"You don't need to be a good modeler to be a good artist. You just need to be good at convincing people."
Ian Hubert is a self-taught 3D artist and filmmaker best known for his wildly popular "Lazy Tutorials" series and his breathtaking short film "Dynamo" (2017). His approach to 3D is nothing short of revolutionary — he shows that you can create photorealistic, cinematic shots using shockingly simple techniques and minimal effort.
Ian's work is characterized by a deeply resourceful, "hacker" mentality. He uses photo projections instead of full 3D models, fake lighting setups, and clever compositing tricks that achieve Hollywood-level results in minutes. His Lazy Tutorials have become legendary in the Blender community for their deadpan humor and mind-blowing efficiency.
In 2018, Ian joined the Blender Studio team where he contributed to the "Agent 327" animated short series. He has given talks at Blender Conference and continues to push the boundaries of what one person can achieve with Blender.
Ian's signature technique: instead of modeling a city in 3D, he projects photographs onto simple geometry. This allows him to create incredibly detailed, cinematic environments in minutes rather than weeks.
Ian advocates for doing the minimum work necessary to sell the shot. If a texture or model works at 80% quality in the final render, spending extra time on the remaining 20% is wasted effort.
Ian demonstrates an entire filmmaking pipeline — modeling, texturing, animation, compositing, sound design — that a single artist can execute. His Dynamo short film was created almost entirely by himself in Blender.
Ian Hubert
Ian Hubert
Ian Hubert