[Tamar]

From beginning of December till now, feels like one long turbulent flight. Trying to get the M8 ready for the Suzuka 6hrs and the 9th edition of the DiSCA LM 24hrs.
The lull I'm in now after it has been cancelled feels like the eye of the storm as most of Europe braces itself against the full force of an ill wind.
With no racing planned for the near future...perfect time for an M8 GTE Flashback. Dail back the clock to 2018.

In the beginning....
After waiting for a year, none of the mainstream manufacturers had even mentioned plans to start working on a M8 GTE. So like 4 years earlier with the Toyota TS 040...
...I decided to make my own. And this time I really had to start from scratch, as unlike with the Toyota there were also no other static scale models available of the car.
In August I discussed the project with my good friend Fola (slotfabrik). Would he be interested in a joint venture where he would do a 1/24 version and I would do the 1/32nd scaled car?
Although we're both done our fair share of manual masters we decided the first thing to do was to search for a designer that would/could do a 3d Model for us...
...because at that time ...2d, let alone 3d...there was nothing.



3D Renders of the same BMW M6 GT3, done by 4 different 3D artists....will give you 4 different interpretations of the same car...spot the differences, which one to choose 

There were plenty of 3D artist to be found via the web, some of them "specialized" Automotive modellers, but after a lot of browsing Fola and I only considered a few that we both agreed on as really good.
Because, unless one has the original files from the manufacturer, 3D modeling, like classic sculpture, is really a fine art. 
Check the 3D Renders in the picture above. All of the same BMW M6 GT3, done by 4 different 3D artists....which will give you 4 different interpretations of the same car...
all of them good...hard to spot the differences, which one to choose? 
In the end we found an artist that did freelance work for the (automotive) game industry. His portfolio contained the most accurate and detailed 3D model of the BMW M6 GT-LM.

We contacted him and he was up for it, so I provided the artist with all the reference photos and research I had collected over the year.
I left it to Fola to make a deal (he's much more a business man than I am). For a fair amount of money we would get our 3D model, but no in between work in progress updates.
No unique use of the model let alone unique rights. Deadline would be October 2018, payed half up front and half upon delivery.

And then there was...light
Oct 2 was the promised delivery date for the 3d model and behold that morning Fola got the first renders of the M8GTE. I must say..I was most pleasantly surprised.
Because in the previous weeks the project had been a giant leap of faith, had we picked the right guy, how accurate would the model turn out to be?
As the renders lit up my screen, all my concerns faded away. Proportions were good, the amount of detail immaculate, he'd done a very good job, the work of a true artist.
There were a few small details that need to be finished (mirrors and dashboard) which he promised to do that week. So by mid October we had "our" 3d model, all we had to do now was make it printable.



to be continued

With kind regards
Tamar