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Raycaster Studio

Raycaster is a creative studio founded in 2026 by Nicole Ruggiero and Sam Clover, built around their shared passion for bold, character-driven visual storytelling through 3D animation, digital sculpture, and motion design. Nicole led the art direction, branding, visual identity, and animation for the Raycaster logo and website, drawing inspiration from the aesthetics of early computers and foundational 3D rendering techniques. To further shape the studio's identity, she collaborated with Sam to design a landscape and mascot that embodies Raycaster's playful, approachable spirit while remaining confident and iconic.

Raycaster Mascot Animation — "Lift Off"

Lift Off is an animated introduced to Raycaster's mascot, Ray (or Raymond). Ray is a wizard who can control light. His design was inspired by Pixar, Looney Toons, and Final Fantasy. In this humorous intro animation, Ray awakens and tries out his first attack which harness lightning, but it backfires and blows him backwards. This animation was created in 2026 with Blender, Cinema 4D, Redshift, ZBrush, Substance Painter, Adobe Photoshop, & Adobe After Effects.

Raycaster Mascot who is a cute blue wizard with a silver spike suit on looks at his hand in surprise as electricity is released through his fingertips.
A 3D render of a cute blue wizard who is flying through space with a confident look in his eyes.
A 3D render of a blue wizard with a silver spike suit on with a crazy look in his eyes and hands outstretched viewed with a fisheye lens
A 3D render of a blue wizard doing a powerful electric attack.
A 3D render of a wide shot of space with an electric wave pulsing through the air.
A 3D render of a blue wizard being blasted back through space by his own electric attack.
A 3D render of a blue wizard with a silver spike suit on coming to a halt after being blown back by his own electric attaack.
A 3D render of a dizzy blue wizard in space.
A 3D render of a blue wizard with a silver spike suit on with soot all over his face from an electric attack he tried to do.

Logo and Identity

The name Raycaster is a homage to ray casting, the first rendering method introduced in 1968 by Arthur Appel at IBM, a foundational breakthrough in 3D visualization and laid the groundwork for modern computer graphics. The name Raycaster also evokes a feeling of magic, similar to a wizard casting a spell, symbolizing the studio's ability to transform ideas into vivid visual experiences.

The visual identity blends this history with a sense of nostalgia. The logotype features a modified typeface that feels familiar to the bold, optimistic typography seen in Apple's advertising during the 1990s while remaining distinct and uniquely Raycaster. A single ray and star extend from the logo, symbolizing a path of light while also representing Raycaster's direct, efficient, and thoughtful approach to its work.

To complete the brand, Nicole and Sam imagined a world where Raycaster could exist. Inspired by the otherworldly landscape of White Sands National Park in New Mexico, the environment celebrates the brilliance of the night sky, where countless rays of light from distant stars shine down.

MTV Design, swivel itinerary for Video Music Awards, back pages, artwork with glitch aesthetic, 2016
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