Our client
Hamar Municipality
Delivery
We produced content for the 3D mapping of Hamar Church, in connection with the Christmas tree lighting. The delivery consisted of concept development, storyboards, visuals in 2D and 3D, script, voiceover, original music and sound design.
Music and sound design was produced by Kjetil Fluge.
During the site visit and tour of Hamar together with the client, we made measurements of the church and took numerous reference photos. This was a great help throughout the process.
Trippel-M arranged a laser scan of the church so that everyone could work to exact measurements. All the visuals we produced were therefore modeled after the 3D model of the church, ensuring the highest level of accuracy.
We then 3D printed the model of the church into a physical model, both for use in the design and concept phase, but also for projecting the show onto the church for revision of the visuals in the development phase.
We designed concept sketches for each scene in the 6+ minute show. Together with additional sketches with detailed explanations, there were about 60 sketches in total.
A common thread throughout the story was to be the Hamar Santa. We therefore designed a santa to fit the shape of the church. We also designed several sets of shapes, including the mouth and eyes, so that the santa could be animated to fit the voiceover.
The Hamar Santa enters three times during the show, each time wearing a new Christmas sweater with elements from Hamar.
The 3D mapping had to show different elements of Hamar, whether they were sights, places, events or people.
One of the first things we did was to set up the 3D camera settings. This was decided after the site visit, as we knew at that point where the audience would be standing, and therefore where they would be viewing the 3D mapping from. That way we could match the perspective in 3D with the audience's point of view. Important decisions could then be made regarding the distance between the church and the render camera, choice of focal length, etc.
The 3d mapping was to be played from Disguise (formerly d3 Technologies). We therefore uv-mapped the model from the laser scan, so that the final product could be projected back as a texture on the 3d model of the church during playback.
The Viking Ship in Hamar was built for the 1994 Lillehammer Olympics and is one of the world's largest ice skating rinks.
It still hosts several major events, such as The Gathering, which brings together over 5,000 gaming enthusiasts every year around Easter time.
In the 3D mapping, we used a classic Viking ship to illustrate the rich hustle and bustle of the hall, with the hull opening and closing to show some of the many events the great hall can host.
The Viking ship is animated in 3D to open and close the hull so that the audience can see what is hidden inside.
Since the action in the 3d mapping was centered around Hamar, we spent a lot of time collecting references to the different scenes. The Gathering is held in the Viking Ship and gathers around 5000 gaming enthusiasts every year. This was one of the scenes we collected references for before we started production in 3D.
Once the references were collected, we were able to both manufacture and collect the elements we needed for the scene. Computers, monitors, game consoles and electronic items were stored in a library so that we could easily pick what we needed when setting up a Viking ship full of machines.
Taking references from The Gathering in the Viking ship, we produced a 3D scene with lots of computers and game consoles.
In order to simulate the collapse of the cathedral, we modeled the entire cathedral ruins in 3D.
Whatever surface we are producing content for, it is important to take size into account. When producing content for 3D mappings of large facades, it's always important to keep in mind that what on a small computer screen corresponds to a few pixels can end up as many meters when displayed on a physical building. We therefore always do a lot of size testing, such as in this case where we tested the size of the stones of the cathedral ruins.
As much as possible, we try to use procedural shaders wherever possible. This way we can, for example, choose the colors of the stones in the cathedral ruins based on a gradient, instead of using an image as a texture. This way we are both more flexible and also reduce the render time.
The cathedral ruins in Hamar were once a cathedral, without being in ruins. We therefore built the front of the cathedral in 3D, and then simulated a tumble, so we ended up with the cathedral ruins. The simulation was done directly in Blender.
Drag the bar to the left or right to see the cathedral, or the cathedral ruins.
Some scenes required simulation, such as the scene with water cascading down the church. We first did tests on a small and low-resolution scale, before simulating in high resolution.
The water was simulated using Flip Fluids in Blender.
In addition to the simulation of the water, we did a lot of testing to create the right texture and rendering of the ocean. We tested different amounts of bubbles, foam, currents, movements, etc so that the end result would feel as close to reality as possible.
The first sightings of the Mjøsormen were recorded as early as 1522. Throughout the ages, we have been fascinated by mysterious creatures, and the 10-12 meter sea serpents are no exception. The sea serpent in Mjøsa is part of Hamar's history, and thus had to be part of the 3D mapping.
Both the sea serpent and the underwater scene itself are produced in 3D.
DS "Skibladner" is Norway's only paddle steamer and the oldest ship in regular service. The ship sails on Lake Mjøsa, starting from Gjøvik, its home port, to the other Mjøs cities of Hamar, Moelv and Lillehammer. The ship is often referred to as the White Swan of Mjøsa.
We wanted the ship's blades to appear as part of the 3D mapping, so we brought in references from the ship so that we could model our own version, which matched the shape of the building.
Ice hockey is also a big part of Hamar for many. We covered the entire church with ice, and sent the hockey puck straight into the goal. The ice that shatters is made directly in Blender.
We modeled the chimes after reference images, and animated the bells in time with the music (which was originally written by Kjetil Fluge)
Since the show was to be shown several times, we added some extra details for those who chose to see the show on multiple occasions. In the final scene, a giant Christmas tree covers the entire church, and in between the Christmas decorations and tinsel, you can see details such as the cathedral ruins, ice hockey elements, the Viking ship or the sea serpent.
For the same reason, Santa Claus also wears different Christmas sweaters every time he comes in, and they all have their own patterns and details.
The 3D mapping was to be shown several times during the weekend. Between each show, the church was decorated with 3 artworks from local artists. All the artworks were made directly on the shape of the church.
Hamar Municipality organized a drawing competition for children and young people, where they could draw whatever they wanted inside the shape of the church. We designed a template that everyone drew from, and after the municipality had selected the best entries, we adapted them for the 3D mapping so that they could be displayed as part of the show.
In collaboration with the client, we developed the script for Hamarnissen (The Hamar Santa). The goal was to create a warm and dear santa, who could tell the audience about the incredible city of Hamar. The voiceover was read by Hallvard at Nitro.
Both music and sound design are produced by Kjetil Fluge. Backing vocals by Christine Guldbrandsen.
The music set a very special mood for the visual expression and was very well received by the audience.
