In May 2016 3D artist Zaoeyo (Xiaolin Zeng) burst onto the Stash radar with his hypnotic spec title sequence called “Organic Machines.” Then in 2017 he broke worldwide with his staggeringly ambitious opening for Pause fest.

Zaoeyo’s latest full-CG effort is this sombre and atmospheric work which opened Digital Design Days + OFFF Milano 2018 this past weekend.

Zaoeyo: “It’s a great opportunity to explore and learn new things while making event titles. The starting idea is from real life experience that I had during several travels to my father’s hometown in the rural area of China, and the visual of electric Tower and woods hiding in the mist struck me.
 

“Also, I was living in a city where construction is going very frequently, which influenced my mood a lot. As a result, I’d like to make a film which the storyline goes from misty woods to industrialized city where construction is heavy.

“I looked into lots of materials in which have a giant as the main character and find several films and concept art, like Simon Stalenhag, Jakub Rozalski and EVA in which I learned a lot from their shot composition, and also give me a clear vision that the giant should be in a thin and incomplete body shape.
 

“While making the title sequence, I encountered the Netflix new TV series called “Dark.” I learned a lot about its color set, also its soundtrack inspired the sound designer as well.

“This work is a huge combination of inspiration, but it starts with a real-life experience. The original color set is black and white, but I decided to use more natural color and make the sequence more like an old century film.

“Besides the video, here are initial black and white posters I want to show you as well:
 

Client: Digital Design Days + OFFF Milano 2018
Designer/3D artist: zaoeyo (Xiaolin Zeng)
Sound designer: CypherAudio
Special Thanks: RenderBus, Filippo Spiezia
Toolki: Cinema 4D, Octane Render, AfterEffects