RTF 344M (08280): COMP ANIMATION & 3-D MODELING
Fall 2011
INSTRUCTOR : Ben Bays
Class time: Tuesday/Thursday 3:30 pm - 5:00 pm
Lab Time: TBA
Class Location: CMB B4.110
Final Screening: TBA
Office Hours: TBA
Office Location: CMB 4B
Office Phone Number: 947.6162 (cel)
Ben Bays’ e-mail address: benbays@mail.utexas.edu
A NOTE ON THE LABS:
Lab hours will be a time for you to gain extra knowledge and to get personal help with class work. I encourage you to work on your assignments during lab and class hours if possible. The computer lab itself will be available for you to work in anytime that no other class is using it (and during other classes there should be a computer available in the control room to work on). If you need extra help, THIS IS THE BEST TIME TO GET IT.
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This is a production course which covers 3D modeling, surfacing, lighting and animation. We will use Autodesk Maya extensively, cover some Photoshop texture training, MatchMover for integrating our 3D work with live action footage and Unity for implementation in interactive environments. Along the way, we may use other pieces of software.
In addition to class participation, there will be assignments of varying scope. These projects will involve using the computers. If you feel that you lack the necessary skills to do any of the assignments, please talk to me. I will be happy to work with you during lab times, but you will be responsible for putting in the extra work that is necessary to complete the assignments.
Additionally, I will require that each student keep a production blog. This is how your work will be turned in.
The assignments build upon each other and require a pretty fast turn around time. For this reason, I expect your work done and turned in on time.
Late Assignments are completely unacceptable. If, due to some emergency, you will not be able to finish your assignment within the allotted time, you MUST make arrangements with me.
Remember this is a production course and will require many hours of work outside of class.
COURSE EVALUATION:
Your grade is determined by projects, typically one each week. Each has an equal weight in determining your final grade. The following factors are how I grade each assignment:
1.) Promptness: Each week's assignment is due at the beginning of class the following Thursday. If your assignment is not ready, you receive a “zero” and must see me privately to get partial credit.
2.) To my specifications: each assignment will have a set of requirements for completion. Missing any part of the specifications will result in points being subtracted.
3.) Quality of work : in addition to merely fulfilling the basic minimum requirements, I expect you to submit work which is polished, bold and creative. Simply going through the motions, "dialing it in" as it were, is unacceptable.
I keep a running tally of your grade as the semester progresses. You may ask me for a status update at any time or check egradebook in the UTDirect online system. If you ever have questions about your grade, I am happy to talk about your work during my office hours.
ATTENDANCE POLICY:
If you miss class you will certainly fall behind. I expect you to attend every class. Obviously, this isn’t always possible. If you must miss a class, talk to me when you return to class so we can catch you up.
LATE ASSIGNMENT POLICY:
Assignments are due at the beginning of class on the day they are due. They must be in the proper format on your blog.
NOTE ON ASSIGNMENT FORMATS:
You will be instructed on the proper format for each assignment. It is your responsibility to make sure you can get your projects output to the proper format. In the past students who worked at home often had difficulty exporting the proper formats, so if you choose to work at home, I recommend you work on the assignments early and make sure you are able to export the proper formats. If you have trouble you must seek help during office hours or lab time BEFORE the assignment is due. Having the wrong format will not be an excuse for late assignments.
THE COURSE SCHEDULE:
Week 1: INTRODUCTION: Let’s get to know each other and see what we will cover this semester
assignment:
- create a blog
- introduce yourself
- include links to/embed your previous work
- email me (benbays@yahoo.com) your blog address
Week 2: Perspective Drawing and Digital Painting
Robot Army -- in-class exercise
Week 3: Introduction to 3D Maya -- Form
Maya Navigation, Organization, Creation
Basic primitives, materials, rendering
Week 4: 3D forms II
Drawing, Tracing, Loft, Lathe, Extrude, Booleans
Week 5: Materials
Surfacing and textures
UVW mapping
UVW unwrapping
Week 6: Lighting and Camera
post effects
Class Project:
Week 7: Building an environment -- architectural modeling
in class : formulate an environment to build, distribute work
scale: and editable polygon intro
assignment: model and texture a prop
Week 8: Editable Polygon continued
Work on environmental feature
Week 9: Revisions to Feature
Features will be reviewed and critiqued in class.
Week 10: Feature Completion
end of class project?
Week 11: Some Assembly required
assemble and render our environment
end of class project (extension?)
Week 12: Basic Animation in Maya
Week 14: (short week) Building to animate
FK, IK and constraints
Skeletons, rigging, and skinning
assignment: animating our character
Week 13: Motion Tracking
assignment: embed a 3D model in a dynamic camera shot
Week 15: Particles and Simulations
Of course any part of this syllabus may change. Now for the general University stuff:
Regarding Scholastic Dishonesty: The University defines academic dishonesty as cheating, plagiarism, unauthorized collaboration, falsifying academic records, and any act designed to avoid participating honestly in the learning process. Scholastic dishonesty also includes, but is not limited to, providing false or misleading information to receive a postponement or an extension on a test, quiz, or other
assignment, and submission of essentially the same written assignment for two courses without the prior permission of the instructor. By accepting this syllabus, you have agreed to these guidelines and must adhere to them. Scholastic dishonest damages both the student's learning experience and readiness for the future demands of a work-career. Students who violate University rules on scholastic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary penalties, including the possibility of failure in the course and/or dismissal from the University. For more information on scholastic dishonesty, please visit the Student Judicial services Web site at http://www.utexas.edu/depts/dos/sjs/.
About the Undergraduate Writing Center: The Undergraduate Writing Center, located in the FAC 211, phone 471-6222, offers individualized assistance to students who want to improve their writing skills. There is no charge, and students may come in on a drop-in or appointment basis.
About services for students with disabilities: The University of Texas at Austin provides upon request appropriate academic accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. For more information, contact the Office of the Dean of Students at 471-6259, 471-4641 TTY.
1. Copyright and Fair Use: For Production Classes Only
You may find the need to use copyrighted material this semester: music, photographs, movie clips, or any other expression. For many of your uses, you need to find the copyright holder and negotiate a license. You own the copyright to the work you produce in this class. As a copyright holder yourself, you understand the importance of copyright ownership. It is your responsibility to secure music and archival footage licenses as well as artwork, location and personal releases. You will find release templates on the RTF website.
For some uses, however, neither you nor anyone else needs to license copyrighted material. This is because copyright law exists to encourage and support creativity. Copyright law recognizes that creativity doesn’t arise in a vacuum. As creators, we all stand on the shoulders of giants. New works of art (such as films, books, poems, paintings) all make use of what has gone before. Thus, copyright law not only protects authors with a copyright that lets them decide who can use their works, but also offers exemptions from the author’s control. For filmmakers, the most important exemption is the doctrine of fair use. You can rely on fair use, where appropriate, in the film and media projects you undertake for this course. If you are making adocumentary film, consult the influential Documentary Filmmakers Statement of Best Practices in Fair Use (http://www.centerforsocialmedia.org/files/pdf/fair_use_final.pdf), which was created by a group of national filmmaker organizations, has been endorsed by the University Film and Video Association, and is now relied on by film festivals, insurers, cablecasters, distributors and public broadcasters. Fair use also applies in the fiction film environment, but not necessarily to the same extent or in the same way.
As always, the central question is whether the new use is "transformative" -- i.e., whether it adds significant value by modifying or recontextualizing the original. For more understanding, including information on when you can use works for free (http://www.centerforsocialmedia.org/files/pdf/free_use.pdf) without even using fair use, why you (mostly) don’t need to worry about trademarks (http://www.centerforsocialmedia.org/files/pdf/free_use.pdf), what is in the public domain (http://www.centerforsocialmedia.org/rock/backgrounddocs/copyrightterm.pdf), how fair use lawsuits (http://www.centerforsocialmedia.org/videos/sets/fair_use_case_studies) have been settled, and on how fair use has been employed successfully (http://www.centerforsocialmedia.org/videos/sets/fair_use_case_studies) in documentary film, visit centerforsocialmedia.org/fairuse
2. RTF SAFETY POLICY
Special safety precautions for your crew, actors and others in the area are required if you are undertaking any hazardous activities while filming, including but not limited to ANY driving or horseback/livestock shots, shooting in or around water or heights, or if you are using stunts, flames, pyrotechnics, squibs or simulated weapons (real weapons of any kind are never permitted). In addition, you must follow all federal, state and local laws and the rules of any venue or location at which you are filming regarding hazardous activities, including University of Texas at Austin rules if filming is done on campus.
Student filmmakers must submit a detailed safety plan to their course instructor and the RTF Technical Facilities Manager if a script or project involves driving or horseback/livestock shots, shooting in or around water or heights, stunts, flames, pyrotechnics, squibs, weapons or any other hazardous activities (this requirement applies to all shoots, including documentary projects, but please see the special guidelines for documentary driving shots below). It is the responsibility of the student to hire experts in the field and budget at least $600/day for expert consultation and on-set supervision if, in the judgment of the class instructor and the Technical Facilities Manager, such expert consultation or supervision is necessary.
Students should understand that driving while filming will be permitted only in strictly limited circumstances, such as on a private road or drive. In most circumstances, students who wish to undertake driving shots will be required to arrange for a police escort and a city permit. Monitors inside the vehicle will NOT be allowed while filming in a vehicle. Filming from the back of trucks is not considered safe and is not permitted under any circumstances.
Documentary filming of an interview while the interview subject is driving is only permitted if the cameraperson is secured in a seat belt and is not directing the driver of the car in any way, besides engaging in a conversation in which the driver/interviewee has been informed not to look at the camera or the interviewer at all during the interview. In addition, any filming from a vehicle, for drive-by B-roll, must be done by a cameraperson secured in a seat belt, where the driver is not being directed in any way by the director, so that they are driving as they normally would. As noted above, any documentary student planning on filming in any vehicle must submit a safety plan to their course instructor and the RTF Technical Facilities Manager.
Students who fail to comply with this policy will receive a failing grade in this class and will be barred from future access to RTF production and post-production equipment and facilities.
RTF 344M (08280): COMP ANIMATION & 3-D MODELING
Fall 2011
INSTRUCTOR : Ben Bays
Class time: Tuesday/Thursday 3:30 pm - 5:00 pm
Lab Time: TBA
Class Location: CMB B4.110
Final Screening: TBA
Office Hours: TBA
Office Location: CMB 4B
Office Phone Number: 947.6162 (cel)
Ben Bays’ e-mail address: benbays@mail.utexas.edu
A NOTE ON THE LABS:
Lab hours will be a time for you to gain extra knowledge and to get personal help with class work. I encourage you to work on your assignments during lab and class hours if possible. The computer lab itself will be available for you to work in anytime that no other class is using it (and during other classes there should be a computer available in the control room to work on). If you need extra help, THIS IS THE BEST TIME TO GET IT.
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This is a production course which covers 3D modeling, surfacing, lighting and animation. We will use Autodesk Maya extensively, cover some Photoshop texture training, MatchMover for integrating our 3D work with live action footage and Unity for implementation in interactive environments. Along the way, we may use other pieces of software.
In addition to class participation, there will be assignments of varying scope. These projects will involve using the computers. If you feel that you lack the necessary skills to do any of the assignments, please talk to me. I will be happy to work with you during lab times, but you will be responsible for putting in the extra work that is necessary to complete the assignments.
Additionally, I will require that each student keep a production blog. This is how your work will be turned in.
The assignments build upon each other and require a pretty fast turn around time. For this reason, I expect your work done and turned in on time.
Late Assignments are completely unacceptable. If, due to some emergency, you will not be able to finish your assignment within the allotted time, you MUST make arrangements with me.
Remember this is a production course and will require many hours of work outside of class.
COURSE EVALUATION:
Your grade is determined by projects, typically one each week. Each has an equal weight in determining your final grade. The following factors are how I grade each assignment:
1.) Promptness: Each week's assignment is due at the beginning of class the following Thursday. If your assignment is not ready, you receive a “zero” and must see me privately to get partial credit.
2.) To my specifications: each assignment will have a set of requirements for completion. Missing any part of the specifications will result in points being subtracted.
3.) Quality of work : in addition to merely fulfilling the basic minimum requirements, I expect you to submit work which is polished, bold and creative. Simply going through the motions, "dialing it in" as it were, is unacceptable.
I keep a running tally of your grade as the semester progresses. You may ask me for a status update at any time or check egradebook in the UTDirect online system. If you ever have questions about your grade, I am happy to talk about your work during my office hours.
ATTENDANCE POLICY:
If you miss class you will certainly fall behind. I expect you to attend every class. Obviously, this isn’t always possible. If you must miss a class, talk to me when you return to class so we can catch you up.
LATE ASSIGNMENT POLICY:
Assignments are due at the beginning of class on the day they are due. They must be in the proper format on your blog.
NOTE ON ASSIGNMENT FORMATS:
You will be instructed on the proper format for each assignment. It is your responsibility to make sure you can get your projects output to the proper format. In the past students who worked at home often had difficulty exporting the proper formats, so if you choose to work at home, I recommend you work on the assignments early and make sure you are able to export the proper formats. If you have trouble you must seek help during office hours or lab time BEFORE the assignment is due. Having the wrong format will not be an excuse for late assignments.
THE COURSE SCHEDULE:
Week 1: INTRODUCTION: Let’s get to know each other and see what we will cover this semester
assignment:
- create a blog
- introduce yourself
- include links to/embed your previous work
- email me (benbays@yahoo.com) your blog address
Week 2: Perspective Drawing and Digital Painting
Robot Army -- in-class exercise
Week 3: Introduction to 3D Maya -- Form
Maya Navigation, Organization, Creation
Basic primitives, materials, rendering
Week 4: 3D forms II
Drawing, Tracing, Loft, Lathe, Extrude, Booleans
Week 5: Materials
Surfacing and textures
UVW mapping
UVW unwrapping
Week 6: Lighting and Camera
post effects
Class Project:
Week 7: Building an environment -- architectural modeling
in class : formulate an environment to build, distribute work
scale: and editable polygon intro
assignment: model and texture a prop
Week 8: Editable Polygon continued
Work on environmental feature
Week 9: Revisions to Feature
Features will be reviewed and critiqued in class.
Week 10: Feature Completion
end of class project?
Week 11: Some Assembly required
assemble and render our environment
end of class project (extension?)
assemble and render our environment
end of class project (extension?)
Week 12: Basic Animation in Maya
Week 14: (short week) Building to animate
FK, IK and constraints
Skeletons, rigging, and skinning
assignment: animating our character
Week 13: Motion Tracking
assignment: embed a 3D model in a dynamic camera shot
Week 15: Particles and Simulations
Of course any part of this syllabus may change. Now for the general University stuff:
Regarding Scholastic Dishonesty: The University defines academic dishonesty as cheating, plagiarism, unauthorized collaboration, falsifying academic records, and any act designed to avoid participating honestly in the learning process. Scholastic dishonesty also includes, but is not limited to, providing false or misleading information to receive a postponement or an extension on a test, quiz, or other
assignment, and submission of essentially the same written assignment for two courses without the prior permission of the instructor. By accepting this syllabus, you have agreed to these guidelines and must adhere to them. Scholastic dishonest damages both the student's learning experience and readiness for the future demands of a work-career. Students who violate University rules on scholastic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary penalties, including the possibility of failure in the course and/or dismissal from the University. For more information on scholastic dishonesty, please visit the Student Judicial services Web site at http://www.utexas.edu/depts/dos/sjs/.
About the Undergraduate Writing Center: The Undergraduate Writing Center, located in the FAC 211, phone 471-6222, offers individualized assistance to students who want to improve their writing skills. There is no charge, and students may come in on a drop-in or appointment basis.
About services for students with disabilities: The University of Texas at Austin provides upon request appropriate academic accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. For more information, contact the Office of the Dean of Students at 471-6259, 471-4641 TTY.
1. Copyright and Fair Use: For Production Classes Only
You may find the need to use copyrighted material this semester: music, photographs, movie clips, or any other expression. For many of your uses, you need to find the copyright holder and negotiate a license. You own the copyright to the work you produce in this class. As a copyright holder yourself, you understand the importance of copyright ownership. It is your responsibility to secure music and archival footage licenses as well as artwork, location and personal releases. You will find release templates on the RTF website.
For some uses, however, neither you nor anyone else needs to license copyrighted material. This is because copyright law exists to encourage and support creativity. Copyright law recognizes that creativity doesn’t arise in a vacuum. As creators, we all stand on the shoulders of giants. New works of art (such as films, books, poems, paintings) all make use of what has gone before. Thus, copyright law not only protects authors with a copyright that lets them decide who can use their works, but also offers exemptions from the author’s control. For filmmakers, the most important exemption is the doctrine of fair use. You can rely on fair use, where appropriate, in the film and media projects you undertake for this course. If you are making adocumentary film, consult the influential Documentary Filmmakers Statement of Best Practices in Fair Use (http://www.centerforsocialmedia.org/files/pdf/fair_use_final.pdf), which was created by a group of national filmmaker organizations, has been endorsed by the University Film and Video Association, and is now relied on by film festivals, insurers, cablecasters, distributors and public broadcasters. Fair use also applies in the fiction film environment, but not necessarily to the same extent or in the same way.
As always, the central question is whether the new use is "transformative" -- i.e., whether it adds significant value by modifying or recontextualizing the original. For more understanding, including information on when you can use works for free (http://www.centerforsocialmedia.org/files/pdf/free_use.pdf) without even using fair use, why you (mostly) don’t need to worry about trademarks (http://www.centerforsocialmedia.org/files/pdf/free_use.pdf), what is in the public domain (http://www.centerforsocialmedia.org/rock/backgrounddocs/copyrightterm.pdf), how fair use lawsuits (http://www.centerforsocialmedia.org/videos/sets/fair_use_case_studies) have been settled, and on how fair use has been employed successfully (http://www.centerforsocialmedia.org/videos/sets/fair_use_case_studies) in documentary film, visit centerforsocialmedia.org/fairuse
2. RTF SAFETY POLICY
Special safety precautions for your crew, actors and others in the area are required if you are undertaking any hazardous activities while filming, including but not limited to ANY driving or horseback/livestock shots, shooting in or around water or heights, or if you are using stunts, flames, pyrotechnics, squibs or simulated weapons (real weapons of any kind are never permitted). In addition, you must follow all federal, state and local laws and the rules of any venue or location at which you are filming regarding hazardous activities, including University of Texas at Austin rules if filming is done on campus.
Student filmmakers must submit a detailed safety plan to their course instructor and the RTF Technical Facilities Manager if a script or project involves driving or horseback/livestock shots, shooting in or around water or heights, stunts, flames, pyrotechnics, squibs, weapons or any other hazardous activities (this requirement applies to all shoots, including documentary projects, but please see the special guidelines for documentary driving shots below). It is the responsibility of the student to hire experts in the field and budget at least $600/day for expert consultation and on-set supervision if, in the judgment of the class instructor and the Technical Facilities Manager, such expert consultation or supervision is necessary.
Students should understand that driving while filming will be permitted only in strictly limited circumstances, such as on a private road or drive. In most circumstances, students who wish to undertake driving shots will be required to arrange for a police escort and a city permit. Monitors inside the vehicle will NOT be allowed while filming in a vehicle. Filming from the back of trucks is not considered safe and is not permitted under any circumstances.
Documentary filming of an interview while the interview subject is driving is only permitted if the cameraperson is secured in a seat belt and is not directing the driver of the car in any way, besides engaging in a conversation in which the driver/interviewee has been informed not to look at the camera or the interviewer at all during the interview. In addition, any filming from a vehicle, for drive-by B-roll, must be done by a cameraperson secured in a seat belt, where the driver is not being directed in any way by the director, so that they are driving as they normally would. As noted above, any documentary student planning on filming in any vehicle must submit a safety plan to their course instructor and the RTF Technical Facilities Manager.
Students who fail to comply with this policy will receive a failing grade in this class and will be barred from future access to RTF production and post-production equipment and facilities.
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