Noob Animator Courses

ANIMATOR COURSE
We will run the 1st course for beginners (Noobs) as soon as we have 10 students. So let us know that you are interested in attending so that we can call you as soon as the numbers are there.

COURSE OUTCOME
Create a fully animated 30 second cartoon of yourself that you can post on all your emails as a signature as well as to add to your portfolio. The cartoon sketch should cast yourself as the protagonist in your animation story and should include at least the following: Full body and face modelling, walk animation, titles and credits, sound effects, music, speaking, etc.

COURSE OUTLINE

Introduction 12m 5s

Welcome 1m 16s  

Using the exercise files 58s  

Using Blender's full capabilities 4m 16s  

Getting and installing Blender 3m 8s  

Mouse and keyboard differences on the Mac 2m 27s 

  

1. The Blender Interface 1hr 6m

Blender oddities 7m 38s  

Introducing the User Interface, Console, and Render windows 3m 8s  

Configuring the desktop for an efficient workflow 6m 27s  

Using the mouse and tablet on a PC or a Mac 5m 7s  

Acquiring keyboard skills 7m 38s  

Window panes and types 7m 53s  

Exploring the default scene 5m 53s  

Setting themes, UI colors, and user preferences 4m 0s  

Understanding how to safeguard your data with autosave and backups 6m 52s  

Appending and linking assets 7m 27s  

Using the open-source movies and assets 4m 18s  

 

2. Modeling 2hr 7m

Working with objects in 3D space 6m 24s  

Navigating 3D views 4m 23s  

Understanding Blender modes 1m 51s  

Understanding meshes 2m 8s  

Editing a mesh 3m 28s  

Using the Mirror modifier 2m 55s  

Working with Vertex groups 2m 35s  

Using Bézier curves 3m 52s  

Working with text objects 5m 23s  

Using reference images 3m 38s  

Modeling boots by extruding circles and joining meshes 8m 59s  

Applying the Mirror modifier to duplicate the boot and rotate 1m 58s  

Modeling a helmet with NURBS and the Boolean modifier 7m 14s  

Modeling a belt and pants by making a compound object from multiple primitive objects 3m 51s  

Modeling legs by using edge loops and the Knife tool 6m 9s  

Modeling a chest and arms using edge loops 5m 30s  

Stitching the shoulders and neck 5m 13s  

Modeling hands with the Proportional Editing tool 9m 4s  

Linking vertices to create knuckle joints 4m 7s  

Reinforcing modeling basics to create the face, eyes, nose, and ears 13m 6s  

Appending and linking assets 3m 54s  

Sculpting basics 3m 3s  

Using the Subsurf modifier to smooth 2m 34s  

Parenting 2m 7s  

Working with groups 2m 1s  

Understanding the endless possibilities for editing mesh with modifiers 2m 37s  

Duplicating objects using the Array modifier 1m 54s  

Modeling a set 7m 52s  

 

3. Lighting 39m 41s

Lighting overview 4m 25s  

Using the Omni lamp 4m 50s  

Working with the Area lamp 2m 57s  

Using the Spot lamp 4m 9s  

Using the Sun, Sky, and Atmosphere lamps 4m 51s  

Using the Hemisphere lamp 2m 3s  

Working with Ambient and Radiosity lighting 7m 34s  

Lighting with three-point and other multipoint lighting rigs 5m 30s  

Understanding shadows 3m 22s  

 

4. Shading 1hr 21m

Realism overview 2m 56s  

Creating a world in less than seven days 6m 36s  

Applying ambient occlusion 3m 47s  

Working with basic materials 3m 24s  

Working with node materials 4m 27s  

Applying Pipeline options 2m 51s  

Painting vertices 3m 13s  

Using shaders 7m 59s  

Using mirrors 4m 41s  

Working with transparency 4m 28s  

Using halos 2m 40s  

Simulating with Subsurface Scattering (SSS) 4m 26s  

Applying textures 9m 34s  

Mapping image textures to an object to create a decal 4m 19s  

UV unwrapping 4m 54s  

Applying multiple materials to a single object 3m 31s  

Painting in 3D 4m 14s  

Using bump maps 3m 14s  

 

5. Animation 1hr 25m

Understanding animation 4m 14s  

Keyframing objects 6m 15s  

Keyframing materials 3m 14s  

Creating Shape keys 2m 28s  

Creating Facial Shape key animation using reference video 2m 12s  

Animating by combining Shape keys 2m 53s  

Working with lattices 3m 37s  

Using hooks 1m 30s  

Working with Vertex groups 2m 33s  

Creating armature objects 3m 44s  

Mirroring armatures for bilateral creatures 3m 43s  

Attaching mesh to the armature by way of skinning 5m 7s  

Posing a character 4m 43s  

Using inverse kinematics 4m 29s  

Creating a walk cycle with inverse kinematics 6m 34s  

Completing the walk cycle 3m 49s  

Limiting range of motion and degrees of freedom 3m 47s  

Managing actions using the Action Editor 3m 52s  

Blending actions together using the Non-Linear Animation Editor 4m 34s  

Tracking 3m 2s  

Following a path 2m 21s  

Mimicking an existing animation 3m 47s  

Using the grease pencil 2m 56s  

 

6. Simulation 50m 43s

Understanding particle systems 2m 20s  

Working with game engine physics 3m 52s  

Spewing particles 7m 25s  

Guiding particles 3m 43s  

Creating reactions and collisions with particle systems 3m 15s  

Creating hair and fur 4m 25s  

Grooming hair and fur 3m 26s  

Jiggling and squishing soft bodies 3m 43s  

Simulating cloth 6m 10s  

Simulating fluids 5m 47s  

Using boids to simulate swarms, schools, and flocks 6m 37s  

 

7. Rendering 21m 29s

Using Render controls 6m 18s  

Radiosity 3m 31s  

Stamping text on video 2m 32s  

Setting up test renders 4m 43s  

Rendering image sequences 4m 25s  

 

8. Compositing 1hr 5m

Viewing node thumbnail images on certain Macs 1m 31s  

Overview and integration 2m 12s  

Render passes and layers 4m 27s  

Using Input nodes 6m 22s  

Using Output nodes 3m 54s  

Working with Color nodes 4m 29s  

Color mixing and layering 3m 27s  

Using Distort nodes individually and in combination 7m 15s  

Using Vector nodes 6m 46s  

Creating effects with Filter nodes 8m 49s  

Using Converter nodes 6m 7s  

Chroma keying with Matte nodes 6m 15s  

Understanding node groups and reuse 4m 17s  

 

9. Sequencing 38m 43s

The Video Sequence Editor (VSE) 11m 47s  

Integrating audio 3m 31s  

Using VSE Greenscreen and other plug-ins 5m 40s  

Integrating the Compositor with the VSE 7m 50s  

Layering and splicing video 6m 18s  

Speeding up and slowing down sequences 3m 37s  

Conclusion 5m 26s

Putting it all together:  5m 12s  

 

Goodbye 

COURSE FEES AND TIMES 
R5000 with own laptop computer
R6000 with supplied Animation Computer to keep

2 hours of lectures every monday for 11 weeks. 9am to 11am, or 12noon to 2 pm, or 3pm to 5pm