DISCOVER PROJECT
Harvard - Jason Wiser
The Haunted Room
A Blend of Humor, Horror and Storytelling
— A 45-second horror short inspired by a real setting. I recreated the space as a 3D environment, then transformed it into a tense cinematic scene through lighting, camera movement, character animation, and post-production.
SERVICES
3D Modeler, Animator, Environment Designer, Character/Rigging, Lighting & Compositing
Project Overview
Create a short cinematic animation that transforms a familiar home interior into an eerie 3D scene using original modeling, character work, animation, lighting, and editing.
The project is a full 3D production challenge: translating a real environment into a digital set, building the models and character from scratch, rigging for movement, and using lighting, camera direction, and editing to create a suspenseful 45-second sequence. Rather than relying on dialogue or obvious horror effects, the film focuses on atmosphere — the feeling that something is slightly wrong in a space that should feel safe.
The Haunted Room was created as a short horror film for my 3D modeling and animation class, with the main setting inspired by an actual room in my home. I wanted to take a familiar, everyday space and push it into something cinematic, tense, and unsettling.
Approach
Reference-based room modeling and lighting setup.
I started by observing the real room and breaking it down into simple forms, proportions, furniture, and visual details. From there, I modeled the environment, built the character, rigged it for animation, and designed the scene around mood and suspense rather than dialogue.
My focus was to build a believable environment first, then use cinematic choices to shape the horror tone. I modeled the room and objects with attention to proportion and spatial accuracy, created the character and rig, and planned the animation around subtle movement, timing, and tension. Once the scene was built, I refined the mood through lighting, shadows, render passes, and post-production in After Effects. The goal was not just to make a 3D room, but to direct a small visual story inside it.
The visual direction was based on turning something ordinary into something psychologically unsettling. Instead of relying on excessive horror effects, I used contrast, darkness, stillness, and slow cinematic pacing to create tension.
TECH STACK
Autodesk Maya
Blender
Substance Painter
Adobe Photoshop + After Effects
The final film is a 45-second horror animation that combines a fully modeled interior environment, original character work, custom rigging, animation, cinematic lighting, and post-production compositing. The finished piece shows my ability to move across multiple parts of the 3D pipeline independently — from environment creation and asset development to animation, rendering, and final edit. It also highlights my strength in visual storytelling: using a simple room, controlled pacing, and moody lighting to create suspense without overcomplicating the scene. For the portfolio, I’d frame this as a compact but complete example of your ability to build a scene from concept to final render.
The Haunted Room was a full-pipeline 3D project that challenged me to think like both a designer and a filmmaker. It strengthened my skills in modeling, rigging, animation, lighting, and visual storytelling while showing how a simple real-life space can become an immersive cinematic world.
Product Images
