DREAMS | PHOTOSHOP
CREATING FAST CONCEPTS IN DREAMS
Learn how to build painterly 3D images in Dreams on PlayStation 4, with a step-by-step guide from Media Molecule’s
Matt Bergasse
AUTHOR
Matt Bergasse Matt is an artist from Toronto working at Media Molecule, the studio behind Dreams. He works with traditional and digital art, and is excited for the future of creating art in VR. matthewbergasse.com
Since Dreams’ release in 2020, it has become my main tool for creating fast and expressive 3D sketches. In this tutorial I’m going to share my usual workflow, the bulk of which is done with a PlayStation 4 and a gamepad. For me, Dreams is less a ‘game’ and more a digital 3D sketchbook where I can quickly sculpt and paint characters, environments and even add animations, all while hanging out on my couch.
Sculpting in Dreams is like working with clay, building up forms and cutting shapes without having to think about polygons. The software uses signed distance fields mixed with a paint ‘flecks’ system to allow for expressive sculpting and painting in a 3D environment. This is all done in real time on a PlayStation 4, allowing for fast and fluid workflows.
In this tutorial I’m going to show you how to quickly block out a scene, build up detail and lean into a painterly 2D/3D hybrid style that I find so fun to work with. Once we’ve finished building in Dreams, I’ll bring the image into Photoshop for some basic adjustments for values and colour. This can all be done using the DualShock 4 controller, however I often use the PlayStation Move controllers for even more precision while working. I hope you find Dreams’ unconventional workflow (and UI) as relaxing and expressive as I do!
DOWNLOAD YOUR RESOURCES
For all the assets you need go to https://bit.ly/3Dworld-290
01
A BLANK CANVAS
Once you have Dreams up and running, open a new scene and you’ll see a ground plane, the create UI palette and a character representing a cursor in 3D space (called an ‘imp’). Physical movement on the controller maps directly to the imp, giving us multiple axes of movement while creating. At the top of the screen is the tools palette which includes different working modes and gadgets for us to use.