Class schedule

Week 1
Wed - intro to maya, workflow, file management and savin. Basic UI, navigating the workspace, creating and transforming primitives in XYZ space.
Fri- intro to maya, refresh class 1. Framing your composition, intro to lighting + rendering. Render settings.

Week 2
Wed - Project 1 due, project 2 idea due. Basic modeling overview. Geometry types, focus on polys. Lattices and non-linear deformers. Intro to component mode and history.
Fri - Modeling from reference photos. Using image planes. Plan of attack, poly modeling demo. Draw poly tool, Split face and extrude tools. Box modeling, smoothing.

Week 3
Wed - Poly modeling continued. Understanding edge loops/rings. Selection menu tools. Curve modeling techniques. Modeling with nCloth.
Fri - Working with shaders. Using the hypershade and procedural textures. Intro to UVs. Creating and editing UVs.

Week 4
 Wed - Creating quality seamless textures in photoshop. Color, spec and bump maps. Intro to mental ray rendering. Lab.
Fri - Lighting + mental ray demo. Mental ray shaders. Scene organization using display layers.

Week 5
Wed - Using paintFX to create grass, trees, clouds, etc. Lab. Camera settings and depth of field.
Fri - Workshop/lab.

Week 6
Wed- Workshop/lab, project 2 due next class.
Fri - Project 2 due, project 3 idea due. Intro to animation. Setting and editing keyframes in the timeline. Bouncing ball exercise. Dope sheet.

Week 7
Wed - Character reference due. Animation review. Modeling for animation, character modeling lab. Creating skeletons for characters.
Fri - Models for animation due. Blendshapes. Creating and editing skeletons. Binding geometry to skeleton. Painting weights.

Week 8
Wed - IK setup. Character rigging workshop/lab. Finish character rigging for next class.
Fri - Storyboards for animation due. Blocking out rough animation and camera shots. Animating camera moves. Path animation.

Week 9
Wed - Animation, continued. Adding weight and overlap to animations. Playblasting animation.
Fri - Intro to the graph editor. Adjusting keys and tangents in the graph. Animating FX (rain, fire, etc). Cloth.

Week 10
Wed - Animation workshop. Rendering animation.
Fri - Animation workshop, animations due next class.

Week 11
Wed - Project 3 due, final project research and development.
Fri - Final project idea due. Advanced modeling using subdivision surfaces. Particle systems, nParticles. Using fields.

Week 12
Wed - Displacement mapping and non-photoreal rendering techniques. Toon shading/outlines.
Fri - Rigid body deformations. Intro to fluid effects.

Week 13
Wed - Advanced rendering techniques. Autodesk photofly workshop.
NO CLASS Nov 25

Week 14
Wed - workshop.
Fri- workshop.

Week 15
Wed - workshop.
Fri - Final project due