Geometry-Aware Texture Generation for 3D Head Modeling with Artist-driven Control

TL;DR

This paper introduces a geometry-aware texture synthesis framework that enables artists to intuitively control and edit 3D head models, improving realism and efficiency in virtual character creation.

Contribution

The novel framework provides multi-level artistic control over 3D head textures, automatically propagating edits across textures while maintaining coherence and realism.

Findings

Produces diverse realistic 3D head models

Enables intuitive skin tone and detail editing

Streamlines virtual character creation workflow

Abstract

Creating realistic 3D head assets for virtual characters that match a precise artistic vision remains labor-intensive. We present a novel framework that streamlines this process by providing artists with intuitive control over generated 3D heads. Our approach uses a geometry-aware texture synthesis pipeline that learns correlations between head geometry and skin texture maps across different demographics. The framework offers three levels of artistic control: manipulation of overall head geometry, adjustment of skin tone while preserving facial characteristics, and fine-grained editing of details such as wrinkles or facial hair. Our pipeline allows artists to make edits to a single texture map using familiar tools, with our system automatically propagating these changes coherently across the remaining texture maps needed for realistic rendering. Experiments demonstrate that our method produces diverse results with clean geometries. We showcase practical applications focusing on intuitive control for artists, including skin tone adjustments and simplified editing workflows for adding age-related details or removing unwanted features from scanned models. This integrated approach aims to streamline the artistic workflow in virtual character creation.