Course Information

CS128: Intermediate 3D Computer Animation
Course Missive
Spring 2012

Staff
Instructor: Prof. Barbara Meier
CIT 307; office hours by appointment
bjm@cs.brown.edu

TAs
HTA: Jak Koning
UTA: Aimei Kutt

TA hours Listed here

TA email: cs128tas@cs.brown.edu
Website: cs.brown.edu/courses/cs128

Hours and Location
Class: Mon and Wed 12-1:50 CIT 367

TA hours, in MS lab: see course website for hours

Course description
In this course we will continue work begun in CS125 with deeper exploration of the
core technical and artistic aspects of 3D computer animation. In the first half of
the course, students will do a series of tutorials and technical assignments in which
they will learn basic character modeling, character rigging and skinning, animation,
shading, lighting, and dynamics techniques. In the second section of the course, students will
independently explore an area of their choice in more depth. The products of this phase will
be used in the last part of the course which will be devoted to creating a portfolio-quality
visual demonstration of proficiency in this area. Students may work alone or in pairs on
the project. Reading may include technical texts as well as works on artistic motivation
and critique. We will view and discuss related animated films.


A comparison to CS125
CS125 provides an overview of the animation pipeline including script/story writing,
production planning, modeling, shading, lighting, animation, compositing rendered
images with 2D effects, and editing. CS125 students apply this knowledge to the creation
of a short film. CS128, on the other hand, has a narrower focus which allows deeper
study of the core elements of 3D animation: modeling, rigging, animation, shading,
lighting, and dynamics. The project for CS128 is smaller in scope, but should be more polished than
the typical CS125 final project. In short, in CS128 students will learn specific procedures
and workflow. CS128 is an opportunity to learn in depth the things we glossed over in CS125.
There are some policy and mechanics differences between the two courses as well, so please
check the assessment and collaboration sections carefully.


Aims
This course has three specific aims:

(1) become self-sufficient in learning the technical aspects of computer animation;

(2) view the process and product of animation as artistic and personal expression, not just
a technical exercise; and

(3) develop your ability to critique and improve work in progress.


Objectives
To achieve the aims above, students will be able to do the following by the end of the
semester:

Prerequisites and CS curriculum
Students must have taken and done well in CS125; students who have not taken CS125
but who have equivalent experience through self-study, a similar course, or a related
job are welcome to submit a portfolio for admittance consideration.

This course is open to CS concentrators, non-concentrators, RISD students, and
graduate students. CS students who have taken CS123 or CS224 will find this course
to be a creative application of the graphics algorithms explored in those courses.

Course Content Overview
First section: 10 weeks

Second section: 4-6 weeks

Texts

The following texts are required

Lee Lanier , Advanced Maya Texturing and Lighting, 2nd ed, 2008.
Jeremy Birn, Digital Lighting and Rendering, 2nd ed., New Riders, 2006. (same as cs125)

These texts are recommended:

George Maestri, Digital Character Animation 3, New Riders, 2006.
Autodesk Press, Learning Autodesk Maya 20xx: The Modeling and Animation Handbook, Sybex. (xx=07, 08, 09, 10)

Recommended for those with stronger interest:
Chris Maraffi, MEL Scripting a Character Rig in Maya, New Riders, 2009.
Boaz Livny, Mental ray for Maya, 3ds Max, and XSI.
Brad Clark, John Hood, and Joe Harkins, Inspired 3d Advanced Rigging and Deformations, Thomson, 2005.
Autodesk Press, Special Effects Handbook 20xx, Sybex, (xx=07, 08, 09, 10)

Other useful references include:

Steve Roberts, Character Animation in 3D, 2004.
Ed Hooks, Acting for Animators, 2003. Dan Ablan, Digital Cinematography and Directing, New Riders, 2003.
Articles from Cinefex, a journal of visual effects, published quarterly (available in Rock)
Ed Hooks, Acting in Animation: A look at 12 films, 2005
Steven Katz, Film Directing Shot by Shot, Michael Wiese Productions, 1991
Chris Maraffi, Maya Character Creation: Modeling and Animation Controls, 2004.
Eadweard Muybridge, Animals in Motion, Dover, 1957.
Eadweard Muybridge, The Human Figure in Motion, Dover, 1989.
Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life
Richard Williams, The Animator’s Survival Kit, Faber and Faber Ltd, 2001.
James Gurney, Color and Light: A Guide for the Realist Painter, Andrews McMeel, 2010.
Tom Bancroft, Creating Characters with Personality, Watson-Guptill, 2006.

Recommended DVDs and online tutorials

Many Maya training resource are available as DVDs or online course subscriptions.  You are
welcome to view these on your own.  Many students ask if we can buy DVDs for the class and
post them online.  Unfortunately, this is not allowed under the license agreements of the
companies that produce the content. The recommended companies are Digital Tutors and Gnomon Workshop.
The official Autodesk Maya DVDs are generally not worth the cost.

In addition to our own tutorials and those from books, we will also be pointing you to
online tutorials. As with all tutorials, we try to select these for their focus and quality,
but there may be incompatibilities with Maya versions or mistakes. Tutorials are a learning
resource presenting a particular solution to a problem. There are always other ways to solve the problem.

Attendance and Class Participation

This is a studio/seminar course. The success of the class depends on your participation
in discussions, projects, and critiques; therefore attendance is mandatory.
You must email me before class if you have a legitimate conflict or are sick in order
to be excused. Students who have more than two unexcused absences class may not pass.

The class participation grade will be based on participation in discussions, critiques, in-class
exercises, and presentations. Please note that it is a large part of the grade, and can raise
or lower the final grade significantly.

Assessment and Late Policies

Each assignment will be graded according to how well the design criteria for that project
have been met. Evaluations will be provided orally during class critiques, some interactive
grading sessions, and through written evaluations.

The following is an approximate breakdown of the contributions of the course
components:
First section: 40% (6 projects)
Proposal, Presentation, and Final Project: 45%
Attendance and participation: 15%


The class participation grade will be based on attendance and participation in discussions,
critiques, in-class exercises, and presentations. Please note that it is a large part of the
grade, and can raise or lower the final grade significantly.

To receive a passing grade in this course, students must

1. Participate in class critiques and discussions on a regular basis. I expect you to
come to all classes on time having prepared assignments for critique and/or to
have read and considered reading assignments carefully. Poor class attendance
and/or participation can lower your final grade signicantly.

2. Complete all assignments and the final project.

3. Submit a written evaluation for all assignments and the final project.


Assignments must be handed in by 10am on their due dates. In-progress works are not
graded, but if work is not handed in by 11:30am on a critique day, the assignment will be
marked down 1 letter grade. Late progress assignments (turned in from 10:01am to 11:30am)
are marked down 1/2 letter grade. In-progress assignments may not be handed in late.
Assignments are marked down 1/3 letter grade for each 24-hour period late up to one full letter grade.

Students may have three “free” late days. These will be applied for maximum benefit in
calculating final grades, but will not show up in grades for individual assignments.
Extensions on an assignment will only be given for valid medical or personal
emergencies, and must be supported with a note from Health Services, your doctor, or a
dean. Final projects will be not be accepted late unless accompanied by a Dean’s or doctor’s
note.

Collaboration

In the real world of production, nearly all work is collaborative and there is almost
always more than one way to achieve the same goal. In this course, we encourage
students to discuss approaches with each other. Unlike CS125, students will often be
pursuing the same project and therefore the collaboration policy is tighter. Students
may help each other with general concepts or software questions, but may not verbally or
manually debug another student’s work. For example, it is okay to help someone figure
out what boxes to check before running a Maya tool. It is not okay to tell them how to
lay out and name joints in their character rig. One student may not “drive” the software
for another student. Students may critique each other’s work outside of class, but
students whose work is being critiqued should figure out how to improve their own work.

Students may not use third party solutions to any assignment with the exception of sound
material, images, or movie clips that are incorporated into a larger piece. This includes
downloads from the web and scripts, recipes, etc. from any outside source whether they are
published or not. Students may not hand in tutorial solutions found on book CD/DVDs or any
other source. You are welcome to use tutorials to learn a technique, but you may not hand
in the results of a tutorial as an assignment. For further information, please refer to
Brown's Academic Code. If you are not sure about something, see the staff before proceeding.

Software and Hardware
We will be using Maya 2012 to complete most assignments and students should have
previous Maya experience equivalent to that acquired in CS125. Students may also use
Adobe AfterEffects and Adobe Premier Pro or other compositing or editing software to
provide the “glue” for projects. Maya, AfterEffects, and Premier are available in the MS
Lab, CIT 167. You may acquire your own copies of this software if you wish. Students
may work on their own computers or other university computers where they are
permitted, but projects must be handed in to the CS Department file system. If you use
your own copy of the software or work outside the MS lab, you do so at your own risk.
Any conversions are your responsibility and your results must work in Maya 2012.

Files that reside on the CS Department file system are backed up every hour and many
students have been saved thanks to this feature. If you work in another environment, take
care to backup your work often. No accommodation will be made for computer problems
that occur on non-CS Dept. equipment.

Finally

Making animation is fun, but as you know by now it takes a lot of time to do great work.
As you approach the technical exercises in this course, maintain focus of why we are doing
all this work: to tell great stories and/or show great imagery. As you do each assignment,
imagine the bigger work that it might be part of and use the same test you learned in cs125:
everything should contribute to the story or the concept.   With greater technical
knowledge and skills, you will be that much better at expressing your ideas.