Scholastic Art Show

Scholastic Art Show - http://www.scholastic.com/artandwritingawards/enter.htm

Deadline December

The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards offer early recognition of creative teenagers and scholarship opportunities for graduating high-school seniors. The Awards are national in scope and administered by the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers. The process begins across the country as young artists and writers submit creative works of art and writing to a network of affiliate programs of the Alliance who share the Alliance’s vision to inspire the next generation of artists and writers. Supported by their visual arts and writing teachers and other community mentors, participants create and submit their best works in any of the following categories:

ANIMATION Hand-drawn, computer-generated, claymation or figure/model animation. Animation and Film/Video categories must be submitted on DVD only. Disks must be playable on DVD player. Submissions longer than 15 minutes should include a three-minute highlight.

Identify computer software used, if applicable, on the Submission Form.

COMPUTER ART Digitally captured images that are heavily manipulated or collaged to create an electronic mixed media OR images generated by computer imaging software. Students should include a statement about the process and identify software used to generate work. Computer generated design artwork should be submitted in the Graphic Design category.

DIGITAL IMAGERY Images captured through the use of a digital camera and/or represented by a computer generated print, which is printed from a digital negative. Image may be manipulated BUT heavily transformed/manipulated images should be submitted in the Computer Art category. Students should include a statement about the process and identify equipment/software used to generate the work. Prints must be mounted on rigid boards.

ART PORTFOLIO A body of eight works of art from any category submitted for scholarship consideration and other opportunities. See Portfolio Submission Guidelines.

PHOTOGRAPHY PORTFOLIO A body of eight works of photography from photography or digital imagery categories submitted for scholarship consideration and other opportunities. See Portfolio Submission Guidelines. Review and use Art Portfolio Submission

Video Training

Gnomon is by far the best resource for professional video training. We have purchased numerous titles and highly recommend buying the whole Maya suite; it is a bit pricey though. Students jump in leaps and bounds taking there skills farther than imaginable. This is the best way to introduce skills that go above the teachers skill set.

This is the student's favorite title:



Automotive Modeling techniques - by Kevin Hudson

- Students just can't get enough of this DVD, so much that somehow it just disappeared. It is not a begininer series unless they are really dedicated. I really got a lot out of this and watched it several times. The series.

http://www.thegnomonworkshop.com/

CGSphere.com

CGSphere.com is an awesome site. Basically the site challenges you to use your creativity to transform a simple primitive model ‘A Sphere’ into what ever you can imagine while maintaining its original shape. With over 4,000 entries, have your students try to top what has already been done or just have fun with it. It is interesting just to see the other entries and what others have come up with,

The site provides you with the scene in various formats including:Alias FBX, Autocad DXF 9.0, Autodesk 3DS, Autodesk 3dsmax 6.0, Autodesk 3dsmax 8.0. Autodesk Maya (Mac) 7.0, Autodesk Maya (PC) 6.0, Blender 2.4, Truespace 5.0 & 7.0, Cheetah 3D, Bryce 4.0 & 6.0, Carrara, Vue 6, Electric Image AS 6.52, Modo 2.0, Maxon Cinema 4D 9.6 & 10, Rhino3D 3.0, Lightwave, Maxwell Render 1.0, MojoWorld 3.1, Renderman RIB, POV-Ray, Realsoft3D 5.0, Strata3D CX 5.0, Softimage XSI 4.2, Vrml WRL 2.0, and Wavefront OBJ

Here are a Few Random Examples From the Site:

I gave this project to all my students last spring, both the 2D and 3D classes. I also try to create example projects right along with them. Some never get done, but I try to create examples that push both my limits and raises the bar for the students.

-The 2D classes used the template image and edited it with Photoshop. They were allowed to use any images, filters, brushes, or resources they could find. They just had to stay within the challenge guidelines.

-The 3D classes just had to stay within the challenge guidelines.

Here are the official rules:

In order to participate, we kindly ask you to adhere to the following guidelines. We have attempted to impose as few guidelines as possible to allow for all kinds of technical and creative 3D sphere designs. However, in an effort to maintain consistency, the following criteria must be met in order to contribute an acceptable submission.

1. Modeling: You must download and use the scene provided for you. However, since we recognize that there are numerous methods of modeling techniques and applications, you are allowed to replace the provided sphere with your own. You may add, remove, or modify the sphere geometry but you must attempt to match the provided sphere’s size and position as closely as possible. Regardless of what modeling changes are made to the geometry, the final result should always be representative of a sphere in form. Please do not modify the grid plane, as it is required for consistency.

2. Texturing: You may use any kind of materials and/or textures supported by your 3D program or renderer. Special effects such as fur, fire, water, gas, translucency, dispersion, radiance, displacement, etc, are not only permitted, but also encouraged. The grid plane must remain mapped with the provided grid texture and it may not be edited in any way (texture included). Please do not modify the grid plane, as it is required for consistency.

3. Camera: You may not, under any circumstances, move, modify, adjust, or relocate the camera. This includes the field of view and lens size. If you cannot import the provided scene, please use the rendered template below to match your camera as closely as possible. The camera should always be facing the center of the sphere. Please do not modify the grid plane, as it is required for consistency.

4. Lighting: You may use any kind of lighting techniques and features supported by your 3D program or renderer. Since your submission will be rated, it is important to produce the most interesting and dramatic lighting possible. Special lighting effects such as global illumination, spectral rendering, geometric light emitters, etc, are not only permitted, but also encouraged. Please do not modify the grid plane, as it is required for consistency.

5. Rendering: You may use any kind of renderer supported by your 3D program. You should aspire to produce the highest quality render possible in order to receive a good rating. Your final submission must be rendered at 800x800 with a pixel aspect ratio of 1.0. Once uploaded, the site will automatically generate thumbnails. Please do not modify the grid plane, as it is required for consistency.

6. Post: You may apply any kind of post-rendering effects such as color correction, glares, highlights, etc, using any kind of digital editing program. Please do not modify the grid plane, as it is required for consistency.

3D Animation High School Programs . . .

Here is a list of 3D school programs that I have either had correspondence with or have full programs that I know of. If you know of any other programs that are not listed, please contact me. There are tons of other programs out there, I just can't find my list.

High School 3D Programs

School / Location	Software	Contact
Boulder Tec - CO	Cinema 4D	Mel Haik
De Anza High School - CA		Larry Hatfield
Digital-Evolutions - CO	Maya	Dan Cornell
Humboldt Regional Occupational Program - CA
Quakertown High School - PA	3DS Max	Nataha Lightfoot
The Guthrie Center For Excellence - TX	3DS Max
Thomas Jefferson High School - CO	Cinema 4D	Jerry Esparza
Wye River Upper School	Blender	James Martinez

What I Have Been Reading Lately . . .

I have been reading a bunch great books lately and for the most part, they have a similar theme - the future job market. And a handful of other awesome books. I don’t seem to have time to read during the school year, just can’t find the time, so I capitalize on the time I have in the summer.

A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future by Daniel H. Pink

Pink talks about the shift in the future labor force from left brain dominance to more of a whole brain importance. He stresses that left brain skills are no longer sufficient and to be successful in the present “conceptual age”, one must be more whole minded with more focus on design, story, symphony, empathy, play and meaning. Many of left brain centric jobs can reduced to routines which could be offshored, outsourced or even automated. (We also bought the DVD to share with the staff.) *Highly recommended for all teachers, particularly art teachers.

Droidmaker: George Lucas and the Digital Revolution by Michael Rubin

Not the typical book about George Lucas, it is more of an inside story to the history of digital media and how the George Lucas Team changed industry. A must for animators, animators to be, Lucas fans, and almost any sci-fi geek.

I will talk about these when I get a chance:

The Rise of the Creative Class: And How It's Transforming Work, Leisure, Community and Everyday Life by Richard Florida

The Flight of the Creative Class: The New Global Competition for Talent (Paperback)
by Richard Florida Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell

The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell


I just bought these books . . . And will read them this summer . . .



The Pixar Touch: The Making of a Company









To Infinity and Beyond!: The Story of Pixar Animation Studios









And a few other that i can't remember . . .

Creating Content for the Dome

I am in the process of developing a resource site for creating 3D full dome content. The site will be reveled sometime in June '08.

Troy & Patrick's Internships and Short Film

I was able to get 2 of my students, Troy Whitmore & Patrick Vidal, internships at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science in the fall of 2006. That year they created a short, Splat! and won themselves an international award - a 'Domie' for best student film from the 2007 DomeFest.





SPLAT! (A SHORT)
Producer/Director: Troy Whitmore
Producer: Patrick Vidal
Denver Museum of Nature & Science
A crazy trip trough a paintball factory features immersive CG fluids
and particle dynamics animation.









Here is one of the domemasters from their short.

Here is the 'Splat' page with links to full DomeMaster Video and a traditional render.

The Splat! Page


Links:
DomeFest

Great Podcasts! to fill in your gaps . . .

This Week in Media - This is a great Podcast! And generally they have a weekly show about an hour long. It covers everything in media world from special effects to the latest industry trends. And these guys are fun to listen to.

The Animation Podcast - This might be my favorite cast if it did have only 4 -6 shows a year. Clay the host is awesome and interviews the great animation masters. I look forward to every show.

The History of Animation in the Court - This is a interesting cast, each show analyzes a different approaches for court case animation.

FX Guide Podcast

The VFX Show

Scholastic

Scholastic Art & Writing Awards is a great yearly event and I encourage anyone who hasn’t participated to do so. It is great for student recognition and program recognition.

The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, were founded in 1923 by Maurice R. Robinson. The program was designed to recognize and encourage student achievement in the creative arts and has blossomed to a huge national event. I remember participating in scholastics when I was in middle and high school in the eighties.

http://www.artandwriting.org/

As a digital program, we have only been participating for the last 3 years and man I wish I would have known about it as a middle school teacher. Our program is mainly a digital media program with an emphasis on 3D. Scholastics pulls out a different type of digital student, a student who leans towards more of a fine arts direction plus there is an animation category.

This year one of our students, Jihye, won the prestigious National American Vision Award and will be receiving her award at Carnegie Hall this June. Only one student in the nation per category received this award.

I can't wait to see the National Event. I will write about it after we go.

The Big Question . . . Which 3d Application for High School?

What 3D application should you teach in high school environment? I have been asked this question many times and I have given numerous answers.

First of all, I have used many applications in the classroom including: Strata 3D, Cinema 4D, 3Ds Max, and Maya. To be fair, my strength and training has been in Maya and that is the direction I leaned.

I bought 3ds Max for my middle school classroom first. It was one of the cheaper applications out there and there were tons of resources. I wanted to go the Maya direction at the time since that was my strength, but it was a bit pricey. The following year when it came to update, Alias released a PLE version (Personal Learning Edition) which allowed my students to practice at home. ALSO the price of Maya dropped significantly. This was a tipping point for Maya both in my classroom and in industry; it seemed that everyone started using it and resources were available everywhere.

In my high school classroom, we use Maya. It is one of the top applications in industry and majority of the schools, colleges, and universities are using AND is what a large percent of industry is using.

As far as I know, schools are using either Maya, 3DS Max, or Cinema 4D. Personally, I don’t know why schools would even bother with Cinema 4D. There are minimal resources available compared to Maya and Max, only a small part of industry is using it (A few television broadcasting groups), it is a little more limited then the other two, and The price is really comparable.

Autodesk Maya Complete 2008 Student SLM (Perpetual) - $299.98
Autodesk Maya Complete 2008 Student SLM (14 Month) - $149.98
Autodesk 3ds Max 2009 Student Version (13 Month) - $99.98
Maxon CINEMA 4D R10 - Win (Enrolled in a CG Course) - $195.00

Here are a few other titles:
Newtek's Lightwave
Softimage XSI
Houdini

NOTE: Need to talk about Blender . .


Also here is a great forum about choosing the right 3D Application on 3DBuzz.com
http://3dbuzz.com/vbforum/showthread.php?t=128803

SkillsUSA - 3D Animation Contest

I think SkillsUSA's 3D animation event is a great contest; it's intense! It really pushes students and they can learn more in those 8 hours than almost the whole semester. We have been participating for the last 3 years and I will continue as long as it is around.

Regionals:
Now with regionals, I want it to as real a possible. We are the only school that competes in our region and generally I have 8 -12 teams (24 students or so) competing for a spot to go to states. I want to get as many teams as possible participating for many reasons. First, it gives teams a chance to practice a few years until their turn and still makes it competitive enough where they could actually go if they train hard enough. I also make a big deal out of the event with real prizes, professional judges and big trophies. AND is always a combination of stress and fun for all.

Here the Colorado state prompts from the last few years (the ones I can remember):

2008 - "Create a 20-40 second Department of Transportation presentation pointing out the safety issues with a new transportation related device from the year 2050."

2007 - Using only privative shapes, tell a "toy story" and demonstrate the principles of animation

2006 - Create an animation that sells fruit that was grown in the Arctic Circle - something like that

Here are links to the animations.

Colorado SkillUSA 2008 Winner YOUTUBE It is blocked here . . .

Colorado SkillUSA 2007 Winner
Colorado SkillUSA entrants 2007 and 2006


Here the some state prompts from the past (the ones I can find):

2005 - Plan, storyboard and create a very short animated subject which brings the Stikfa character to life. Using the kit provided, assemble a character with its contents. You will be modeling your character as precisely as possible in 3d. At a minimum, the character should fly into the scene and upon landing, exercise a short walking sequence. Keep in mind, this character is supposed to be an evil villain. . . . more

2004 - Plan, storyboard and create a very short animated subject around that animated segment of the stomach cross-section. You will find an animated cross-section of a human stomach. You are to re-create this animation. You are to replicate the model, textures, motions and effects as closely as possible. Your re-creation must be done with all original models and textures, etc. Along with it, include an animation showing a camera’s eye view traveling into a human mouth, down the throat, through the esophagus and into the stomach. Working as a team and each other as models, do your best to create as much realism as possible.

2003 - Plan, storyboard and create a very short animated subject which clearly shows the orbital mechanics which cause the phases of the moon as they appear from earth. Show the phases and why an eclipse does not occur every new lunar cycle.

2002 - Create and storyboard a very short subject where you have an alien arm reach in from another dimension, fumble around for and grab at an object, and then retreat through the inter-dimensional portal.

Here is the official description:

3-D Visualization and Animation
Mimics the real world production environment where creative output must be accomplished within specific time frames, resources and design constraints. This is a two-person team event. Contestants must produce high quality images and an animated short subject using 3D computerized images. Students are tested on their technical knowledge, production skills and creative/artistic abilities, take a preliminary written exam and do storyboarding (visual planning).