Weapons in Fusion 360 with Duard Mostert

By Rebecca Goodine - May 18, 2021

In his new six-part series, Duard Mostert shows how CAD software like Fusion 360 can be used to model an AR-15 weapons system. Topics such as reference setup, sketching, blockouts, general weapon system knowledge, and a wide array of Fusion 360 tools are discussed.

We asked Duard about why he likes working with Fusion 360, and about what he thinks makes it a useful software for artists to know. In this interview, you’ll also discover why consistency is an important goal for Duard’s craft!

Watch “Weapons in Fusion 360”

Duard Mostert is an experienced freelance weapons and prop artist with experience in the film and games industry, currently working with the Dekogon team on various projects. Apart from his love for creative art and weapons, he might also have a slight caffeine addiction.

Behind the course:

When I just started getting into weapons art, I always found that the modeling phase was one of the things I dreaded the most. Having good topology and edge flow was always a priority. This is going to sound funny, but I used to get nightmares about bad topology and things not working when I wanted to smooth the model. I decided that there had to be a better way; I didn’t want my workflow to more stressful than it had to be. I wanted my workflow to be more creative and less technical.

I started looking into boolean workflows and ended up getting into Fusion 360. It was simple to use, simpler than anything else that I found at that time. I really loved how clean and open the UI felt so I adopted it into my workflows. Creating complex shapes became easy. My models were more precise and of better quality. Best of all, I started enjoying the modeling process again, caring less about ‘the how’ and more about trying new things. With Fusion 360 being widely adopted into studios and personal workflows today, I think it’s a great software to know, especially for complex hard surface work.

For some, making their first gun (especially a rifle) can feel daunting. With the course, you will learn not just how to model in Fusion 360, but you will also make your own rifle doing it, two birds with one stone.

Most memorable learning experience?

I think the one I have to be most beholden to is when I made my jump from VFX to the games industry. Richard Stevenson and I worked at the same studio at the time and we were both looking for new career directions. He introduced me to this project called “Project Soane”, hosted by NVIDIA, HP, Autodesk, and a few others. We had to recreate the Bank of England as we envisioned it to look in the 20th century. We ended up winning the best real-time submission, of which we both were very proud. In my time working on this project I learned a lot about baking and trim workflows, optimization within game limits, etc. It was basically my introduction and learning school for getting into the games industry.

What do you like the most about creating weapon art?

I like going to the range on weekends to go shoot. I was always intrigued by how some of our weapons had different wear on them, and how we used our weapons. It’s the same for me with creating weapons in 3D. Expression. Without getting romantic about it, it’s about telling a story, about expressing your vision for the art you make. When getting into a weapons project or just a prop, I always try to think about the story I want to tell with it. How can I tell a story without using words, making it personal? Besides the story aspect, visually we can see how we grow and get better at our craft. I learn new things daily, so daily I grow in my art. I love learning and getting better, not just in my professional life but also in my personal life.

1 sentence of advice?

Benjamin Disraeli was quoted saying, “A consistent man believes in destiny, a capricious man in chance.” You get what you put in, the amalgamation of your consistent habits will lead you to results you once thought were unobtainable.