We’ve seen during the last years a great reliance on the use of virtual models in effect heavy films, but this doesn’t mean that the traditional Model making is dead, which is still crucial in obtaining believable VFX shots, and can only benefit from yet another technological advancement of the last years, that democratized the 3D Printing. Through specialized software and hardware, which is getting
better and cheaper year after year, you can go back and forth between real world objects, either by using 3D scanning to digitize and then edit the objects, or creating 3D printed objects from virtual models. The advantages to these techniques are numerous,and mastering their use can be very handy in increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of a project. You can achieve faster results at a lower price, and you can do it without too many specialized craftsmen.

Featured image: design by henryseg

What are the 3-d shapes that are most commonly used in the latest films? These objects can be used either in live action movies, for props, sets, prosthetics, or for stop-motion animation films, especially for making thousands of character faces with the needed expressions range. They can be used either to create final pieces or intermediate pieces that can be analyzed and reviewed during the production process. This way you can get a very fast feedback on how a CG model will look in the real world, during the production. One key aspect that needs to be taken into account is the printer resolution, and whether the model is production ready or whether it needs further polishing and manual transformations.

Movies that have used 3D printing:

• Iron Man – exoskeleton costume
• Skyfall – Aston Martin replica, miniatures
• Real Steel – Robot replicas at 1/5 scale
• Prometheus – space helmet

3D Prinitng used in stop motion animations

• Paranorman – facial expressions
• Coraline – more than 15,000 facial expressions
• The pirates , band of misfits – about 8,000 3D printed mouth versions

3D Printing process used for “The Pirates-Band Of Misfits “

3D objects can be printed for use in various marketing activities where unique or small batches are needed,for instance to promote a film, or to offer rewards in crowdfunding campaigns.

There are legal aspects one must pay attention to, making sure that no IP rights are harmed when printing 3d objects.

Basic model requirements for 3D printing

• Make hollow models in order to save money by using less material
• Make sure the surface normals are facing outwards. Make sure you make the necessary corrections if needed
• Pay attention to non-manifold geometry (meaning any edge shared by more than two faces)

Materials used in creating 3D printed objects

There is a wide range of materials to choose from,based on cost and need.

• Plastics: Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene ABS(more common),Polylactic acid (PLA), either softer, rubbery or harder), Nylon
• Metals: steel, stainless steel, gold, silver, titanium
• Glass: ground glass that is layered, glued together and later baked
• Printing Pastes: wax, chocolate, silicone, clay
• Digital materials: complex composite materials that are combined in the machine to create materials with specific physical and visual properties.
• Object tango: a type of digital material, that is rubbery
• Sandstone

If you want to get hands on with the types of materials that can be used many service providers usually sale samples.

Link: Material sample kits from Shapeways

3D printing services and 3D printers

As you can see above, the 3D printing business is not that easy, and it must be carefully analyzed before making any choices. You also need to decide whether  a desktop 3d printer would do the job for you, or a specialized printing sevices provider should be used.

Types of printers

• Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM): works by extruding heated filaments of plastic
• Selective Laser Sintering (SLS): The initial type of 3D printer,where a concentrated UV light is hitting a photosensitive resin, creating hardened layers
• Syringe Extrusion: extrude viscose materials like silicone,clay, cement, chocolate
• Selective Laser Melting (SLM): uses powdered materials such as ceramics, glass,metals, which are fused using a laser beam.

Examples of manufacturers and prices

ABS printer Makerbot $2,799

ABS/PLA plastic Cubify CubeX Trio, can print three colors at a time – $2,499

FDM printer Stratasys Mojo

Digital materials/object tango Objet Series
Syringe printer -Imagine 3D Printer $2,799

You can find many 3D printing services providers in your country, but here are two of the largest
providers where you can learn a great deal about 3D printing and they are also a place where you can print,buy or sell objects.

Sculpteo

They offer 3d object printing services as well as a store where you can sell your product. They offer tools for model viewing,price estimate,export plugins for Blender and Sketchup, quality control and diagnosis for your models. There are plenty of workshops and learning materials to get you started. They also have pro accounts, where you benefit from the confidentiality as well as discounts for larger volumes.

Monochrome laser printing using the Formiga P100 by Eos machine, creates plastic objects

Colored printing using the ZPrinter 650 by ZCorp machine

Object 3D printer – High performance compound 3D printing, objects get coated with silver and polished.

Visit Sculpteo’s Website

Shapeways

Is another 3D printing and store solution, they offer the necessary tutorials to get you started, as well as materials samples that can be bought so you can see how they look and feel in the real world. They have a wide range of materials, such as various plastic types, stainless steel, silver, gold plated brass, full color sandstone, ceramics.

Visit Shapeways’ Website

For a more comprehensive list of service providers, you can consult the link on 3Ders.

Further reading about 3D printing

3DPrinting.net

3Ders.com

Blender for 3D – DVD Training