In this intermediary class I will show practical examples of my workflow for producing concept art. My workflow combines both 2D painting and 3D rendering to produce the most detailed images possible in the shortest amount of time. I have split up my image-making process into 20 stages, starting with rough 2D sketches and photobashing. I then move on to rough 3D and then a more detailed 3D stage, followed by a final 2D stage of painting tiny details and compositing the final image. Whether or not you're a concept artist for visual effects, animated films, or video games, you'll gain insight into techniques that can help your own process. We will primarily use Adobe Photoshop, 3ds Max software, Chaos Group's V-Ray rendering engine, and Red Giant Software's Magic Bullet—but you can apply the principals discussed to the software of your choice.

Humans are constantly searching for new and better tools. And yet, the pen still remains one of the most used tools by nearly everyone on earth. Come see how the pen is being used across a range of industries by people such as digital artists to mechanical engineers and architects. We’ll have representatives from Autodesk Sketchbook with Thomas Heermann, Director of Digital Arts, Autodesk FormIt with Tom Vollaro, Senior Principal User Experience Designer,  and Lenovo to discuss how these technologies are evolving to meet the growing demands of users.

The pandemic may have shut down live theater for now, but planning for future shows continues. A set for a live theater production is often a building that just happens to be built inside another building. After designing sets for numerous theater productions using 2D and 3D tools in AutoCAD software, the speaker switched almost exclusively to Revit software. In this class, we will discuss and explore the techniques the speaker used to design stage sets, why they switched to Revit, why they still use AutoCAD for some tasks, and why they have now added VR (virtual reality) to the technology mix. This class will cover workflows learned from this somewhat unconventional use of familiar software tools, as well as how to use phasing and design options to handle scene changes, and why directors love to don a set of VR goggles. We will also look at using other tools to create animated backdrops and special effects. Virtual set design is a lot like virtual building design, and many of the same skills and workflows can be applied to both.

In the world of architectural visualization, pretty pictures are no longer sufficient. The expectations of our clients—including architects, developers and real estate marketing agencies—are driven by those of their main audiences: end-users and decision-makers who are accustomed to being captivated by content that not only looks compelling, but also connects with them on an emotional level. Whether communicating the vision for a large mixed-use master plan or capturing the intricacies of material and detail in a private residence, the story behind each pixel is essential. In this talk we will delve into the art of developing and pitching creative with particular focus on architectural visualization. We will offer a look at how Neoscape, Inc., has been developing creative for both still imagery and film for the past 20 years. Following this, we will open up a general discussion on the value of creative, sources of inspiration, clients’ needs, and much more.

In this keynote session, we will be joined by several speakers who will challenge our perceptions of education today and instill optimism for the future of education. Speakers come from a variety of backgrounds and experiences, but each has established a reputation as a leader and change agent in education: Sugata Mitra is a Professor of Educational Technology at the School of Education, Communication, and Language Sciences, Newcastle University, UK.; Cathy Davidson has served as the Ruth F. DeVarney Professor of English at Duke University since 1996, and is the co-founder of HASTAC (Humanities, Arts, Sciences and Technology Advanced Collaboratory); and Katie Salen is Professor of Design and Technology, and director of the Center for Transformative Media at Parsons the New School for Design and the executive director of the Institute of Play. We will discuss how students learn today and the changes we are seeing in education as a result. We will hear about smart educators and organizations that are adapting their approaches in the classroom, with some paths less conventional than others. Also, we will discuss the skills that students will need in the 21st-century workplace and how we can best prepare them for successful and rewarding careers. Join us for the keynote session for discussions that are sure to inspire insightful conversations throughout the week.

With nearly everything you need to make an animated film, Maya Entertainment Creation Suite software enables animators and directors to do some real guerrilla filmmaking. This class will walk you through some of the techniques we are employing to bring the feature film Dog Eat Dog to life on a budget of less than $1 million. From timesaving rigging techniques to at-your-desk facial motion capture, we are bringing our entire bag of tricks to bear in our quest to release quality animation on a grassroots budget.

What is the relationship between passion, vocation, and profession? In this talk, Armando Gomez, a multimedia director with the innovative international multimedia studio Moment Factory, shares his approach to creating spatially dynamic experiences. Through pioneering, interdisciplinary methods, Moment Factory tells visual stories in collective spaces, enhancing their unique toolbox of technologies by working in various forms of entertainment. The studio’s large-scale projects require complex workflow and continual interchange between different talents and skill sets. From illuminating the Jacques Cartier Bridge using real-time social media data to creating generative content for a Madonna stadium tour, Armando channels his training in music, architecture, and design into every exciting project. Join us for a discussion of new media design, and learn how Autodesk products used by Moment Factory, such as 3ds Max, Maya, and AutoCAD, are shaping exciting changes in the industry.

The BUILD panel, moderated by Autodesk Senior Director, Rick Rundell, will review snapshots of applied research within the context of Architecture Engineering and Construction Industries followed by an extended discussion surrounding such topics. By positioning Reality Computing technologies (UAV’s, 3D Scanning, and reality capture); Construction Automation (3D Printing and Design Robotics); Automated Computational Workflows (Dynamo driven structural optimization-to robotic fabrication); and integrated building control systems through Physical Computing the discussion will frame the state of the art with the goal of understanding the critical interrelationships that will be required during the next ten years of research and development.

Four perspectives, each representing disparate aspects of AEC research, will be presented. First, Gustav Fagerstrom, Senior Technical Design at the global engineering firm BuroHappold, will present a series of Drone-based reality capture experiments using Autodesk’s ReCap that focus on the gathering, analysis, and three dimensional visualization of complex data from existing urban contexts. Nick Cote, a Design Roboticist at Autodesk’s Pier9 robotics research laboratory, will present a series of projects leveraging emerging computational workflows that link 3D design space, performance optimization, and automated fabrication through Design Robotics. Nathan King, DDes, BUILD Programs Manager, will present the contemporary context of automation in AEC industries through the lens of Robotics and Additive Manufacturing. Finally, Andy Payne, DDes, Principal Research Engineer at Autodesk,  will discuss the potential of intelligent building control systems to meet the multifaceted demands of user satisfaction and performance thus allowing the built environment to sense, respond, and adapt over time.  

After collaborating on the award-winning feature Arrival, Framestore reunited with visionary director Denis Villeneuve for the 2017 science-fiction sequel Blade Runner 2049. In this session, Framestore will discuss the visual artistry and tools that contributed to the film's distinct look, and, in the spirit of Blade Runner 2049, we'll touch upon the trends that are shaping the future of visual effects.

At Eidos-Montreal, the art team is passionate about architecture and it shows in our games.  Deus: Ex: Mankind Divided features some of the richest environments eaver built in a video game.  In this talk, you are invited to take a peek behind the curtain.

Hubert Corriveau, Environment Director will explain the process by which Eidos-Montreal typically builds an environment using Autodesk 3ds Max. He will dive into the details such as the challenge of designing an extremely dense, narrative driven and gameplay-heavy environment while trying to stay as close as possible to real-life architectural constraints. He will also approach how to deconstruct an environment into lightweight visual modules to be able to polish them by adding unique visual elements: clutter, decals and more. How to then re-organize the modules into large, memory-intensive environments, and finally the limits of current real-time technologies and their workaround.

 

In today's competitive visualization marketplace, it can be difficult to set your work apart. Is having a unique look enough to succeed? Perhaps the answer can be found in the marriage between good creative and evolving technology. Re-purposing visualization assets to the latest tools isn't a no-brainer; it requires creativity and finesse to be successful. Using recent commercial examples, Transparent House's director of production will show the real role that 3D visualization plays in a comprehensive and successful R/E or product marketing campaign, and how a thoughtful technology rollout can help push your studio to the next level and make you look like a rock star to your clients. From recent and relevant case studies-and real results data-you will learn how an effective visualization campaign is conceived during the creative process, and then how it evolves as it deploys successfully across the media spectrum-from concept, to renderings, to motion assets, to interactive.