Full Nelson Studio

03/26/2026

Exploring different approaches for the vein reveal on the Mora Films logo.

This one took some problem-solving. Started in Cinema 4D, then moved into Blender to experiment with geometry nodes for vein generation. Got closer, but the tapering and animation weren’t quite working for the reveal.

Brought it back into C4D to animate splines—one version nearly took my machine out. Also tried a more organic (Venom-style) particle approach, but it was slow, unpredictable, and didn’t give enough control.

Ended up simplifying. Built the reveal in After Effects using the native lightning plugin, rendered that out, then used it in Octane as an opacity map on the heart in C4D. Drove a bump channel with the same animation to add depth.

From there, layered in additional veins using projected MoSplines and hand-placed a few key shapes to match the logo.

Final result is a mix of three techniques working together. Not a straight line, but that’s usually where the good stuff is.

Styleframe for approval
Blender experiments
Geometry node close-up (no taper)
Wild node tree
Back in C4D with projected splines
AE animation pass
Lightning plugin settings (animating core radius for growth)
Matte reveal export
Playblast animatic for timing
Final Mora Films logo

03/23/2026

These are the styleframes for the Mora Films logo animation I shared recently. 🌵

Every detail was intentional. Miguel’s sketch guided cactus placement—golden barrel and prickly pear—helping the heart grow across the Arizona landscape in a way that feels authentic to the brand.

This back-and-forth between design and production is exactly how I approach brand-driven animation: combining story, identity, and visuals to create something that’s ownable and memorable.

Swipe through to see how the ideas came together, from early frames into motion.

The animatic is a rough pass focused on timing and motion, using vertex maps for flame behavior and an early vein reveal. No textures or final sound yet, just enough to lock the piece before full production.

11/04/2021

New blog written w/ the help of our fall intern Bayan Jarad.

There is a range of different types of Movie Title Design Sequences, Opening Credits, and Intros that filmmakers and directors use in their projects. Each one has its own distinct reason for existence and the role that it plays in storytelling beyond just showcasing the credit. The art of the title sequence is really a lot of detective work figuring out the themes of the story and putting that into a framework or motif of imagery that makes sense and adds to the narrative without giving too much away.

Movie Title Design is really a lot of detective work figuring out the themes of the story and putting that into a framework makes sense and adds to the narrative without giving too much away.

05/01/2021

I have to get rid of some classics to make room for some more concept art books. Anyone local to Chicago interested?

03/15/2021

Enter our NFT Giveaway. Comment on our blog post (or here) and win a chance to get one of the 5 NFTs that we are giving away.

My Genesis NFT drop will be on the hive blockchain at the NFTShowroom.com. I chose this gallery because it is ecologically-friendly and has low transaction and minting fees.

03/10/2021

I mentioned Hive blockchain and NFTshowroom in my post on eco-friendly cryptoart galleries. This is a quick follow-up post diving deeper into Hive Blockchain and how to use it and its benefits. Yes, you can get paid to post, comment and upvote on their blogging platform.

Hive blockchain pay their user's with their cryptocurrency. So you can earn by posting, commenting, and upvoting content on their platform.

03/08/2021

Cryptoart is all the rage at the moment but it comes with a high energy cost and carbon footprint. This article is about exploring eco-friendly alternatives (inspired by Memo's post on Github).

This article is about exploring Eco-friendly NFT Galleries for Cryptoart. Platforms using different blockchains (e.g. using PoS, PoA etc) will generally be hundreds times more efficient.

02/16/2021

Throwback render to last Pączki Day. We trekked through 10 inches or so of snow to get some today!

01/19/2021

Vacancy

Production Notes:
Tried some new brushstrokes technique inside C4D using a plane very close to the camera w/a Spec material and low Index w/ textures in bump, normal, and transmission. There was some Photoshop post of course, but far less time. First learned about this from Paul-G R (thanks for the insight!). Strider sculpt by Keith Morgan influenced by Mark Molnar. Textured in Substance Painter. Motel by YD92. Not sure where I got the Plymouth model from.

01/11/2021

Shadow from the Northwoods

The driver stopped the car, paralyzed by overwhelming fear and despair. Out of the fog came a mass of slithering feelers, attached to some loathsome titan whose anthropoid outline disappeared above the tree-tops. Sanity was only spared by the toxic gloom obscuring its horrible visage. The forest held its breath in a tense godless calm. This confrontation was pivotal and hopeless. Soon, all hell would break loose.

Production notes: h. I was happy w/ the overall look but some of the brushstrokes lost some of the realism. The fog was probably the hardest to stylize. This my first time using Octane fog volume, so it was a bit of a challenge to wrangle. Still trying to fine-tune the balance between 3D and painted. Sketch Fab models used on this.