Cobra Venom V8

The Cobra Venom V8 concept was conceived as a styling and modeling exercise by Art Director/Designer Jamie Martin, based in London, England.

The design is a celebration of the great Anglo-American partnership that produced one of the most iconic racing cars of the last century: the AC/Shelby Cobra. Being a fan of the original 60s icon, Jamie wanted to produce a modern-day take on the legendary muscle car that would capture its true essence for the modern world.

After conceptualizing the design, it was decided to showcase the concept by creating 3D visuals. Jamie opted for CINEMA 4D because of its intuitive layout and began by developing the car's overall form in three dimensions. Once the body shape had been established, he began with detailing and adding elements such as bespoke wheels.

After the 3D model had been completed, a variety of still renders were created utilizing both a virtual studio set-up and a desert road environment. Additional imagery was created using back-plate photographs and panoramic images for reflections, rendered in CINEMA 4D.

After receiving a very warm reception by the motoring press upon the launch of the car's website (www.cobravenom.co.uk), it was decided to take the project a step further by creating a short animation so a more appealing environment could be created and to allow the car to be seen in motion.

The model was adapted for animation by adding features such as LED lighting, which was activated in sequence. In addition to the car model enhancements, a number of additional environments were created in CINEMA 4D, including the animation's initial “launch room”, and two different tunnel sections. The desert environment first created for the still image renders was also utilized for the animation's closing shot.

During the lengthy render process, CINEMA 4D's NET Render module proved to be invaluable, allowing for multiple computers to take the load and considerably cut the overall render time.

Following the success of the Cobra Venom V8 design study and the ease with which CINEMA 4D enabled the development of the project, Jamie decided to once again use MAXON’s 3D application to create his next project: The “London Navigator”. This was Jamie's entry into the "A New Bus For London" competition, launched by London Mayor Boris Johnsons to develop a replacement for the red Routemaster bus. His design was awarded joint second position at the end of 2008, behind Aston Martin/Foster+Partners & Capoco Design, winning him £10,000.

You can view the Cobra Venom V8 concept at www.cobravenom.co.uk and see more of Jamie's work (including the London Navigator bus concept) at www.jamiemartinart.co.uk