Yan Thouin

Yan Thouin, also known by the alias of Thunder Thouin, is a 3D character modeler and level artist working at Ubisoft Montreal, and is best known for his work on the Assassin's Creed series, among which are Assassin's Creed: Revelations and Assassin's Creed III. His areas of expertise are concept art, character creation and modeling, all of which he has employed in creating unique NPC characters for Assassin's Creed: Revelations.

Previously, Yan worked for DC Studios (2004–2006) and Funkey Studio (2001–2003).

Biography

Since Thouin was a child, he always wanted to be a comic book artist, and subsequently spent most of his time training to become one. However, after going to college in Applied Arts, Thouin eventually drifted to the 3D realm and got an A.E.C. in 3D graphic design. In 2001, he then started working at Funkey Studio, where he designed software which created real-time 3D worlds on the Internet, as well as interactive thematic attractions which were called "Fun Key towns". International implementation of the Fun Key towns were carried out in the heart of Cancun, Jeddah and Montreal.

After two years in the field, Thouin switched to the gaming industry as an Environment Artist at DC Studios. There, he was responsible for modeling and texturing different levels and props. He also worked on special effects and characters, mainly for handheld and PlayStation 2 games. During his time at DC Studios, Thouin learned the ropes of his profession and had the opportunity to try out different paths. Finally in 2006, Thouin became a Character Artist at Ubisoft Montreal, where he applied his extensive knowledge and background in human anatomy, character concept and design.

Games credited

• Winx Club (2006) - Buena Vista Games
• Disney's Chicken Little: Ace in Action (2006) - Buena Vista Games
• TMNT (2007) - Ubisoft
• James Cameron's Avatar: The Game (2009) - Ubisoft
• Shaun White Skateboarding (2010) - Ubisoft
• Ninja Senki (2010) - PixalTao
• Assassin's Creed: Revelations (2011) - Ubisoft
• Assassin's Creed III (2012) - Ubisoft
• Watch Dogs (2012) - Ubisoft

Education

• CEGEP Saint-Laurent College, Applied Arts (1996–1998)
• Icari Institute College, 3D Graphic Design (2001)

Specialties

Programs

• ZBrush
• Autodesk 3DS Max
• Abobe After Effects
• Adobe Photoshop
• Adobe Illustrator
• CrazyBump
• XNormal
• PolyBoost
• Marvelous Designer
• Various 3D engine packages

Techniques

• ZBrush sculpting
• Texture painting
• Occlusion
• UV mapping
• Texturing
• Character modeling - Low poly
• Character modeling - High poly
• Digital sculpting
• Skinning and rigging

Gallery

The following is a sample gallery of Yan Thouin's character modelling for Assassin's Creed: Revelations.

• 
  Characters by Yan Thouin

Trivia

• Thouin speaks both English and French fluently.

References

• Official Website.
• Yan Thouin's professional profile on LinkedIn.
• Yan Thouin's profile on MobyGames.