Experimental Scripting for Animation in Maya
Arts Col 759, 5 credits
MW 1:00-2:48
 

Professor Alan Price
aprice@accad.osu.edu
office hours: MW 10:00-12:30 by appointment

 

Course Syllabus

This schedule is subject to change and will be announced during class hours.


W 09.24

Overview of Maya’s Dependency Graph Architecture
Accessing Attributes
class notes
First steps in script creation and exploring the Maya command set
makeRobotArm.mel and keyRobotArm.mel
Chapters 1 and 2 of MEL Scripting for Maya Animators
Assignment: Create a script that generates a new scene
(due M 09.29)


M 09.29 -
W 10.01
Introduction to expressions - notes
Creating custom attributes
Creating connections between nodes
Randomness
Fun with Sin

Read chapter 3 (Chapter 4 is optional to understand more about expressions, but we will return to it when doing particles later in the quarter)
Read the Maya Online Reference > MEL and Expressions > Animation Expressions
Assignment: Create an expression-driven animated scene with custom attributes (due 1:30 M 10.06)


M 10.06 - W 10.08

Variables, Data Types, and Operators
Conditional and looping Statements

Distinctions between Expressions and MEL scripts
Read chapters 5 through 9


M 10.13 - W 10.15

Procedures and Functions
Read chapter 10
Designing custom GUI's
Basic dialogs

Windows and Layouts
Controls

Read chapters 11 through 14 (13 and 14 most important)
Assignment: Create a script with GUI for interactively generating event(s)
(due 1:30 M 10.20)


M 10.20 - W 10.22

Designing a Character Rig or Control GUI
Reference for ikFoot
Connecting controls to attributes
Read chapter 19
Assignment: Create a GUI for persistent control over elements in a scene.
(due W 10.29)


M 10.27 - W 10.29

Expressions with particle systems and dynamic properties
Chapters 4, 16 and 17


M 11.03 - W 11.05

Experiments with flocking systems
chapter 18
Assignment: Create a script that generates and creates custom connections with dynamic properties or particles with expressions
(due W 11.12)
update to Assignment Description


M 11.10 - W 11.12

M - Presentation

W - Project review


M 11.17
- W 11.19
Final project proposals – Individual meetings
In-Class Work Time for Final Projects


M 11.24 - W 11.26

M - Presentation
In-Class Work Time for Final Projects

M 12.03 - Finals Presentation (as per OSU finals schedule)