3D Animation (3DS Max) Certificate

Course Description

Achieve stunning results in less time with Autodesk 3DS Max software. Accelerate your creative workflow and increase your pipeline efficiency with enhanced animation and rendering tools. 3DS Max takes advantage of the latest technology advancements, such as 64-bit workstations, to help you work with ever-increasing amounts of data and more-complex scenes.

This course is highly recommended for those wishing to pursue a career in art and/or animation for games, particular if you are just getting started. It is designed to make learning the fundamentals of game modeling fun while still covering a large variety of required techniques. This course is also an excellent choice for students pursuing a programming track who want to learn more about how to create assets for their own projects. Basically, anyone who wishes to explore the techniques of building models in a 3D environment will benefit from this course.

Course Curriculum

3DS MAX for Games - Module I

This course will introduce you to fundamental modeling techniques for games and other multimedia applications using the 3D Studio MAX software. Course content will focus on developing core modeling skills, modifier usage, and polygonal modeling principles. Some tutorials will focus on skills that will immediately transfer towards building in-game assets (exportable to a game engine). Other tutorials will build toward game asset creation and, while not immediately exportable to games directly, they will help you understand the basic concepts of model creation. In either case, the goal of the course is to help you learn how to create game models using the modeling tool.

The lessons cover the following topics:

• Conceptualizing 3D coordinate systems.
• How to construct 3D models using various tools.
• Understanding the basic skills of box modeling.
• Designing various texture types and applying textures using UVW coordinates.
• Understanding the processes in which modifiers and manipulators work within a 3D environment.
• How to render a scene.

This course is highly recommended for those wishing to pursue a career in art and/or animation for games, particular if you are just getting started. It is designed to make learning the fundamentals of game modeling fun while still covering a large variety of required techniques. This course is also an excellent choice for students pursuing a programming track who want to learn more about how to create assets for their own projects. Basically, anyone who wishes to explore the techniques of building models in a 3D environment will benefit from this course.  Click here for a detail outline

3DS MAX for Games - Module II

This course will build on the skills covered in the first module of the 3DSMAX for Games series of classes. Course content will center on organic modeling skills, UVW mapping techniques and advanced polygonal modeling principles. Most tutorials will focus on skills that will immediately transfer well towards building in game assets and characters (exportable to a game engine). Course contents can be used to create game assets or higher poly meshes, but in either case the skills needed to create exportable game engine assets will be covered in this class.

You will learn how to use advanced components of the 3DS MAX software to create multi- object and seamless organically structured models..

The lessons cover the following topics:

• Use maps instead of actual geometry to represent details in a model.
• Control polygonal face count through the various object parameters, such as segments and sides of primitives, path and shape steps for loft objects and tessellation controls for some modifiers.
• Understanding more advanced techniques of box modeling.
• Create Opacity, specular, luminosity, ambient occlusion and normal maps and learn to apply them correctly.
• Create environmental props of various complexities making sure that the relative scale and details match other objects in the environment.
• Create props and static meshes.
• Build error free and exportable game engine meshes in 3D.
• Develop shallow space diffuse maps that simulate real world surfaces.
• Create character or organic based meshes from your own concept.

This course is an excellent second stage for those wishing to pursue a career in game modeling. The course is designed to create professional game based textured assets and character meshes for use in an entry level portfolio.  Click here for a detail outline.

Instructor Bio:  Teaches both Level I & II

Christian Bradley has been involved with PC, console, and online game development for the last twelve years as an Environment Artist and Texture Artist. He has worked on over 35 commercial video game titles for various formats including PC, PS2, XBOX and GBA. Before developing a freelance business of his own over seven years ago, Christian worked in-house at Interplay, The Dreamers Guild Studios, and The Collective Studios. While in-house or contracting, he worked on game titles such as: Of Light and Darkness, Deep Space Nine, The Fallen, Unreal Tournament 2004, Unreal 2: The Awakening and Battle Engine Aquila. Some of his other clients include: Activision, Interplay, Digital Extremes, Legend Entertainment, Codemasters, and Totally Games.

For the past five years Christian has worked as an Instructor and Academic Director of Game Art and Design at the Art Institute of California, San Diego. Christian currently lives in Southern California with his wife Angela, son Andrew and a very charismatic box turtle.

3DS Max for Games - Module III

Characters are extremely important in games these days. Characters get better with each new generation of games. The main character can be the most recognizable symbol for the game, often the most important branding for the game franchise. In many types of games, the main character is on-screen for the vast majority of the time the game is played. For these reasons and many others, a game character animator is a high-paying and high-profile job.

It is quite satisfying to play a game and see your own artwork gracing the environments or menu screens. It can be even more satisfying to see the characters in the game and to know that you were the one that gave them life.

This course will teach you about the tools and practices of 3D game animators. You'll learn how game characters are created, and take your own ideas from initial concepts to full-blown 3D animated character. You'll leave this course with a framework and foundation upon which to build your character animation skills into an enjoyable and gratifying career.

You will learn how professional animators bring characters to life. You will learn how to generate your own character designs and take them from initial concept to fully animated 3D character.

The lessons cover the following topics:

·         Inspiration and archetypes

·         The character design process

·         Modeling a game character

·         UVW mapping for game characters

·         Setting up a skeleton for a character

·         Skinning a character

·         The Principles of Animation

·         Animation for game characters

·         Game Animation

 Anyone who wants to learn about creating and animating game characters should take this course. If you want to be an animator, you should take this course. If you want to be a game artist, but are undecided about being an animator, this course will reveal all that you need to know to make that decision.

Instructor Bio:

Todd Gantzler is a writer, educator, and game artist. Todd worked as a 3D artist on such games such as Gex 3D, Cyberia, and Akuji the Heartless, work that included 3D models and textures, tiling textures, character animation and game design. Todd has taught and developed curricula for game development programs at various schools in San Francisco, England and New Zealand. He has been designing and teaching game art and design classes since 2000. Todd's first book Game Development Essentials: Video Game Art was published by Thomson Delmar Learning in July 2004. Todd began his career in graphics and animation for TV and film; his film credits include The Pagemaster (1994).

What are the prerequisites to understanding the course material?

Rudimentary knowledge of Microsoft™ Word (or compatible) software is required. You should also be comfortable moving through the Microsoft™ Windows desktop environment. Some experience with Photoshop™ would also be beneficial but is not required.

Software included

You will need the 3D Studio MAX™ software (version 8 or higher recommended). MAX will only run in Microsoft™ Windows (2000, XP). All 3ds Max™ courses now include a copy of the 3ds Max™ 9 software, complete with a 1 year student license. Create stunning 3D objects, characters and scenery for your games using cutting edge technology from the industry leaders in the field of 3D modeling and rendering.

What materials are necessary to complete the course?

• Adobe Photoshop™ (7.0, CS, CS2, and CS3) is also recommended.
•  Wacom (or other compatible) tablet is also recommended for Level III
• The Level I course also includes a number of optional weekly reading assignments from the textbook "Autodesk 3DS MAX 8 Revealed" by Dutton and Doran. (ISBN: 0-619-27343-7). While not required, it is strongly recommended that you purchase a copy of this book to get the best experience possible from the course. This textbook can be purchased during the course checkout process if you would like us to ship the textbook direct to you, or can be purchased separately from an alternative outlet (such as Amazon).
• The Level II course also includes a number of optional weekly reading assignments from the textbook "Creating the Art of the Game" by Matthew Omernick. (ISBN: 0-7357-1409-6). While not required, it is strongly recommended that you purchase a copy of this book to get the best experience possible from the course. This textbook can be purchased during the course checkout process if you would like us to ship the textbook direct to you, or can be purchased separately from an alternative outlet (such as Amazon).
• The Level III course also includes a number of optional weekly reading assignments from the textbook "Game Character Design Complete" by David Franson & Erik Thomas. (ISBN: 1-5986-3270-1). While not required, it is strongly recommended that you purchase a copy of this book to get the best experience possible from the course. This textbook can be purchased during the course checkout process if you would like us to ship the textbook direct to you, or can be purchased separately from an alternative outlet (such as Amazon).