MPC Film - Creating Scar - Characters of The Lion King

To create Scar, the team began with referencing concept art to guide the design of the character. The modelling team used this art and photography of lions to find Scar’s shapes and form. After the modelling process, the groom work, rigging and shading began at an early stage, in parallel with render tests showing the character with fur and textures. The rigging tools continually developed as the project went along, from the real time virtual production rigs, to detailed muscle and skin workflows. The animation and rigging teams worked together to build on previous systems. Focus was placed on Scar’s nuances from his subtle facial animation, realistic snarls and wrinkles to what happens to the skin and fur as his claws retract. A high level of detail was placed on his eyes and the skin surrounding them, the team even brought in veterinary specialists to learn specificity about the structure. Muscle simulation tools were developed to have greater connectivity with Scar’s skeleton, this allowed us