“Everybody Loves Diamonds” is an Italian heist drama inspired by the infamous 2003 Antwerp Diamond Heist, one of the largest and most daring diamond thefts in history. The series follows Leonardo Notarbartolo, played by Kim Rossi Stuart, as he leads a group of small-time Italian thieves who manage to outsmart high-security systems to steal millions worth of precious gems from the Antwerp Diamond Center.

Produced by Wildside, the series premiered on Amazon Prime Video on October 13, 2023.

I had the privilege of contributing to the introduction sequence, directed by Carlani & Dogana, as a Creature TD. From the outset, the creative vision for the series leaned toward a surreal tone, connecting the first diamond theft to the allegorical theft of the apple from the Garden of Eden.

While, regrettably, this sequence was ultimately cut from the final episode due to creative differences, a trimmed version of it is still available for viewing on youtube.

It was definitely a bold and somewhat unconventional choice to kick off a heist series with a neon, pop-art-inspired Garden of Eden—but it was an absolute blast to work on! The physical set created such a surreal atmosphere, and it was exciting to work on all assets for CG creatures.

One of my tasks was to conceptualize, model, texture, rig and animate a fantasy dragonfly for the opening shot. The dragonfly served as a guide, leading the audience through this vibrant and surreal take on the Garden of Eden, setting the tone for the whimsical yet audacious world of the series. Here you have an old turnaround with some shading wip.

As said before, the mood for the sequence was set early on: a neon, surreal, and pop-inspired Garden of Eden, blending influences from the world of advertising and the vibrant, dreamlike photography of David LaChapelle.

My main task was creating a CG creature for the iconic tempting snake. The challenge was to strike a delicate balance—making the snake charming and likable while blending cartoonish appeal with photorealistic detail. The voice of the snake, provided by Elio from the Italian rock band Elio e le Storie Tese, added a unique personality to the character.

For the snake’s design, I drew inspiration from some of nature’s most flamboyant and dragon-like serpents. Its silhouette combined elements of the blue pit viper (Trimeresurus insularis), West African bush viper (Atheris squamigera), rainbow boa (Epicrates cenchria) and Saharan horned viper (Cerastes cerastes). The subtle addition of horns was a playful nod to the snake’s devilish undertones, giving a wink to its symbolic ties to Satan.

Even though the entire sequence was ultimately cut from the final version of the series, I had a great time working on this slimy little guy and gained a lot of valuable experience in the process. (For context, this work dates back to 2022).