Interview: Olivier Dubard

Environment artist Olivier Dubard discusses working in the film industry and how he puts a scene together…

3dtotal: Tell us a little bit about yourself: Who are you, what do you do, and where are you located?
Olivier Dubard: My name is Olivier Dubard and I am an environment artist for film and cinema. I create shots specifically for environments, and I do concept and 3d generalist work for feature films where I model, texture, light, pre-comp, paint over CG and do matte painting. I have been working mainly in the film industry in London and now in Vancouver. I just released my Gnomon Workshop tutorial on how to create an environment from scratch.

Initially I block out the sketches for my shots. I like to start out with drawing as it allows me to be more creative

3dt: What inspired you to get into art? Who are your favorite artists?
OD: I've always been interested in art, even since I was quite young, I remember watching the first Jurassic Park at home and I was curious to see what else they had in the bonus section, that's when I found the making of the movie. I realized, at seven years old, that people were doing this as a job and I could too one day. I love Caravaggio, and modern artists such as Vitaly Bulgarov and Maciej Kuciara, they keep me hungry for art.

After establishing my 2D sketch I do a photo-bash with photo and paint-overs

3dt: You've work on some really high profile films, which has been the most interesting and exciting to work on?
OD: The latest Disney's Beauty and the Beast has been the most fulfilling for me. The team I was working with at Digital Domain has been amazing. We had the time to make our work shine, and the direction was very clear and well communicated. Plus the art direction was really beautiful; executing on it was such a blast.

I then go to Maya and start modeling all the pieces from my concept

3dt: What tools, software or techniques do you use to create your art? What would you like to learn in the future?
OD: I use a wide range of software, because creating environment can be so complex. I usually use Photoshop, Maya, Mari, ZBrush, Nuke, Vray. I've been learning MOI 3d lately; I'm interested in learning more CAD software. I like the precision, the way it handles nurbs and how easy it is to use, especially for sci-fi concept art.

3dt: Do you like to experiment when making art, or do you keep to a rigorous workflow?
OD: I like experimenting, it is important for me to find creative ways to solve a problem, but there is a point where the experiment needs to be implemented into a rigorous workflow. I don't think it can be all experiment all the time. When I have free time and no pressure I do make a lot of improvements and once these are proven to be working I use it for my work with clients.

When the modeling is done I texture and do a

3dt: How do you keep your portfolio up to date? Do you try to keep up with trends or do your own thing?
OD: I try to do personal work when I am in between projects, if not I do it after work. I do not really keep up with trends; I like to do what gives me an emotional response. If something resonates with me it will push me to work on it. I do not like everything that is trendy; I much prefer to do my own thing.

Before applying a shader to my scene I do a first draft lighting pass with grey shaders

3dt: What lessons have you learned in your career that you would like to pass on to others?
OD: I would say be passionate about what you do, you need to love what you do, be diligent in your work. Also, be nice with others; help and share what you know, people will give it back to you in return. Try to learn as much as you can from people better than you, and of course be a good listener.

Once my rough lighting is done I apply the lookDev to my entire scene

3dt: What are your artistic ambitions?
OD: In the future I would love to do more concept work for films and games. I love using my 3D and painting skills to make inspiring artwork. Since I've worked on both sides of pre-production and production, I would like to use all my knowledge for concept design.

Finally I pre-comp and paint over my CG render to finish my shot

3dt: What can we expect to see from you next? Any cool projects we should look out for?
OD: I am working on a new title for the Gnomon Workshop, so keep an eye on that. Also, the upcoming Fast and Furious film has some matte painting I did. Other than that, I am still working on personal work and will keep updating my portfolio and demonstrating how I design my artwork.

Related links

Have a look at Olivier Dubard's portfolio at his website
Check out Olivier's Gnomon Workshop title for environment artists
Pick up a copy of DPT8 and practice your matte painting skills
Head over to the store and grab a copy of Sculpting for the Imagination: Zbrush