In this course you’ll learn how to create a digital building from photographic source material as well as all the techniques that go into creating digital environments. You will follow the same workflow that course leader Paul McWilliams used whilst working on films including Inception, Sweeney Todd and Deathly Hallows. This course is ideal for aspiring Environment artists (in Film, Television and Commercials) and for those working in the fields of Architecture and Archaeological Environment re-creation. View Paul’s facebook page here to take a look at students current work and read their experiences of the course. You can also contact Paul through this page.
Over this eight-week mentored training course, Paul will take you through the production techniques he used to create ‘Mal’s house’ seen in the Limbo sequence of the film Inception. Paul has redesigned the course so that it now offers a choice of four different buildings to work with, each providing a different level of difficulty and working time requirement. Throughout the course Paul will provide help and feedback.
You’ll work with Paul to model the house using image modelling photogrammetry, then UV map the house before starting the texturing process. This will involve advanced projection techniques combined with 3D painting and more traditional texturing. You’ll then work on shader look development and lighting before finally rendering and compositing your finished model.
A new addition to the course is 3D painting using Autodesk’s Mudbox. Paul has taken time to add this to the course to demonstrate how 3D painting can improve and speed up the environment workflow.
This is an intermediate entry level workshop, suitable for students with a good understanding of Maya. Some basic modelling, UV mapping, texturing, lighting and rendering experience is required. This course will take your skills in 3D environment creation up to an advanced level enabling you to produce feature film level imagery appropriate for one’s portfolio. The course will require a 4-8 hour commitment each week depending on the complexity of the model you choose to work with.

Home Page: _http://workshops.cgsociety.org/courseinfo.php?id=369