Creature Effects

Course aim

On completion of this course, students will be able to demonstrate advanced visual effects techniques including how to realistically simulate hair, fur, cloth, and other garments within a professional creature effects pipeline. Students will also develop a visual effects showreel and resume in addition to gaining practical, hands-on experience with industry mentoring.

Course content

This immersive full semester course, delivered on-site at Rising Sun Pictures, will build upon students’ existing visual effects knowledge, and familiarises students with professional practice in the visual effects industry, providing the theory, skills, and techniques to produce industry-standard creature effects simulations. In this course, students will learn the fundamentals of a professional creature effects pipeline, and will be introduced to the realistic simulation of hair, fur, cloth, and other garments. Students will learn how to problem solve common issues and how to optimize the performance of their projects. The course will cover the techniques required to create realistic cloth, hair, and fur for animated characters and environments, including dynamics; constraints; collision detection; and physical properties, such as weight, density, and flexibility. The course will provide insight into career strategies and employment prospects locally, nationally, and internationally, and students will be exposed to professional standards, through immersive learning in a production studio, and using industry-standard software under the supervision of experienced visual effects artists. Upon completion of this course, students will have developed a clear understanding of professional practice in the visual effects industry, and will be employable on a global scale, equipped with a unique and sought-after skill set.

Textbook(s)

Nil

Prerequisite(s)

Students are required to complete or receive credit for 54 units of the program before enrolling in this course.

Corequisite(s)

Nil

Teaching method

Component	Duration
INTERNAL, CITY EAST
Lecture	4 hours x 12 weeks
Practical	8 hours x 12 weeks
Field Placement	336 hours x N/A

Note: These components may or may not be scheduled in every study period. Please refer to the timetable for further details.

Assessment

Creative work, Portfolio

Fees

EFTSL*: 0.500
Commonwealth Supported program (Band 2)
To determine the fee for this course as part of a Commonwealth Supported program, go to:
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Fee-paying program for domestic and international students
International students and students undertaking this course as part of a postgraduate fee paying program must refer to the relevant program home page to determine the cost for undertaking this course.

Non-award enrolment
Non-award tuition fees are set by the university. To determine the cost of this course, go to:
How to determine the relevant non award tuition fee. (Opens new window)

Not all courses are available on all of the above bases, and students must check to ensure that they are permitted to enrol in a particular course.

* Equivalent Full Time Study Load. Please note: all EFTSL values are published and calculated at ten decimal places. Values are displayed to three decimal places for ease of interpretation.