
Editor's note: This post is part of our weekly In the NVIDIA Studio series, which celebrates featured artists, offers creative tips and tricks, and demonstrates how NVIDIA Studio technology improves creative workflows.
Tis the season for friends, family and beautifully rendered Santa animations from this week's In the NVIDIA Studio artist, 3D expert Bo o Balov.
This week also marks an incredible milestone, with over 500 NVIDIA RTX-powered games and creative apps now available with support for ray tracing and AI-powered technologies like NVIDIA DLSS. Over 120 of the most popular apps - including the Adobe Creative Cloud suite, Autodesk Maya, Blender, Blackmagic Design's DaVinci Resolve, OBS, Unity and more - use RTX to accelerate workflows by orders of magnitude, power new AI tools and enhancements and enable real-time, ray-traced previews.
To celebrate, NVIDIA GeForce is hosting a giveaway for gift cards, rare, sought-after #RTXON keyboard keycaps and more. Follow GeForce on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or X (formerly known as Twitter) for instructions on how to enter.
THANK YOU FOR 500 RTX GAMES & APPS
To celebrate use #RTX500 ALL December across our social channels for a chance to win $500 gift cards courtesy of Green Man Gaming + other great prize giveaways.
For your first chance to win:
Comment #RTX500
Tell us your favorite pic.twitter.com/l3g7kTKujD
NVIDIA GeForce (@NVIDIAGeForce) December 4, 2023
Say it ain't snow: the NVIDIA Studio #WinterArtChallenge is back. Through the end of the year, share winter-themed art on Facebook, Instagram or X for a chance to be featured on NVIDIA Studio social media channels. Be sure to tag #WinterArtChallenge to join.
Winter has returned and so has our #WinterArtChallenge!
Share your winter-themed art (like this incredible one created on an RTX GPU by @rafianimates) using the hashtag for a chance to be featured on our social channels!
We can t wait to see what you create! pic.twitter.com/Ml4cUAUgW3
NVIDIA Studio (@NVIDIAStudio) December 4, 2023
Finally, 80 Level - the creative community for digital artists, animators and computer-generated imagery specialists - is hosting its Community Metasites Challenge. Artists can showcase their creativity by applying unique aesthetics to a simple block level via characters, game mechanics, visual effects and more - with a chance to win a new NVIDIA Studio laptop. Register today.
Special Thanks to @NVIDIAStudio who is offering this incredible prize for the first place winner of the 80 Level Community Metasites Challenge.
An ASUS ProArt Studiobook 16 OLED H7600 16" Laptop!
Register Nowhttps://t.co/OigWqOUlSD#NVIDIA #80levelmetasiteschallenge #UE5 #CG pic.twitter.com/atOozRqSxR
80 LEVEL (@80Level) November 27, 2023
Wrapper's Delight Balov's Christmas Rush 3D animation reimagines Santa as a resident of the coastal city of Split, Croatia - but with a harsher, less jolly edge.
https://blogs.nvidia.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/studio-bozo-balov-wk86-face-closeup-1280w.mp4
Balov jumped straight into modeling edgy Saint Nick in the virtual-reality modeling software Quill. He deployed vertex-painting techniques and used a photogrammetry scan of a Vespa as a base, adding brushstrokes to blend it with the rest of the scene.
https://blogs.nvidia.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/studio-bozo-balov-wk86-turntable-light-1280w.mp4
To achieve a flickering effect on Santa's clothing, Balov created a custom texture with different brush strokes in Adobe Photoshop. The texture doubles as an alpha map, which intentionally clips the geometry.
https://blogs.nvidia.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/studio-bozo-balov-wk86-solid-anim-1280w.mp4
When it comes to rendering 3D graphics, nothing really comes close to NVIDIA GPUs. - Bo o Balov
He then used Adobe Photoshop to paint monochromatic background layers. Balov's GeForce RTX 3080 Ti GPU unlocked over 30 GPU-accelerated features, including blur gallery, liquify, smart sharpen and perspective warp.
Balov then converted the files to the FBX adaptable file format for 3D software before importing them into Blender, where he animated the layers to move in the opposite direction of the character to create a sense of speed. He kept the lighting fairly simple, with one light source as the base and a few supplemental ones to emphasize specific parts of the scene.
https://blogs.nvidia.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/studio-bozo-balov-wk86-turntable-half-1280w.mp4
Balov prefers working in Blender's real-time engine EEVEE to animate his scene, cutting wait times. RTX-accelerated OptiX ray tracing in the viewport enabled greater interactivity with smoother movement, speeding his ideation and creative workflow.
Extraordinary detail. Rendering is a joy on NVIDIA RTX cards, said Balov. Since OptiX made its debut, rendering times have been cut in half or more - Blender Cycles feels like a real-time engine.
When asked for advice to give aspiring artists, Balov emphasized the importance of individual passion.
Pursue what matters to you, he said. Don't spend time fulfilling other people's ideas of what art should be.
https://blogs.nvidia.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/studio-itns-bozo-balov-wk86-artist-feature-1280w.mp4
Check out Balov's art portfolio on Instagram.
Follow NVIDIA Studio on Facebook, Instagram and X. Access tutorials on the Studio YouTube channel and get updates directly in your inbox by subscribing to the Studio newsletter.
North America Stories
01/10/2026
Big Blue Marble has announced the addition of live multiview channels to its Clo...
01/10/2026
The company CEO sees AI as a tool in speeding and enhancing product development
...
01/10/2026
Production, tech, crewing, and logistics teams draw on experience of a busy inau...
01/10/2026
The Partnership Will Support Filmmakers Worldwide Through Original Short Films I...
01/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/10/2026
For more than two decades, Disguise has powered some of the most ambitious live events and experiences in the world from Bad Bunny and Coachella to the Burj K...
01/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/10/2026
The Australian football team can turn match footage into tactical insights to improve performance and maximize fan engagement
Vizrt, the AI platform for visual...
01/10/2026
When Mesh Broadcast Services set out to fit the pro audio capability of a large TV truck into a small audio room for high-profile sports events, Calrecs Argo M ...
01/10/2026
Emergent, the browser-native broadcast graphics platform, today announced the appointment of Tom Shelburne as Head of Business Development, North America, effec...
01/10/2026
Melbourne, Australia 1 October 2026: Mediaproxy, the global standard for software-based IP compliance monitoring and multiviewing solutions, will showcase maj...
01/10/2026
Clear-Com is supporting the education and development of future audiovisual industry professionals in Poland through the deployment of its Arcadia Central Sta...
01/10/2026
Telef nica Servicios Audiovisuales (TSA), the audiovisual services arm of global telecommunications group Telef nica, has supplied and commissioned an LED wall ...
01/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/10/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/10/2026
Eleven minutes between headliners. The sponsor loop needs to be on screen now, and the only operator on hand is the one running lights. With the Green Hippo Est...
01/10/2026
DigiBox has announced a new partnership with FOR-A to represent the innovative MixBoard product range in the UK market, further expanding its portfolio of broa...
01/10/2026
Mavis Camera 8.2 adds iPhone 18 Pro support with variable aperture control
Brie Clayton September 30, 2026
0 Comments
Latest release also introduces P...
01/10/2026
Ghosts of the Gold Rush Shot with PYXIS 6K
Brie Clayton September 30, 2026
0 Comments
Blackmagic Design cameras expertly capture documentary while del...
01/10/2026
RE:Vision Effects - RSMB V7 is here!
Lori Freitag September 30, 2026
0 Comments
ReelSmart Motion Blur 7 is here, the RSMB V7 cycle is open. ReelSmart ...
01/10/2026
VideoGen raises $3.3M seed as its AI video platform passes 5 million users
Brie Clayton September 30, 2026
0 Comments
VideoGen co-founders Anton Koeni...
01/10/2026
New taproom, restaurant, lounge and theater in the historic Power Plant add to ATC's growing social hub
Fullsteam Brewery and CBC Real Estate celebrate th...
01/10/2026
Berklee and APM Music Launch Global Catalog Bringing Student-Created Music to Fi...
01/10/2026
ITVX AND WARNER BROS. DISCOVERY ANNOUNCE NEW BRANDED CONTENT PARTNERSHIP
QUEST
TLC
Under a new branded content partnership between Warner Bros. Disco...
01/10/2026
Save $50 on Ivory 3 American Concert D and German DThis fall, bring the sound and expressive character of two world-class concert grands into your studio with s...
01/10/2026
AI factories are built by the megawatt, even by the gigawatt. Each megawatt fact...
01/10/2026
Spooky season is streaming in. Alongside falling leaves, pumpkin spice and everything nice, 25 new games are joining GeForce NOW throughout October, including s...
30/09/2026
Drawn to the many moving pieces of a live broadcast, this Los Angeles native is building a path in production management and technical operations...
30/09/2026
TNT Sports goes big for its season opener in Philadelphia, and REMI workflows at Techwood will again anchor much of regular-season production...
30/09/2026
Qvest has appointed Katlyn Alexander as CEO of Qvest in North America, effective August 16, 2026. Alexander, who previously served as COO of Qvest US, succeeds ...
30/09/2026
The American Association of Professional Baseball (AAPB) has wrapped its 2026 season, with leaguewide attendance surpassing 1.4 million for the fifth consecutiv...
30/09/2026
Veritone has announced a multi-year content licensing agreement with ATP Media, the broadcast production and distribution arm of the ATP Tour, making ATP's ...
30/09/2026
Netflix has announced it will become the exclusive home for WWE programming in Japan beginning October 1, 2026. The lineup includes Raw, SmackDown, NXT, Premium...
30/09/2026
SES and Sky have announced a new multi-year agreement for direct-to-home satellite services across the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland, running into the ...
30/09/2026
Big Blue Marble has announced the addition of live multiview channels to its Clo...
30/09/2026
The NHRA has announced multi-year media rights agreements with FOX Sports, The C...
30/09/2026
FOX 5 Atlanta (WAGA-TV) will carry Nashville Predators games during the 2026-27 season as part of Scripps Sports' regional broadcast network for the team. G...
30/09/2026
AI was a big buzz on the IBC show floor but there weren't a ton of companies...
30/09/2026
The PGA TOUR has announced the appointment ofRyan Holcomb as Senior Vice President and Head of Original Content, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Holcomb wi...
30/09/2026
The sound will be more immersive, with improved design and more mikes on the ice and the players
The National Hockey League's season opener on Tuesday nigh...
30/09/2026
TNT Sports is dropping the puck on the 2026-27 NHL season in a big way in Philad...
30/09/2026
The International Swimming League (ISL) today announced the appointment of Gravity Media, global leader in live production and content and media services and fa...
30/09/2026
By Ramona Flume
One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festiva...
30/09/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...