From Triangles to Immersion: Teaching 3D Modeling for Virtual Reality at EuroXR Summer School 2025

During the EuroXR Summer School 2025 an international event focused on Extended Reality (XR) research and education students and professionals gathered to explore the cutting edge of immersive technologies. Celebrated from June 30 to July 5 in Lecco, Italy, the Summer School offered a rich program of lectures, workshops, and hands-on experiences, highlighting the potential of XR across industries.

As part of the week-long program, one of the sessions focused on 3D Modeling for Virtual Reality, a fundamental discipline in building immersive environments. The class was led by Bruno Rodríguez, invited to share both practical and conceptual tools for understanding how to model effectively for VR. His background in digital media and XR design made him an ideal contributor to the program, bridging the gap between artistic vision and technical constraints.

The session encouraged participants to look beyond software tools and into the core logic of VR design understanding the technical and perceptual limitations of Virtual Reality and how they shape every stage of production.

Participants explored how to optimize 3D assets specifically for VR environments, where performance, realism, and immersion must be carefully balanced. The course covered:

• Efficient polygonal modeling, keeping mesh complexity low without sacrificing visual fidelity.
• Smart texturing techniques, from UV mapping to texture baking and material optimization.
• Lighting strategies adapted to real time rendering, where resource constraints make every shadow and highlight count.

The emphasis throughout was not only on how to model, texture, and light but why these decisions matter in the context of VR: to reduce motion sickness, improve frame rates, and build more believable, responsive environments.

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