interactive 3D actors and their worlds

From: jean-marc gauthier (jean-marc.gauthier@nyu.edu)
Date: 03/13/02


Introduction to interactive 3D is a new summer course at Interactive Telecommunications Program - Tisch School of the Arts / New York University from May 20 to June 28 - 
Instructor: Jean-Marc Gauthier  jean-marc.gauthier@nyu.edu 
 
This course will focus on designing interactive 3D worlds. Students will examine the creative process of developing believable 3D environments and character animation by utilizing architectural modeling, organic modeling and character modeling. It will cover rendering, lighting, sound, textures, camera tracking and character movements with emphasis on creating interface design to control interactive 3D actors and their worlds. This course will explore the creative process of transforming conceptual media into interactive 3D worlds using Lightwave, 3dMax, Virtools and Director. Students with no prior knowledge of 3D and/or of programming can focus on content rather than coding by using special sets of modular behaviors inside their original artwork. Students will submit several short assignments during the term, as well as a final project.

Jean-Marc Gauthier is the author of "Creating Interactive 3D Actors and their Worlds, without writing code", a new book and CD-Rom which helps artists to create virtual worlds with animated characters for the web or for installations by using reusable modular behaviors instead of writing code. Online demos @ http://www.tinkering.net

"Jean-Marc Gauthier has decided in this season of bits to populate the 
digital with characters that can act, that can play, that can respond in 
coherent and interesting ways to their human creators and collaborators. His 
interest in not in abandoning the traditions of puppetry, theater, and 
cinema for the "intelligent agents" and "information avatars" of the new 
information age. Gauthier's focus is on the stage, the podium, the room--an 
architecture of the possible. In it, the progress of millennia, of us 
representing ourselves differently, will be continued, experienced, 
reworked, and experimented. And he invites us all with access to the 
digital, including children, to participate, making it as easy as possible 
(particularly for the adults). With Gauthier we are not counting polygons 
but possibilities." 

online @ http://www.mkp.com/books_catalog/catalog.asp?ISBN=0-12277-721-2 

amazon.com @ http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0122777212/qid%3D1006853722/ref%3Dsr%5F11%5F0%5F1/107-1226494-0695756

and @ Barnes and Noble, Borders bookstores


Features 
  a.. Devoted to the growing number of tools that let you achieve sophisticated results using drag-and-drop code modules. 
  b.. Easily accessible to beginners but filled with valuable information for more experienced animators. 
  c.. Helps you teach yourself to build and populate Web-based virtual environments, assign tasks to actors, develop and test interactivity, implement artificial intelligence, and carry out real-time 3D rendering. 
  d.. Covers development of human-like behaviors, interactivity between characters and virtual cameras. 
  e.. Open to a wide range of Web-based animation uses: games, architectural and medical applications, real-time visualization, scientific research, story telling, virtual reality, and more. 
  f.. Includes numerous full-color illustrations. 
  g.. Includes tutorials with Animation Master, Lightwave 6.5, 3DMax, Virtools 2.0, DeepPaint3D, LifeForms and Macromedia's Director 3D 8.5 
On the CD 
The enclosed CD features full-featured, time-limited copies of Life Forms 3.9 (Mac and PC), Virtools 2.0 (PC), and Deep Paint3 D (PC). You also get all the files relating to the book's 22 tutorials-including 3D models, textures, behaviors, and motion files-plus links to a rich selection of software and user resources on the Web. Included are textures from Marlin Studios. 

Table of Contents: 

Chapter 1: Some Points About This Book 
Chapter 2: Digital Conversation Pieces 
Chapter 3: Production of 3-D Characters 
Chapter 4: Organic Modeling 
Chapter 5: Character Animation 
Chapter 6: Interactivity 
Chapter 7: Behaviors 

Best regards 

Jean-Marc Gauthier 

http://www.tinkering.net 

http://www.itp.nyu.edu



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