Guido Gironacci, a student of the Videogame Art program at Universal Arts School, has been recognized with a Highly Commended mention in the challenge "The Window" organized by The Rookies, an international platform that highlights emerging talent in digital arts. The challenge proposed the participants to develop a visual scene that explored the idea of a window not only as an architectural element, but also as a narrative frame. The goal was to build a composition that evoked history, emotion or world, using that point of view as the creative axis.
A proposal based on visual narrative
The project presented by Guido, entitled "Sailor Memories," recreates the attic of a former sailor and was conceived as a small-format scene, designed to convey a specific story within a limited environment. "We thought it would be a good idea to create an environment that focuses on storytelling, but taking into account the limited time available. Therefore, it should be somewhere enclosed or a small area that gives time to finish," he explains.
The idea took shape after viewing a video on the Quixel channel that showed a compilation of the Ninety Days in Unreal Engine 5 contest ."I saw one that was an attic and automatically knew it could be the perfect idea." From there, he sought to give it a personal approach: "A colleague told me that his father was a sailor and that idea stuck in my head. Finally, it was the one I decided to go with out of several I had thought of."
With the concept defined, he began to work on planning the space and the elements that would compose it. "The first thing I did was to think about how big the attic would be and how much I wanted to show. After that I started researching props that would tell this story."
Technical challenges and artistic decisions
One of the main challenges was the lighting, a key element in conveying the overall atmosphere of the scene. "To get the best result out of the image, 80% is based on the lighting. I had to try various moods to see which one looked best: warm colors, cool colors, with fog, without fog, dusk or daytime." He says that small changes in the parameters could completely change the visual feeling, so he spent time finding a balance between technique and message. "After several feedbacks and changes I achieved the ideal mood."
Another major hurdle was time management. "Even though it was a small project, unforeseen things always come up: props you want to improve, textures you want to polish... little by little they take time away from you without you even realizing it." In order not to lose focus, he applied a strategy based on visual prioritization: "The key to being able to finish it was to establish priorities. Since it was only one image, it gave me an indication of what was most visible and what I had to prioritize."
A recognition that drives him to keep creating
Receiving recognition from The Rookies has been significant both personally and formatively. "When I found out that I had made it into the winners section and to be able to receive this recognition, it made me very happy. It also makes you realize that many times your effort is rewarded."
He also highlights the positive impact of the environment around him, "Many times you yourself don't realize the dimension of things, and being congratulated by the people around you is motivating."
Participating as part of the training process
For Guido, contests and festivals are more than an opportunity to win prizes. "I would say that contests are the best way to learn, make yourself known and be able to fill your portfolio. Many people are afraid to participate thinking that if they don't win any prizes, the contest wasn't worth it, and it's not true."
He stresses that these challenges allow you to train key skills in the industry: "The fact of having a deadline, and people to compete against, makes you work much harder, learn to organize yourself and know how long it takes you to do a certain thing."
Learn more about Guido's project here: Sailor Memories