Learn the worldbuilding techniques used in The Lion King, Jungle Book, The Mandalorian, and The Book of Boba Fett… and do it from the comfort of your home, in this interactive live course on Zoom.

Learning Virtual Production can be done… virtually. The new course on World Building In Unreal Engine 5.1, starting July 8, 2023, is a good example of this. The 8-week interactive course is taught live on Zoom, with class hours on Saturdays (9:00am to 12:30pm PST‍) and lab hours each Thursday (6:30pm to 8:30pm PST). The course, by CG Pro and Narwhal Studios, reveals the development process of a real-time environment in Unreal Engine.

As the entertainment industry evolves, it’s essential to keep up with new technologies, but it’s equally important to have a solid foundation of how to use those technologies in place. We’d love to share insights and lessons we’ve learned from our past projects, hoping to support you in strengthening both innovative and foundational skills on your creative journey. Join us starting July 8, 2023!

All you need to start is some basic knowledge of Unreal Engine 5.1, a computer (that can run Unreal Engine and other tools) and, obviously, having Unreal Engine installed. The instructios are Edward Dawson-Taylor, from CG Pro, and Dallas Drapeau, from Narwhal Studios.

Edward Dawson-Taylor has deep hands-on experience in the CG world. He has worked for ILM, Disney, and Digital Domain on blockbuster films – Jurassic World, The Lion King, and Jungle Book. Widely recognized as a cutting-edge technologist, he has led teams of developers in architecting and enhancing VFX related software. He has also done innovative work with simulation and pipelines in the worlds of visual design and automotive industries.

With a passion for world-building, real-time visualization, and virtual production, Dallas Drapeau has made a name for himself as a Senior Environment Artist at Narwhal Studios and he is a master at creating truly remarkable environments. Through his work on major productions such as The Mandalorian, Book of Boba Fett, and Avatar: The Last Airbender, Dallas has had the opportunity to work with some of the industry’s leading experts and gain valuable experience in directing, production design, art direction, and more.

From VFX to AR/VR

Guest speakers include Daniel Langhjelm, from CG Pro and Safari Sosebee, from Narwhal Studios. Originally from the game industry, Daniel transferred to Virtual Production in 2021 as an Unreal Engine Technical Artist. Safari Sosebee, ‍CCO and cofounder of Narwhal Studios, has been working in the VFX and Virtual Production industry for over a decade. Safari has had the opportunity to work on some incredible projects, including supervising the Virtual Art Department (VAD) for Lucasfilm’s The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett, both of which went on to win Emmys for Outstanding Visual Effects.

The instructors and guest speakers will take the participants through key aspects of Virtual Production and world building. From planning an environment before building, blockout the environment with intent, set dress with premade assets, light the scenes for the right mood, critically review the different phases of the set, and take it to the finish line, while using Unreal Engine 5.1. Skills that are fundamental for film and are transferable across many industries, including In-Camera VFX, Video Games, Architecture, AR/VR, and others!

Here are some of the highlights of the course:

• Experience fully live mentoring from accomplished professionals in the field
• Use workflows, and pipelines and gain the technical and artistic skills to create worlds, optimized for In Camera Visual Effects (ICVFX), Virtual Art Departments (VAD), Design Visualization, Broadcast, Simulation, and more!
• Get the lowdown on Unreal Engine 5.1’s latest tools for crafting gorgeous, easy-to-make worlds.
• Create cool natural stuff like water, atmosphere, and weather.
• Learn the ins and outs of World Partition vs. Levels and how they impact your projects.
• Harness photogrammetry and lidar and how they affect your world when creating photo-realistic scenes whether for a volume or not
• Develop vast procedural and optimized scenes
• Combine the science and the art of world-building to create stunning and effective imagery
• Build and light worlds from existing assets
• Use collaborative tools to work with a team, through Remote Sessions, Perforce, VR Scouting and more

One final question: who is it for? Anyone eager to break into the Virtual Production workforce may be interested, according to Narwhal Studios, but the course is designed to appeal to filmmakers who wanna dive into and get hands-on with Virtual Production, supervisors wanting to understand how to better engage with their real-time team and Art Departments, VAD artists, layout artists, and Unreal Engine environment artists at associate to intermediate levels looking to boost their portfolios.

According to the organizers of this interactive course, “whether you’re a beginner, intermediate, or seasoned pro, from VFX artists and game developers to architects, supervisors, and filmmakers, this course has something for everyone who’s eager to dive into the world of virtual production and worldbuilding.”

World Building In Unreal Engine 5.1 is an 8-week interactive course, taught live on Zoom, starting Julky 8, 2023. Price ? $3,997.00 USD.