Cg Process Concepts
Things you need to do or get for Great CG
Read this section first: What do do before you open a 3d program like BLender
Disney can explain the CG Process better than I can.
Pixar Can also.
You can also read these papers from Pixar about how they make their movies:
Complete your shot checklist:
What is the first step to making an artwork
Thinking of an asset list what assets do you have that you can use in your artwork?
Composition is like several steps afterwards once you have elements and assets
You then sketch out what you want and use that as your blueprint or block it out in photoshop or a drawing program. Some people even use primative shapes to block out a scene right in the 3d program.
Get Reference images for your Concept. Goto Google, or bing or whatever search engine and simply type in the images you want to get inspiration from.
Grab your reference photos, and you can bring them into blender using the import image plane. You can then turn off the render tab for that plane, So they don't render in your scene. (Upper right corner icon shaped like a monitor) Then you can have your images in the viewport. Great for blueprints, or reference, because trying that workflow is more efficient.
Get Assets
Texture Sites with free Textures
Get Add ons (If the Add on saves you time, or allows you to do something you normally wouldn't consider, get the add on.) Some add-ons are fun too.
Get Free Sounds
What do you want to do in 3d
Good wisdom about ways to make money in Blender
There are several ways to make money using Blender, a 3D computer graphics software. Some common options include:
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Freelancing: You can offer your Blender skills as a freelancer, creating 3D models or animations for clients in various industries, such as film, gaming, architecture, and more.
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Selling 3D models or assets: You can create and sell 3D models or assets, such as textures, materials, or animations, on online marketplaces like Blender Market, CGTrader, or TurboSquid.
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Creating YouTube tutorials: You can create and sell Blender tutorials on YouTube, or offer your expertise as a consultant or mentor through online courses or one-on-one coaching.
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Using Blender in your own business: If you have your own business, you can use Blender to create 3D models or animations for your own products or services. For example, you could create 3D product renders for an e-commerce store, or use Blender to create animations for marketing videos.
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Working as a Blender artist: You can apply for jobs as a Blender artist at companies or studios that use Blender for their 3D work.
No matter which path you choose, it's important to continuously improve your Blender skills and stay up-to-date with the latest techniques and trends in the industry.
Steps to Creating a 3D Environment
Styles choose a style for your Animation or Image
How to make Ghibli and Stylized Animations
Realistic
3d or 2d Blender does both
Claymation, you can do Ardman (Wallace and Grommit, and Shawn the Sheep) Style claymation in Blender.
Gleb describes 14 different styles. Looks like he's mostly using the compositor in blender to achieve this. Interesting was the minecraft look which used a modifer.
Beginner
Watch this video before you do any CG.
Great wisdom. He's building up his library of assets, his technique, and learning cinematic techniques every day, doing small easy clips. (So he doesn't get overwhelmed with all the work that goes into making a short animation.) When he has all the parts he needs, then he can assemble his short, easily and quickly, and within a certain time frame. (By parts, I mean, assets, knowledge, money, time, and a goal) He mentions to have a script, a story board, a shot list, a look development (for style) and a plan. He also mentions to have self imposed deadlines and a budget.
Making an animation has a lot of the same principles of Film Making. This person describes the types of shots and uses of. For now skip the part about microphones, He talks about lighting also.
Learn Color Theory
Learn Lighting
Intermediate
He talks about how he creates a shot.
Learn Story telling
Learn Basic Camera Shots
Advanced
This person explains what he had to do to make a commercial with lots of shots, and goes through his cg process. He mentions things that came up for him on his project. Using the link feature and separate files seemed like a forward thinking workflow. But I noticed that the link feature wouldn't allow you to do rigid body simulations, so you have to know when to use that feature. You get a feel that there is quite a lot to know to get to the point he's at. Character design, lighting design, Blocking out animation, Compositing, Getting scale correct. Lot of hats he's wearing. I liked that he worked with other talented people, that helps.
Learn Composition
Good video on composition.
Learn to Get Funded
Learn about the people who already made great films.
It's important to realize that he started somewhere. He went to film school, he was told not to go into film by his teachers, (who said there is no money in film) He was influenced by his friends. (so choose your friends wisely.) He choose his own path, and realized that he didn't want people telling him what to do. He got married, and his wife had similar interests, and influenced him also. The most fascinating part of the documentary is when after a car crash in he teens, he realized what he wanted to do and then focused on that goal and never stopped until he achieved that goal. Sometimes focusing all day for days etc. There is a lot of noise today out there. If you can, focus on your goals. If you have a lot of noise in your life. Try to go back to your goals every time. Your the only person who can get your goals achieved. (Unless you have lots of money, then you can pay people to get your goals achieved)
George was very creative, and the video talks about how he met with the guys who did documentaries on the college he went to. He got those people to work on his first film because they had access to camera equipment and film.
This video is about the Spider Man Movie, and how some of the shots were constructed. A good idea of what actually goes into making a Marvel Class Movie.
Some of the shots look so real you can't detect which are the vfx.
