Grooming for VFX [CGMA, Jordan Soler]
- Publisher
- CGMA
- Product Type
- Video Course
- Author
- Jordan Soler
- Language
- English
- Duration
- 29:03
- Release date
- May 1, 2019
- Skill level
- Project Files
- Yes
- Product Price
- $750
In this course, students will explore the fundamentals of grooming for visual effects. They will complete two major grooming projects: a digital haircut and an animal or creature groom. Starting from the basics, students will learn how to plan and approach a groom, work with different grooming tools, and solve common challenges encountered in large-scale productions. The course will also cover the look development and texturing aspects of the grooming process.
Q&A: Once a week
Materials: Maya, Photoshop, Mari or an equivalent application such as Mudbox or Substance Painter, Yeti, and Arnold or an equivalent renderer such as RenderMan or V-Ray
Duration: 8 Weeks
Assignments: Due each week. Students should expect to spend approximately 10–20 hours per week watching lectures, attending Q&A sessions, and completing assignments.
Skill Level: Intermediate to Advanced
Prerequisites: A strong understanding of Maya, along with foundational knowledge of rendering, texturing, and look development. Basic Photoshop experience is also required. Recommended prerequisite courses include Intro to Production Modeling, Sculpting Anatomy: From Animal to Creature, and Texturing for Film/Cinematics.
The more experience you bring to the course, the more you will be able to achieve.
Week 1 | Introduction to Grooming and XGen
Students will be introduced to grooming and its role in visual effects production. We will examine where grooming is used and explore examples such as digital doubles, creatures, grass, feathers, and other production assets. We will discuss the different grooming applications available and identify the tools used throughout this course. Students will then set up a basic scene containing a sphere and fur before learning the fundamental XGen workflow, interface, and parameters.Week 2 | Digital Doubles and Haircut Creation - Part 1
We will begin by reviewing the haircut project and examining the reference material. Students will learn how to organize, analyze, and interpret references while identifying the most important details to consider before grooming. We will then set up the project and discuss essential XGen precautions, including proper naming conventions. The remainder of the lesson will focus on creating guides, one of the most important stages of the grooming process, followed by an introductory clumping pass and an explanation of the clump node.Week 3 | Digital Doubles and Haircut Creation - Part 2
Students will complete the curve and guide work if it was not finished during the previous week. We will create the first, second, and third clumping passes and learn how to paint the maps required to control them. Several useful expressions and scripts, including seExpr, will also be demonstrated. We will discuss the PTEX maps created during the process, explain how they work, and continue refining the groom with noise, cut, and other modifiers.Week 4 | Digital Doubles and Haircut Creation - Part 3
This week focuses on completing the digital double. Students will create eyelashes, eyebrows, and peach fuzz before applying the final refinements to the haircut and facial groom.Week 5 | Creature and Animal Grooming - Part 1
Students will set up the creature or animal project and begin developing its groom. We will review the initial preparation, reference analysis, and fundamental decisions required before guide creation begins.Week 6 | Creature and Animal Grooming - Part 2
We will continue the creature groom by developing the guides for both the body and face. Students will then prepare and establish the clumping system that will define the primary structure of the fur.Week 7 | Creature and Animal Grooming - Part 3
Students will complete and refine the creature or animal groom, resolving remaining issues and preparing the project for its final presentation.Week 8 | Introduction to Yeti
The final week provides an introduction to Yeti. Starting from scratch, students will explore its fundamental tools and workflow while creating a basic functional groom.Jordan Soler | Method Studios
Lectures by Jordan SolerJordan Soler is a Senior Groomer working in the visual effects industry. Throughout his career, he has contributed to projects at studios including Illumination Mac Guff, MPC, Animal Logic, Method Studios, and Image Engine. His credits range from Despicable Me and Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald to Peter Rabbit, Aquaman, and many other productions.
Having encountered a wide variety of grooming challenges throughout his career, Jordan believes that flexibility is one of the most important qualities a modern groom artist can possess.
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