3D Character Artist for 4-Color Bambu-Ready Collectibles

3D CHARACTER ARTIST FOR 4-COLOR BAMBU-READY COLLECTIBLES (ONGOING) ================================================================== Overview -------- We design and 3D print a line of small collectible character figures. We are looking for a reliable 3D character artist to model our characters from a provided concept render and deliver a print-ready, 4-color Bambu Studio project (.3mf) for each one. This is an ongoing role, roughly a couple of characters per month, and we want a long-term collaborator, not a one-off. For each character we give you a finished concept render. Your job is to model a figure that matches it almost exactly, then set it up as a clean 4-color print on our standard base. For some characters we can also hand you our own uncolored draft of the figure as a starting point, so you are refining and finishing rather than always starting from zero. Either way, you are not just executing a spec. We rely on your professional eye and want you to suggest adjustments to proportions, printability, and how the colors break up. Tell us what you would change. We are also looking for someone who would be open to designing complementary accessories and tools for these characters over time (small add-on props, themed bases, companion pieces, tool attachments). An interest in that kind of ongoing product work is a real plus, and it is where this role can grow. Please note, we want a human artist, not AI output -------------------------------------------------- To be clear up front: we are not looking for AI-generated models. We run our own AI pipeline, we have very capable tools, and we know them well. What we cannot get from them is a skilled human's polishing touch, clean topology, correct proportions, and a print setup that actually behaves. That is what we are hiring for. If your process is prompting an AI generator and handing over the raw result, this is not the right role. If you are a real modeler who uses tools to work faster but personally owns and finishes the geometry, we would love to talk. What you will deliver, per character ------------------------------------ 1. A print-ready .3mf (Bambu Studio project) with all four colors assigned, the figure seated on the base template we provide, ready to slice on a Bambu Lab X1 Carbon with AMS. 2. The editable source model (Blender, ZBrush, STEP, OBJ, or similar) so we can request tweaks. 3. A quick color preview render or slicer screenshot for our sign-off before the final file. Hard technical requirements --------------------------- Read these carefully. Meeting them is the whole job. Color, this is the part most people get wrong. * Exactly 4 colors per character, from our approved Bambu Lab PLA palette. We give you the exact filament names, hex values, and which region gets which color. * Colors are produced by AMS tool changes (true multi-material), not by layer-height pauses. * Each color region must be CLEAN in the slicer: sharp boundaries, no color bleed, and no speckling or flickering where two colors meet. If two surfaces sit on top of each other, the slicer flips between colors and you get a noisy speckle. That is not acceptable. * Acceptable methods: separate watertight bodies per color, each mapped to one filament slot (1 to 4), OR Bambu Studio's own color painting / segmentation, as long as the regions come out clean and slice correctly. No overlapping coincident surfaces. * The .3mf must open in Bambu Studio and slice without errors or repair warnings. Fit, our figures ship in a tube. * The character must sit on the base template we provide and fit entirely within the base's vertical footprint. Nothing (wing, prop, tail, ear) may stick out past the base diameter, because the figure ships in a tube the width of the base. * To make something fit, scale the whole figure down uniformly. Never slice, clip, or cut off a feature to make it fit. Durability, these are handled by kids. * No thin, fragile, snap-off parts. Thin props or appendages must be thickened or connected to the body for strength. We give you a minimum feature thickness. No sharp parts that can easily poke kids. * The model must be watertight and manifold, and print well with supports. Base and magnet, do not redesign these. * We provide the base as a locked template. It already contains a magnet pocket and a print pause for a magnet insert. Do not modify the base. Just seat the character onto it at the height we specify. The character will be built into the base. The eyes and small details, this is important --------------------------------------------- Small details like eyes, pupils, tiny accents, and sometimes a nose are hand-painted after printing with paint markers. Do NOT model these as tiny separate color regions in the .3mf. Leave those areas in the correct base color and we finish them by hand. We give you a simple paint guide showing which details are hand-finished. This keeps the print to a clean 4 colors and keeps the fine details crisp. Generally we only want 1 paint marker color, that is simple to apply, but strive to just have print ready parts that do not need a 5th hand drawn paint color. What we provide for each character ---------------------------------- * A concept render to match almost exactly. * Sometimes an uncolored draft figure of ours as a starting point, which you refine, correct, and suggest adjustments to. * The base template with the magnet pocket and pause. * A one-page spec sheet: base diameter, the fit rule, the 4-color palette (names, hex, and region for each), minimum feature thickness, and the paint-marker guide. Software and skills ------------------- Required: * Strong ability to model stylized, chibi-style characters that closely match a concept render. * Real experience setting up multi-color AMS prints in Bambu Studio. You can show a clean 4-color .3mf that slices without color bleed. * Solid understanding of FDM print constraints: watertight geometry, wall thickness, overhangs, supports, and no fragile features. * Any modeling package you like (Blender, ZBrush, etc.), plus Bambu Studio for the final .3mf. Nice to have: * Experience with toys, collectibles, or miniatures. * Clean topology / good retopo habits. * Interest in designing complementary accessories, tools, and companion pieces for the characters over time. This role is meant to grow beyond single figures. * Comfort taking an uncolored draft and improving it, and giving us honest feedback on what to change. How to apply ------------ Please include: 1. A portfolio of stylized character models, ideally including any multi-color FDM prints. 2. One or two examples of multi-color .3mf setups you have done, or a screenshot of the sliced color preview. 3. A sentence on your turnaround time for one character. One of our characters is attached. We also have some specific details on the size and base for whoever we choose to work with. Thanks!