

It's January 31st in 2018 and I am just feeling settled after a busy 3 months of traveling and making art. This is my first published blog entry on my brand new site. I'm using Squarespace and mostly uploading images taken within VR and it's an incredibly easy process. Shoots, with 3 clicks I can record my experience and share it on YouTube. I'm feeling powerful and blessed. I know well enough that everything can change at any given moment, so I am thankful that TODAY, that my family is healthy and happy. I recognize that this is temporary and I deeply respect the gravity of that. Yet there was a time when I didn't, it was my late teenage years and I really didn't care about caring. I don't think for one second that I'm alone in this and in my case, a number of hard learned lessons brought back to life my 'inner child', minus largely the naivety.

In my podcasts I often talk about education and VR and thought about some radically fantastical time down the line where immersive VR experiences on an online playlist will out perform our traditional education system. After having spent the last week immersed in XR (extended realities) dialogue and experiences while in New York (I was there showcasing 'Big City Nights'), I've come to believe that immersive story telling may be a powerful alley on our journey towards that goal.

My brother in law has these amazing Russian fairy tales like Hansel and Greta, illustrated beautifully and inclusive of the darker details so often watered down in the current culture.  Today while walking home from school with my 4 year old son, he describes to me a scene from his day...he describes it very well and asks, "Did you see me do that?" to which I reply, "I did in my mind, just now as you described it." So it occurs to me that children, or at least my son and myself are very aware of our mind's eye which is why we both love stories.

So what if we create the 'fairy tales' of XR, where we can sharpen intrinsic intuition and teach a moral through immersive story telling? What if we could share our hard earned lessons in a way that is memorable with others?

The question then becomes, how do we get stories from those who are not content creators?  Can we have a platform to submit oral or written accounts of our tales and have an AI start creating a scene based on visual data from these accounts?

What are your thoughts on the potential of XR as an aid in character development?

 

Dream 1/31 - 2/1

I guess you could call it a nightmare, as I came face to face with pure evil. However, because I was relatively a calm ninja, I never experienced the panic.  It's hazy but what I remember while in it was that I've had it before. In my mind during the dream (not now) it felt reoccurring. 

With that said, I was in San Mateo in the house just left to where I grew up. I was in the living room and this demon was close to the floor, maybe slithering since he was low though I didn't see anything but his face which was humanoid, though larger and with red light and predatory intention emanating from itself.

I had my son with me and clearly said to it something along the lines of 'you must not act in any way that would frighten my son, or we will leave."

In the moment or two while it considered my words, I decided I would not wait for a demon to consider my words and simply ran out with my boy, quick style. I went to the house on the right which was my home in real life though maybe not here.

I went along the side of the house and I found the bodies of firemen (interesting because of my 'prophecy' last year regarding firemen) and decided to call the 911.

When dispatch came thru, I began to tell them my address was on Dakota Street but realized I was wrong and told them the correct address on 10th ave and told them I was reporting a murder.

"I saw dead firemen on the side of the house. I think it was the neighbor because they're into some voodoo shit."

The police officer started to ask me questions and that's where I'm losing the memory.