VFX Academy of Design

Search Across
All Academies

You may be interested in courses on these subjects

25 courses

Character Design

32 courses

Electives

12 courses

Environment Design

23 courses

Drawing Foundation

6 courses

Compositing/Lighting

15 courses

Houdini/FX

7 courses

Rigging

Learn scripting essentials

THIS COURSE IS IN DEVELOPMENT The courses focuses on teaching the needed basics of Python to be able to manipulate scenes in Maya. The student is able to add, delete or change content in 3D which allows them to batch their process and automate parts of their work. Interactive apps round up the course which allow input and modification in the scripts behavior. The students will be able to write basic scripts in Python. Additionally they will be able to manipulate Maya scenes using Python Apps with UI.

Course Format

Standard

Skills Level

Intermediate

Duration

8 weeks

Q&A

Live recorded session

Feedback

Individual recordings

Lecture Type

Pre-recorded lectures each week

Assignment

Due each week. Expect to spend 10-20 hrs/wk viewing lectures, Q&A, and time on assignments.

PREREQUISITES

Intermediate knowledge using a 3D software and rigging; ideally, students should also have some experience in animating, but it’s not a must

MATERIALS

Maya (or 3D program equivalent)

The more you know, the better.

Week #1

Python Introduction

The Artist of the 21st century and how much impact Python and scripting will have on your future work. We introduce Python basics while dive into what exactly a scripting language is, compare them to programming languages, how we can use them and what are the benefits. Finally we write our first lines of code in Python.

Week #2

Script Editor, Lists, Dictionaries and Expressions

We explore the script editor Sublime Text to optimize our workflow and learn the new data types lists and dictionaries. New expressions and useful functions start to form our understanding of scripting.

Week #3

Loops, Ifs and Pseudo Code

Two of the most powerful topics are up this week: loops and ifs. This two equip us to write small batch processes while we begin to write our scripts in pseudo code.

Week #4

Functions, Naming and Scope

Functions add complexity to our future work and allow us to write more repeatable and cleaner code. Naming and scope advances our core understanding with a professional touch.

Week #5

External Files, Error and Debug

To finish our Python introduction we start to write and execute scripts in files, add system variables and understand the process of debugging and error handling.

Week #6

Python in Maya

We introduce Python scripting in Maya. We understand the difference between MEL and Python, how to use the Maya Script Editor, console prints and the Maya API to manipulate objects inside Maya.

Week #7

First Scripts in Maya

We look into everyday functions and combine them to useful scripts for our work in Maya.

Week #8

Maya Apps with UI

Last but not least we understand the creation of Maya UIs (user interfaces) to allow user input for our now advanced everyday scripts.

What makes this learning experience unique?

PERSONALIZED FEEDBACK

Receive personalized feedback on all assignments from the industry’s top professionals.

LIFETIME ACCESS

Enjoy lifetime access to the spectrum of course content, including lectures, live Q&As, and feedback sessions.

CERTIFICATION

Show off your Certification of Completion when you turn in 80% of course assignments.

FLEXIBLE LEARNING

Learn anywhere, anytime, and at your own pace with flexible, online course scheduling.

This course is meant to help you understand how to use Python with Maya. If you don’t know Python? Don’t worry! This course helps you develop the foundation you’ll need should you want to break into your specific industry (rigging, special effects, lighting, film or gaming, etc.). This course is the best source for learning any programming language I have ever received. If Alex decides to teach a sequel to this course, let me know and sign me up! (Or vice versa.)

Eric

Amazing teaching style, completely comprehensive, I have taken a few python courses that were not maya centered but they were always bogged down by niche concepts and not paying enough attention to the core of python as a whole. I learned a lot and that is thanks to you!

Jacob

Very professional and efficient. Great explanation of topics.

Thorsten

I did not know anything about coding before taking this class. I took this class hoping to gain some understanding of python. I never expected that after this class I would have the knowledge to create my own scripts and Maya UI’s! I’m super happy I took this class!!!

Sayer

This course help me to fill some Python gap and with the information that i studied will help me for technical issues and problem solving. I understand more about the pipeline and creating tools for the artist.

Andrea

Python for VFX and Animation in Maya