Institute of Art Design + Technology Dún Laoghaire
Ireland’s campus for the Creative Industries
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Alison Dooley 

BA [Hons] 3D Design Modelmaking + Digital Art

I am a modelmaker, sculptor, painter, film & TV fan, and gaming enthusiast. Like many others, I fell in love with the smaller details on screen and spent many nights staying up late trying to recreate the weapons, model buildings, and other strange objects that inhabit these cinematic worlds. I set my sights on learning as much as I could about making props and knew I wanted to challenge myself on many different avenues of making, from digital modelling, 3D printing, sculpting, moulding, casting, and more. It's been an amazing four years of learning and I'm immensely grateful I've had the opportunity to develop the skills needed to work at something I genuinely love.

William Guarnere, 28th April 1923 - 8th March 2014, was a United States Army Soldier who fought in World War 2 as a non-commissioned officer with Easy Company in the 101st Airborne. This model was intended to act as a museum piece, to commemorate and educate others about his life.
The full-scale head model is made of silicone with a foam core, sitting on a removable walnut wood & metal pipe stand. The head has a mix of real and synthetic hair.

The piece measures 45cm from the bottom of the base to the tip of the hat.

To make the resin eyes I started by digitally modelling in 3dsMax and then 3D printing the elements I needed to create the silicone moulds. During creation, each eye goes through four main stages: Casting the core, preparing the iris & veins, adding the pupil, and then casting the cornea. The eyes are all hand-painted, and the process takes between 5-7 hours per batch.
The WW2 insignia pins were all made by digitally modelling on 3dsMax and then 3D printing on a resin printer. These were all finished with various paints and tinted resin. The Plaque was modelled in Fusion360, printed, and then painted chrome.
Life-Sized Head Prop Replica of William J. Guarnere

I had decided in First Year I wanted to eventually challenge myself to make a full-scale realistic bust from scratch, since it requires a wide range of different methods and equipment to create, and would serve as a thorough test of all I had learned during the course.

Due to Covid lockdowns, the whole project had to be made from home. It involved a monster clay sculpt, fiberglass moulding, silicone casting & painting, hair punching, digital modelling, 3d printing, and a small amount of carpentry. During this project I got ample experience working a resin 3D printer, pressure tank, vacuum chamber, and airbrush since all were essential to the process.

This is the first fully finished silicone head I've ever made and while it certainly was a challenge, I'm looking forward to making many more.


Is the Film Industry Heading Primarily Towards Digital Effects or Practical Effects? A Study of Effects Progression Within the Star Wars Movies

My thesis covered the direction of effects in the film industry by studying the advancements and decisions made in physical and digital methods within the Star Wars movie franchise.
I chose Star Wars as a good subject to explore due to the clear differences between each of the movies as the quality and availability of new effects methods began to improve over the years. It highlighted the effectiveness of the physical effects in early cinema and how productions began to change with the introduction and development of CGI.

3D Design Modelmaking + Digital Art
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