Heart-Struck: Final Quarter Roadmap

Hello everyone. After presenting my polished showcase of Chapters 1–3 and coming back from spring break, I wanted to share an updated roadmap for what I plan to accomplish during my final quarter at SCAD for Heartstruck.

Chapter 1

At this stage of production, my biggest priority is deciding where my time will have the most impact. While I’m proud of the progress I’ve made so far, there are still a few chapters that need more attention before the final showcase.

Main Focus: Polishing Chapters 5 & 6

Chapter 5

Out of the entire project, Chapters 5 and 6 currently feel the least polished to me. Because of that, these two chapters will be my main focus at the start of the quarter.

These scenes need the most technical and visual improvement, and how quickly I can get them to a stronger level will determine how much time I have left to revisit other parts of the film.

Some of the main improvements I know I need to make include:

• Water physics for the cups

• Adding more models and environmental detail to the scenes

• Improving overall polish and scene completeness

• Possibly splitting Chapter 5 into two separate Unreal levels

Chapter 6

The last point is especially important because rendering Chapter 5 all at once has been extremely demanding on my computer. It has caused crashes and made the scene harder to manage efficiently, so separating it into two levels may be the best solution for stability and workflow.

Secondary Focus: Re-rendering Chapter 2

My second major priority is re-rendering Chapter 2.

Although this chapter is already in a much stronger place overall, I’ve noticed a slight issue that I would like to fix before the final presentation. Since Chapter 2 is already close to finished, this is less about rebuilding and more about ensuring the final version feels as polished and intentional as possible. Please note, I am not re-rendering the entire chapter, just a small section!

Chapter 2

Remaining Time: Smaller Polish Passes

Once I finish polishing Chapters 5 and 6 and re-rendering Chapter 2, my remaining time will go toward refining the other chapters.

At the moment, I think most of the later chapters are in a fairly solid place and do not need major changes. For those, I will mostly be focusing on smaller tweaks rather than large rebuilds or heavy re-rendering.

This could include things like:

• minor visual polish

• shot adjustments

• lighting refinements

• small continuity fixes

Ongoing Audio Work

Alongside the visual work, I’ll also continue improving the audio side of Heartstruck. This includes:

• working toward custom music

• fixing voice acting dialogue issues

• cleaning up and improving sound effects

Since the story depends heavily on mood, tone, and the unreliable narration, I want the audio to support the visuals as strongly as possible by the time of the final showcase.

Looking Ahead

Going into this quarter, my biggest goal is to make sure Heartstruck ends in the strongest way possible. My focus is not just on finishing tasks, but on making smart production decisions about where extra time and energy will matter most.

Thank you for reading, and I’ll continue to keep everyone updated on my progress as I keep developing Heartstruck.