Layout in the animation and VFX (visual effects) industry utilizes a broad scope of tools to bring cinematic ideas to fruition. This session will be a deep dive into the benefits found using Maya software and Bifrost to boost creative film making and ultimately save time and money. In this course we will capitalize on the latest toolsets and features to compose content that aligns with the director's vision at an early stage of production.

ShotGrid was always considered as a collaborative tool used in the Animation & VFX industries but recently we have managed to pitch ShotGrid in newer industries which includes E-Learning & E-commerce. Also industries like games also have started showing interest in ShotGrid to manage production. This session will have success stories of ShotGrid in industries other than just Animation & VFX to manage production.

Despite the differences between architecture, engineering, construction, design and manufacturing and the media & entertainment sectors, they all share a common mission: to design and make a better world. So, how can we benefit from each other's unique experiences? How can we leverage technology, workflows and skills from animation, VFX, and game development and apply them to other industries? Whether you're an architect designing the future skyline or a game developer crafting your next open-world adventure, join this digital to hear from industry voyagers who have traversed these sectors. Share your knowledge and engage in insightful discussions about the common threads within the design & make industries.

In this class you will gain an understanding of a commercial production that uses only computer graphics. This is a 2-part series that will cover the entire process of creating a commercial spec spot for the HBO show Boardwalk Empire. In part 1 you'll see the project kick off from the storyboards phase and proceed through rough animation and visual effects. We will cover some topics that include modeling, texturing, and dynamics. These classes will utilize an array of tools, including 3ds Max software and Chaos Group's V-Ray rendering engine, to bring this piece to life.

In part 2 of this 2-part class (part 1 taught by Joe Gunn) you will see the production pipeline from start to finish on a commercial spec spot for the HBO show Boardwalk Empire. This class will pick up where part 1 left off, showing how the latest tools and techniques were used to bring this piece to life. The animation and visual effects are complete; now it's time for some lighting. Who knows, the client may even have some changes that need to be quickly addressed before render passes are set up and composited. Throughout both classes you will learn real-world production-proven techniques and timesaving tips that will help artists from any background who use 3ds Max software.

Bifrost is a powerful graphical programming environment for creating procedural visual effects simulations, geometry, rigging, and animation. In this session, we'll showcase new, modular, deep-learning workflows in Maya software using Bifrost. We will demonstrate how to use Bifrost for procedurally generating training data for AI systems, as well as how to deploy trained AI models in Bifrost using new Bifrost nodes designed for deep learning. The session will include practical examples of industry problems that are suited to a media and entertainment audience, such as using AI for complex rigging kinematic solvers.

Learn how Autodesk Shotgun can help you supercharge your pipeline with tools for production management, review and asset management. Shotgun will improve communication and collaboration to assist in managing increasingly complex projects - even when production resources are remote. Shotgun integrates directly with the tools you are using today and is scalable from small to large studios. See why Shotgun will be a key tool in the future of making content

Maya is a popular 3D modeling, animation, rendering, and visual effects software in the media and entertainment industry. It provides a powerful API that lets users customize and extend Maya software’s functionalities in order to create efficient workflows and become even more productive. This class is an introduction to Maya customization for customers who would like to create automation and/or improve efficiency when using the product. Some programming experience will be helpful. You will learn about the benefits of customizing Maya and gain the confidence to create your first plug-in using the Python API. Note that you can easily reproduce all concepts in the C++ environment as well.

The 3D printing industry is growing and expanding at a rapid pace, and Autodesk, Inc., is at the forefront of providing solutions for this exciting industry. This class will examine how 3D printing is revolutionizing the entertainment industry in the areas of prop creation for visual effects, creature concepts, and stop-motion animation. This class will also give an in-depth look into the process of preparing a model for 3D printing, while also examining the powerful Autodesk toolset available within the 3D printing world. Using a variety of Autodesk products, we will examine efficient processes and workflows to producing clean, watertight models that are ready for efficient 3D printing.

The media and entertainment industry is faced with increased demand for high-quality visual effects—and shrinking production schedules and budget. Studios need to provide graphics applications for employees and freelancers from any location, foster collaboration, and minimize IT and real estate costs, while ensuring that IP is secure. To provide a native workstation-like experience for artists, companies are looking toward virtual desktop infrastructure powered by NVIDIA virtual GPU technology and Teradici cloud-access software. Learn how two leading visual effects and animation studios are meeting the demands of artists performing computer animation and modeling on Maya software from anywhere, while maintaining a high-quality user experience. See how you can use the latest NVIDIA RTX technology that lets Arnold boost performance for interactive rendering as compared to rendering with CPU only, along with the added security of Teradici PCoIP protocol.

Pipelines lie at the heart of all studio workflows, connecting the many moving pieces in a visual effects/animation project. New features in Unreal Engine enable deeper and richer pipeline development capabilities, making it easier than ever to integrate with other production tools like Maya software and Shotgun to provide a seamless artist workflow. Connecting Maya software’s powerful 3D asset-creation capabilities with Unreal Engine’s advanced real-time rendering enables artists to get instant feedback, leading to faster work and better results, all tracked in Shotgun. This session will dive into Unreal Engine’s Python API (application programming interface) and show how to streamline artists' day-to-day work through automation and pipeline intelligence, capitalizing on key technologies like Filmbox and Universal Screen Description for interoperability.

Oregon-based LAIKA is a renowned animation studio that has inspired audiences with an unprecedented visual artistry. Animators breathe life into meticulously hand-crafted puppets on handmade sets. Visual effects artists seamlessly enhance performances with cutting-edge technologies. This unparalleled fusion of stop-motion and computer graphics has garnered the studio two Oscar nominations and worldwide acclaim. In this session, Mark Shapiro will discuss the upcoming feature The Boxtrolls, using rarely seen images and timelapses. Production puppets will be on display.

This class will take a close look at how the immersive planetarium show Signs of Life was produced. We'll discuss how art and science are merged to create extraordinary content through a public private partnership. You'll learn how it was possible through the building of a new animation production studio inside the existing science institution, Griffith Observatory. We'll look at how a producer works from concept to completion, from development to final delivery and everything in-between. The class will show how Autodesk's Shotgun software was implemented at the center of the production studio pipeline and how that enabled the team to create, track, review and render the show.

This course aims to educate participants on the innovative integration of machine learning (ML) techniques for deformation approximation within Maya software. Using approximations for (part of) a deformation stack can highly improve interactivity when using complex rigs, and can significantly improve the portability between different applications. It is designed for animators, game developers, VFX artists, and any professional interested in exploring the intersection of ML and 3D animation. This course will explore a demo of a rig with computationally expensive muscle deformations that is reduced to a simple, general, black-box neural network that only requires inputs from the motion system. We'll show the entire setup process in detail. In addition, we'll go over best practices, tips, and limitations to help users get the most out of this tool for their production needs.

This session focuses on the tools and workflows used by one of Australia's leading post-production houses, Cutting Edge. Learn how Cutting Edge leverages most of the Autodesk Media & Entertainment portfolio to create world class work efficiently, from occasional 2D animation jobs and storyboarding tasks, Sketchbook Pro enables an incredibly fast way of communicating ideas with sketching and paint tools. A suite of Autodesk content creation tools like Maya, Mudbox and Motion Builder allow our artists to realise the highest quality VFX work, to finishing to the highest standard in Autodesk Flame. Autodesk Shotgun is utilised to increase collaboration and efficiency and connect the team. Hear how new technology and forms of storytelling such as VR, AR and interactive engines will change the future of making entertainment.

This class will cover the speaker’s experience in production of monumental sculptures with powerful technologies. We will find out what benefits 3D modeling, animation, simulations, and 3D printing provide to shape creation of the new era, and how advanced visual effects technologies can improve production of classical sculptures. We will show you several examples of actual projects and discuss the future of sculpture.

LAIKA is a stop-motion feature animation studio in Portland, Oregon. Autodesk’s Shotgun project management software has been used to organize and automate aspects of the production of all its feature films over the past 10 years, from Coraline to the forthcoming Missing Link. In this talk, we will present how LAIKA tackles the design and manufacturing of the assets that show up on the big screen, how we use Shotgun software to track our production data (from scheduling to final delivery and beyond), and how we have built an efficient production pipeline using Shotgun as a platform. LAIKA exists at an interesting junction between visual effects and manufacturing, producing physical assets for a digital final product. As we go through our workflows, we will also reflect on the commonalities we have seen in how to create both physical and digital assets efficiently.