Bergwelt Grindelwald

For those who sell luxury apartments, showing clients what they will be investing in even before it’s actually built is something clients have come to expect. The Bergwelt project in Grindelwald, Switzerland, is no exception. Prospective buyers can see what the apartments will look like before the first stone is overturned. These visualizations were created by an experienced team of professionals that combines virtual objects with real-world images.

The Grindelwald project was initiated by Capaighi Marketing GmbH and HRS Real Estate and the team at Zurich-based Raumgleiter was given the job of visualizing Grindelwald. Raumgleiter’s 3D software of choice is Maxon Cinema 4D. The team travelled to the future construction site – which lies at an altitude of 1100 m – to gather reference material and background images. Since it was mid-winter and temperatures had sunk to -25° C, a drone was used to make aerial photos.

The goal was to capture the location’s unmistakable feeling as prescribed by the advertising agency: high-class, modern, stylish Alps. The blueprints supplied the basic parameters for the apartments themselves. But empty rooms and bare walls don’t impress clients. The apartments had to be furnished and given an inviting look, which included adding items such as covers, pillows, carpets, fireplace logs, drapes and many other accessories.

A unique challenge was the snow in the surrounding environment. In many instances, virtual snow had to be added to the 3D scenes. Snow is very unique in its structure, the way it reflects light, the color of light it reflects and its surface properties – all of which make the creation of virtual snow a challenge in and of itself.

The final renderings were sent to experienced interior architects and everyone waited anxiously. Anxiously because the team knew the architects would find additional inspiration in the perfectly rendered images. The result was a barrage of modification wishes, all of which had to meet the architects’ demands.

Despite all the modifications that had to be made, the team at Raumgleiter was able to successfully complete the project in about 6 weeks. Cinema 4D and its MoGraph and BodyPaint 3D features played a large role in fulfilling the clients’ wishes. Raumgleiter’s Christoph Altermatt about Cinema 4D: “Thanks to the interface’s modular structure, the great workflow and clear arrangement as well as the program’s excellent ergonomics we were able to completely concentrate on the work at hand.”