Understanding colour and design principles through exploration and application across media, visual, and applied design genres. This course will introduce students to the fundamental principles of colour theory through design, such as layout, composition, balance, colour science as well as a diverse range of colour theories, and how to employ them creatively. These concepts will be reinforced through specific practical exercises, and activities that will serve to d...

This course will lay the foundation for a robust understanding of anatomy for applied illustration purposes. Topics emphasize a variety of figure drawing techniques applicable to both human, and animal morphology, helping to tie the subject matter into later 3D, and illustration expectations.

Through this 'hands-on' course, the student will learn the fundamentals of design, advanced features and tips to prepare images for digital output and print. By the end of this course, the student will be able to create, modify, and enhance sophisticated images using raster editing tools and features; craft special effects; work in 3D space; and prepare files for export to various applications in web, mobile, print, and manufacturing.

In this course, students learn the basic principles of animation by participating in several practical projects designed to illustrate the fundamental processes. The course will explore the traditional techniques and how they apply in the modern world of computer generation by exploring stop-motion, visual effects, traditional animation and CG.

This course introduces students to the history of film, focusing on the role of visual effects, its impact on the image and the story, and the impact of digital technologies on film production and VFX production. Additionally, students are introduced to production workflows, pipelines and production roles and responsibilities.

This course is an intensive introduction to the complexities of the 3D application. The first portion of the class focuses on the tools in Maya. Students will learn how to work in 3D through projects that introduce modelling in both NURBS and polygons. Students will then cover simple unwrapping procedures while learning about the complexities of UVs and lighting tools.

This course introduces students to digital photography and video practices, emphasizing the relationship between video and CG cameras and the video-editing suite to ensure that footage is managed and catalogued. Technical aspects of content and process will be explored from ‘behind the camera’ to produce ‘usable footage.’ In the latter portion of the course, green screening is introduced.

This course explores the fundamental theory and practice of compositing for film, television and animation. Students will learn digital imaging theory and vocabulary to identify and communicate the use of compositing in production. Using a node-based, non-destructive workflow, students will learn to layer imagery, create masks, manipulate AOVs, and create mattes using various keying techniques.

Students will learn how to plan for and create clear, concise industry-standard storyboards by exploring the elements of a final production storyboard, including a 30-second commercial, a television show, a cinematic for computer games, and a feature film. Topics will include conceptual development, pitches, concept and production boards, thumbnail sketches, design, character staging, model sheets, art direction, background (layout) design, and camera positioning.

In this advanced course, students will develop detailed designs working between Maya and ZBrush. Digital sculpting, texturing and painting will be the fundamental focus of this class. Students will learn the interface and tools in ZBrush while designing and modeling their complex characters. By the end of this course, students will understand the industry approach to creating models through advanced techniques.

This conceptualizing and planning course is for the development of the final student demo reel and portfolio. Students will discuss, create a plan and consider their options while developing designs and storyboards. Students will create various preproduction elements, consider the timing of the final video presentation and the overall aesthetic of their reel.

In this course, students develop tracking and matchmoving skills with the industry standard software. Students learn the basics of cinematography and photography to deeply understand how and why tracking/matchmoving works with VFX. By the end of the course, students will gain a solid understanding and performance of tracking and matchmoving for their future demo reels and film/VFX careers.

Building on skills and techniques learned in Maya I, this course will introduce students to intermediate 3D animation techniques. Students will create movement in a 3D character they will have previously developed. Topical coverage will include keyframing, modifiers, basic morphing techniques and linear and non-linear animation.

The course will take the students through the initial steps of character modeling and animation with a focus on the rigging of the characters by exploring the process of preparing the setup of character models. Students learn to create and set up character rigs, bind structures to geometry, work with meshes and armature, learn to rig facial expressions and lip movement, and animate armature.

This course explores the process of setting up a character model for animation by character modeling and animating with a focus on the rigging of the characters. Students will learn how to prepare and set up character rigs, bind structures to geometry and work with meshes and armature, facial expressions and lip movement, joint orientation and skeletons, inverse kinematics, facial rigging, armature, and binding structures to geometry and meshes.

In this intermediate to advanced level compositing course, students will build from their previous knowledge of compositing, and apply it in more elaborate compositing scenarios. Students will explore the 3D aspects of compositing, such as: camera projection, 3D set extension, 3D camera tracking, and CG integration.

This course continues the development of digital skills with an emphasis on advancing masking, maps, channels, and compositing techniques. Students will explore composition, colour, organic and hard surface elements with tools to add depth to matte paintings to ensure that images meet technical requirements in compositing and video projects.

In this course, students will explore basic to intermediate digital effects animation by learning particles, fluids, rigid body dynamics, and shatter effect tools in Houdini. Students will cover elementals such as fire and water and discuss lighting, mood and atmosphere created by these effects. Timing physics and design will ensure the believability of the developed effects.

This course addresses the creation of multilayer and high-resolution textures for environments, environmental and character models. It also seeks to provide students with various production contexts, such as texturing characters' faces for film and games, developing environment textures for next-gen game environments, and an in-depth look at various direct lighting tools and controls available when lighting 3D assets.

This course provides a general understanding of motion capture processes and applications. Students will learn to process and manipulate motion capture data within various production pipelines, giving them the skills needed for an entry level position in this field.

In this advanced compositing course students will explore advanced image manipulation techniques, whilst producing a high quality VFX shot for inclusion in their portfolio demo-reels. This course also explores advanced 3D rendered AOV outputs, such as deep data and positional information, and how to utilize this data in a node-based compositing environment.

This course explores production and rendering techniques for showcasing models, textures, and scenes professionally. This course will examine challenges and practical solutions to nighttime lighting, indoor lighting, outdoor lighting, and advanced rendering features available in Mental Ray. Students will make informed choices about which light rigs and rendering features make the most sense for their scenes.

In this course, students will explore intermediate to advance digital effects animation. They will learn and apply HDAs to their workflow, enriching their knowledge of fluids, study grains, cloth, hair, and crowd workflows and tools using Houdini. Students will work with digital tools to develop dynamic animations while considering effects elements to add to their reels. Timing, physics and design will be critical to ensure the believability of the developed effect...

This course prepares students for the professional world by preparing them for job interviews and helping them compile and defend a first draft of their portfolio— which contains pieces produced to demonstrate their skills in conceptualization, design, modeling and animation. Students are encouraged to identify a preferred skill set and style to polish and develop. Feedback will come in the form of industry, instructor and peer critique.

This course explores the technical, conceptual and aesthetic principles associated with film editing by analysis of an example from animation, film and short-form media and techniques and approaches used to shape sequences into compelling and communicative narratives. Students develop a series of scenes designed to expand the types of editing experiences. The accumulation of this editing experience will provide a complete overview of the process and help develop th...

This course takes the students beyond light sources and shadows and explores lighting and texturing as an art. Students will learn to select the appropriate light type for a particular situation, Raytracing, 3D textures and projections, 2D and 3D material textures, lighting colour and composition, Maya light types, high-quality shadows and effects, advanced lighting/texturing skills and techniques, and how to apply them to their final modeling and animation project...

Industry Mentorship consists of classes and workshops designed to help students develop career-related awareness and accelerate their professional development skills by understanding key job search strategies, tools, and skills required in today’s marketplace. Students will prepare for the professional world by utilizing their portfolio for job interviews, emphasizing short- and long-term professional employment goals and related strategies and resources.

This course will prepare students for graduation and their final portfolio presentation with a demo reel to showcase their strengths and talents in a visually appealing branded presentation focused on showcasing the student’s primary and secondary skills— increasing potential employment opportunities. Students will utilize and follow planning and production pipelines to meet deadlines.