CSG 4323 3D Animation and Visual Effects | Fall 2025

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🌟Course Description: CSG/ART 4283 Game Asset 3D Modeling and Animation

This advanced course delves into the complex world of 3D animation and visual effects, equipping students with the technical and creative skills to produce high-quality, professional-grade 3D assets and animations with emphasis on 3D animation for film and media production. Students will explore cutting-edge techniques in advanced 3D modeling, procedural modeling and texturing, lighting, special effects, and advanced animation. The course emphasizes the integration of artistic vision and technical precision, preparing students to create visually compelling and dynamic animations for both games and film production.

Prerequisite: CSG 3013 and CSG 4283 (or ART 4283) | Synonymous courses: None

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🎯️ Course Goals (Objectives)

1. Analyze a complex computing problem and apply principles of computing and other relevant disciplines to identify solutions.
   1. Apply critical and design thinking to analyze, synthesize, and evaluate complex information, developing innovative solutions to computing problems.
   2. Apply interdisciplinary knowledge to assess both the technical and artistic aspects of a creative project and inform innovative computing solutions.
   3. Analyze how historical and cultural factors influence digital media works.
   4. Analyze current methodologies in creative digital industries.
   5. Identify and compare open-source and free plug-ins relevant to 3D modeling and animation.
   6. Evaluate and optimize 3D models for efficiency across different platforms and production pipelines.
2. Design, implement, and evaluate a computing-based solution to meet a given set of computing requirements in the context of the program’s discipline. 
   1. Demonstrate proficiency in animation principles and technologies.
   2. Apply conceptual and technical skills to create and refine creative work.
   3. Plan, execute, and evaluate a final project, demonstrating proficiency and reflecting on creative decisions.
   4. Evaluate best practices for developing dynamic, interactive 3D environments in game design, simulation, and animation.
   5. Integrate third-party plug-ins into production workflows to enhance efficiency and visual quality.
   6. Design both realistic and stylized visual effects by applying particle emitters, forces, and interactions.
   7. Design and evaluate stylized and realistic animation effects to achieve expressive movement and interaction.
   8. Plan and compose animated sequences that convey narrative through movement, timing, and visual composition.
3. Communicate effectively in a variety of professional contexts.
   1. Write and present clearly, practicing the skills of effective communication across the curriculum.
   2. Effectively communicate design solutions and prototypes
   3. Create storyboards, animatics, and flow charts to visualize, plan, and present design solutions.
   4. Apply color theory and design principles to convey ideas or emotions in professional contexts
   5. Demonstrate skills in storytelling, pacing, and character development.
   6. Design and implement a clear, engaging narrative structure (e.g., linear, nonlinear) to communicate ideas.
   7. Apply non-narrative techniques (e.g., montage, abstract sequences) to organize and convey concepts.
   8. Produce 3D animations that communicate emotion, mood, and story through assets, effects, and camera techniques.
4. Recognize professional responsibilities and make informed judgments in computing practice based on legal and ethical principles. 
   1. Create and maintain a portfolio that demonstrates principles, techniques, and skills applicable to the industry
   2. Recognize roles and career opportunities within the industry
   3. Manage and complete projects adhering to professional standards
5. Function effectively as a member or leader of a team engaged in activities appropriate to the program’s discipline.
   1. Apply knowledge and skills to identify and address real-world problems in local or global communities.
   2. Collaborate effectively in teams, communicating and coordinating throughout production stages. 
   3. Communicate and coordinate ideas effectively within a team, demonstrating proficiency across specializations. 
   4. Apply new knowledge in team settings to contribute to team goals. 
   5. Apply skills and competencies required for specific roles in the field.
6. Apply animation principles and technical skills to craft original, engaging digital storytelling experiences, demonstrating proficiency in design, production, and execution across media such as animations and virtual production.
   1. Apply knowledge from science, humanities, and arts through research to enhance creative practices.
   2. Utilize interdisciplinary knowledge from the creative arts and humanities to design engaging experiences that reflect social, cultural, and historical contexts.
   3. Demonstrate technical proficiency in visual organization, color theory, and 3D design composition.
   4. Apply principles of visual organization and color theory in models, materials, textures, and scenes to enhance visual storytelling
   5. Analyze visual elements to identify details, patterns, and relationships
   6. Demonstrate technical proficiency and apply tools to meet standards
   7. Critique and evaluate design solutions through discussions and reviews.
   8. Apply design thinking principles
   9. Prototype and test concepts iteratively 
   10. Recognize and apply fundamental design elements (e.g. principles, game development, animation).
   11. Acquire fluency in major discourses (e.g. game design, animation, 3D modeling).
   12. Apply advanced modeling tools, modifiers, and sculpting techniques to construct high-resolution organic and hard-surface models.
   13. Demonstrate the use of modifiers and node-based systems to generate procedural models, assets, and environments.
   14. Create complex terrains and objects algorithmically with minimal manual input.
   15. Generate procedural textures using patterns, noise, and algorithmic methods.
   16. Apply procedural textures with efficient mapping techniques to 3D models and environments.
   17. Construct and control particle systems to simulate effects such as fire, smoke, and weather.
   18. Implement advanced lighting methods, including global illumination and HDRI, to achieve photorealistic rendering.
   19. Apply camera effects such as depth of field, motion blur, and lens flares to enhance mood and narrative.
   20. Rig and animate complex character models, including facial structures and simulation-based systems (cloth, hair, fluids).

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Course Requirements

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❗Syllabus Disclaimer: As with most technology courses this course is in a state of constant update in order to keep up with the ever-changing technology and advancements in the field. This syllabus is not a contract, but a plan for action. The instructor reserves the right to alter its stipulations, upon prior notification to students, if and when educational and technological circumstances warrant changes.

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⚡Additional Resources

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🔗This syllabus is located online at: https://sites.utulsa.edu/csg/csg-courses/csg-4323-3d-animation-and-visual-effects/