3D Animation

Last of Us — Intro Recreation

An Intro Recreation inspired by the visual language of the Last of Us intro — not a recreation, but an independent idea. Every organic growth and particle effect was simulated from scratch in Houdini, while the ruined city buildings were modelled by hand in Cinema 4D, then everything was composited into a final cinematic cut.

HOUDINI · CINEMA 4D · VFX SIMULATION · 3D ANIMATION

Table of Contents

01
Final Animation
The completed cinematic sequence — Final v2
 02
Storyboard & Styleframes
Moodboard, full storyboard and styleframes defining the visual direction
 03
Houdini Simulations
Cloud, organic growth passes and particle simulations built from scratch
 04
Destroyed Buildings — Cinema 4D
Hand-modelled ruined high-rises, nature elements and materials — viewport vs. render comparisons
 05
Scene Setup
Full scene assembly in Cinema 4D — asset placement, camera and lighting setup
 06
Sound Design
Custom audio mix — music, ambiences, creature foley and atmospheric effects
 07
Compositing — Passes & Layers
Render passes from diffuse to depth, AO and all effects layers combined step by step
 08
First Version — Final v1
What was changed between v1 and v2 and why

Final Result

The Final Animation

Final v2 — The Complete Animation

Pre-Production

Moodboard, Storyboard & Styleframes

Before any simulation started, the visual direction was established with a moodboard, followed by a full storyboard and a set of styleframes to define the lighting mood, colour palette and camera progression of the entire sequence.

Moodboard
Moodboard
Storyboard
Storyboard
Styleframe 1
Styleframe 01
Styleframe 2
Styleframe 02
Styleframe 3
Styleframe 03

Behind the Scenes

Houdini Simulations

Each effect in the intro was simulated individually in Houdini before being composited together. Below you can see every sim in isolation from the organic fungal growth to the atmospheric cloud and particle effects.

Cloud Simulation
Growth Simulation · Pass 1
Growth Simulation · Pass 2
Growth Simulation · Pass 3
Particle Simulation

3D Modelling · Cinema 4D

Destroyed High-Rise Buildings

The ruined cityscape in the background was built by hand in Cinema 4D — crumbling high-rise facades with broken floors, shattered windows and overgrown concrete. Drag the slider to compare the viewport wireframe against the final render.

Viewport
Rendered

3D Modelling · Nature Elements

Nature & Organic Elements

All nature assets in the scene were modelled by hand in Cinema 4D — including overgrown trees, weathered stones and crumbling bridges reclaimed by nature. Drag the slider to compare the Cinema 4D viewport against the final render.

Rendered
Viewport

Texturing · Cinema 4D

Materials & Texturing

Side-by-side comparison of the final 3D materials and the reference material creation process — both videos are synced.

3D Materials
Material Creation Process

3D Scene Setup · Cinema 4D

Scene Setup

The complete scene assembly in Cinema 4D — from the initial placement of all 3D assets through to the final camera setup, lighting and environment composition.

Scene Building 1
Scene Building 2

Post-Production

Sound Design

All audio was sourced from Artlist.io and composed into a custom sound design mix — combining atmospheric ambiences, organic creature foley, bird calls and a cinematic music track to match the tone of the sequence.

Music

▶Lost the Moment — Stripped Version ▶The Other Side — Instrumental Version

Sound Effects

▶Wet Cave — Water Dripping, Critters Crawling ▶Demon Organic Earth Growth ▶Micro Sounds — Crawling, Squashing, Crackling ▶Animal Foley — Snake Crawling ▶Crawling Creature — Slimy Tunnels ▶Animal Foley — Snake Crawling on Grass / Rustling ▶Beautiful Birds — Crow Cawing ▶Beautiful Birds — Chirping, Spring Pine Forest, Distant Winds ▶Yellowstone Birds — Warbling Vireo Bird Chirp ▶Beautiful Birds — Aves Ambience in Nature ▶Air Motion — Long Airy Whoosh ▶Irish Nature — Soft Wind Blowing
Audio — Final Sound Design Mix

Post-Production · Compositing

Compositing — Passes & Layers

An overview of the individual render passes and composite layers used to build the final image — from diffuse and specular to depth, ambient occlusion and all effects passes combined step by step.

Passes Overview · Part 1
Passes Overview · Part 2

First Version

First Version — What Changed & Why

After completing the first render, a few things didn't feel right and I decided to revise them before finalising the project.

Final v1 First Complete Render
VDB / Volume clipping — Several volumetric simulations showed visible clipping artifacts where the volumes were cut off at their container boundaries. These were identified and fully fixed in v2, making all effects read as seamless and organic.
Camera movement — The camera move at the end of the sequence felt too fast and snappy, completely out of tone with the slow atmospheric feel of the rest of the animation. In v2 the camera no longer drives as far into the environment — the motion is much more deliberate and controlled.
Deer & birds — A few tweaks were made to the animation and placement of the deer and birds to better integrate them into the scene and improve the overall believability of the environment.

Final Result

The Final Animation

Final v2 — The Complete Animation

Project Details

ProjectLast of Us — Original Interpretation
TypeUniversity Project
SoftwareHoudini, Cinema 4D, Octane
FocusProcedural simulation, VFX, 3D Modelling
🏫 This project was created as part of a university assignment for the course Motion Graphics. The task was to design and produce an original intro sequence for a film or series of our choice, and to document the full production pipeline — from initial project planning, concept development and moodboard, through scheduling and storyboarding, all the way to the finished 3D animation. The goal was not just to deliver a polished result, but to demonstrate a structured and professional creative process from the very first idea to the final cut.
Bachelor Animation Design — wb-fernstudium.de ↗
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