With the models completed, I moved on to the texturing stage, which was one of the most satisfying parts of the project. It was the first time the assets really began to feel alive and part of the same world.
Texturing the Programmer’s Bodysuit
The first asset I focused on was the woman’s sci-fi bodysuit. After creating the garment in Marvelous Designer, I imported it into Substance Painter to begin developing the materials. My goal was for the suit to feel tight but natural, following her silhouette without looking painted onto the mesh.
I experimented with a lot of different colour variations and height maps before settling on the final look. Most of this stage was about testing and adjusting: changing roughness and gloss values, adding subtle folds, and refining the balance between synthetic material and soft fabric. I didn’t want it to feel too shiny or too flat, so finding that middle point took time. Since the skin textures were already done earlier, I made sure the suit’s colours complemented them and stayed consistent with the cool-toned, clinical feel of the lab environment.
Texturing the Mech
Texturing the mech required a completely different mindset. I kept the materials metallic but chose a clean white finish so it visually connected to both the lab space and the programmer’s outfit. I had a broad set of references for white robotics, but I didn’t rely on any one specific image — the goal was simply to maintain a clean, engineered aesthetic. I added some colour on small tiny parts to ensure that the model does not look flat.
To bring subtle life into the mech, I added emissive materials in certain areas. These weren’t meant to glow dramatically, just enough to suggest internal technology and give the model a bit more depth under the lighting. Even though the mech and the programmer were textured separately, I kept referring back and forth between them to ensure the colours, materials, and surface qualities felt like they belonged in the same world.
Throughout the process, texturing became a way to tie the environment, the programmer, and the mech together. Every material choice — from roughness levels to colour testing — helped unify the film’s visual tone. Seeing both characters finally textured made the project feel much more cohesive and grounded, and it marked a major step toward assembling the final scene.