About Anna Schmelzer — 3D Character Artist & Character Modeler
Freelance 3D Character Artist & Digital Sculptor
Hannover · Working internationally
Anna Schmelzer is a freelance 3D character artist and 3D figure sculptor based in Hannover, Germany. Over more than a decade of professional work, she has built a reputation for hyperrealistic character sculpting across some of the most demanding categories in the industry: feature film VFX, commercial toy design, collectibles, miniatures, and high-end digital portraiture. As an established 3D artist in Germany, she serves both local European clients and major international studios.
Her film credits include shotsculpting work with Framestore London on the 2021 Tom & Jerry feature film and the 2023 Disney live-action The Little Mermaid (Arielle, die Meerjungfrau), working as shotsculptor under Framestore VFX. Her commercial sculpting work spans 2015 to the present with Schleich GmbH on the Bayala fantasy toy range, Aixsponza for major brand campaigns, Dogstudio for interactive web experiences, and Toyfight for stylised character design. Her work for Dogstudio — including the character Jaxon — represents her most significant presence in the games and interactive media space. She also maintains a longstanding collaboration with Maxon as a ZBrush expert — selected as a beta tester for ZBrush for iPad, invited to present solo at IBC 2024 in Amsterdam, and chosen as the artist whose Mermaid Diorama artwork was acquired for the Apple App Store launch showcase.
Her personal work has been recognised three times at the industry's most visible level: ZBrush Top Row in 2019 (Stranski) and 2021 (Portrait with Waves), CG Society Hall of Fame in 2020 (Batgirl) and 2021 (Portrait with Waves), and a feature in 3D World Magazine's November 2021 print edition.
Anna trained in architecture at TU Darmstadt before transitioning to computer graphics — a background that still influences the structural rigour she brings to character construction. She completed an Advanced Character Animation diploma at Animation Mentor and received ZBrush certification from Ryan Kingslien in 2013, among the first artists to do so.
She is currently expanding her pipeline capabilities with Houdini and Unreal Engine 5, positioning herself for the growing demand for artists who can operate across both sculpting and real-time production environments.
IBC 2024 — Featured by Maxon
In 2024 Anna was invited by Maxon to deliver a solo live presentation at IBC — the International Broadcasting Convention in Amsterdam — on the topic of ZBrush for 3D printing and advertising. The 30-minute session draws on her decade of production toy and miniature sculpting work, and features a live demonstration piece: a ZBrush-sculpted Wacom pen holder figurine, 3D printed and presented on stage.
Hosted by Maxon on the IBC 2024 main programme. Maxon is the developer of ZBrush.
Commercial Campaign — bEpic
For this commercial project with bEpic, Anna led the character modelling pipeline for the hero astronaut. The project demonstrates her capacity to deliver high-fidelity, photorealistic assets suitable for close-up broadcast and cinematic rendering.
Hero Astronaut modeling by Anna Schmelzer. Full CGI spot produced by bEpic.
Core Sculpting
ZBrush (certified, primary tool)
3D Modelling
Maya · Blender 3D
Texturing & Surfacing
Substance Painter · Substance Designer · Mari · Photoshop
Rendering
Octane Render · Arnold · Cycles Render · Keyshot
Emerging Pipeline
Houdini (active learning) · Unreal Engine 5 (active learning) · MetaHuman prep
AI-Assisted Workflow
Kling AI (character animation) · Runway Gen-3 (atmospheric motion) · Luma Dream Machine (orbital camera) · ControlNet/ComfyUI (render enhancement)
| Award | Year | Work |
|---|---|---|
| IBC 2024 — Maxon Presentation | 2024 | Watch presentation |
| Film Credit — Shotsculptor | 2023 | The Little Mermaid — Framestore |
| ZBrush Top Row | 2021 | Portrait with Waves |
| ZBrush Top Row | 2019 | Stranski Collectibles |
| CG Society Hall of Fame | 2021 | Portrait with Waves |
| CG Society Hall of Fame | 2020 | Batgirl |
| 3D World Magazine (print) | November 2021 | Portrait with Waves |
"Cover renders for several projects use an AI-assisted composite workflow. The original sculpts are entirely hand-built in ZBrush — AI tools are used to generate environment, lighting and atmosphere around the geometry, in a similar way to how a photographer builds a set around a physical sculpture. The ZBrush clay renders showing the unaltered sculpt are visible inside each project."