Pauline LISI • Portfolio
CHRISTMAS JOKE
ARTISTIC TEST PROJECT • 2025
LIGHTING / POST-PROCESS
"Christmas Joke" is a project created in Unity as part of an artistic test for a studio recruitment process in 2025. While I’m allowed to share the result on my professional networks, I prefer not to mention the name of the studio out of respect for confidentiality. For this project, I was responsible for the lighting, light baking, post-processing, and the final render of the scene. I also had a reference I had to follow in order to create a similar atmosphere to this one.
This test was a real challenge for me. Although I had some familiarity with real-time engines through my personal use of Unreal Engine, my background is mainly in pre-rendered workflows. On top of that, I had never used Unity before, so I had to quickly learn a brand-new tool while delivering lighting, baking, and rendering within a tight deadline.
This experience helped me deepen my understanding of real-time lighting, especially in terms of light baking for optimization and how to use different types of lighting (baked, mixed, and realtime) effectively.
Even though the result isn’t perfect, I’m extremely proud of what I was able to achieve with a tool I had never used before. I learned a great deal in a short amount of time and genuinely enjoyed working with Unity.
Once again, real-time rendering has truly impressed me, and I’m increasingly drawn to this approach for future projects.
WHAT DO YOU WANT TO SEE ?
REFERENCE
LIGHTING BREAKDOWN
SHOT 01
SHOT 02
BAKING BREAKDOWN
SHOT 01
SHOT 02
POST-PROCESSING BREAKDOWN
SHOT 01
SHOT 02
WHAT I LEARNED ?
WHAT CAN I IMPROVE IN MY FUTURE PROJECTS ?
• To learn the basics of Unity
• To create lighting and compositing in Unity
• To produce a final render directly within the engine
• To deepen my understanding of real-time rendering engines
• To understand the challenges of real-time lighting optimization
• To identify different types of lighting (baked, mixed, realtime) and to know when and how to use each effectively
• To find a balance between visual quality and performance, especially in real-time lighting
• To learn how to bake lights properly
• To use light layers in Unity
• To master post-processing and to understand the differences between the various volumes (Sky & Fog Volume, Global Volume, etc.)
• To develop a structured and efficient workflow within Unity
• Lighting Approach ► Now that I know real-time lighting can look different once it’s baked, even with optimal settings, I plan to better anticipate these discrepancies to ensure the baked result stays as close as possible to the real-time preview
• Unity Knowledge ► Although I’ve learned a lot in just a few days and feel comfortable with the software, I’m aware there’s still a lot more to explore. I fully intend to keep learning and improving as I work on new projects
• Understanding of real-time engines ► I’m truly passionate about real-time rendering. The more I work with it, the more I understand and appreciate its power. That said, I know there are still many subtleties and advanced techniques to master in order to take my projects to the next level