Q&A about our new course series called "SESSIONS"

Hi,

I'm pretty pumped for this new format.

I often find myself deep in large/long-form projects and I often find these smaller challenge sessions are a great way to level up skills you would otherwise neglect!

Are the themes for the session topics already set?

When a few of the session lessons go live - can we expect a community challenge project to accompany them?

Have you considered a 'Photoshop Tennis' format - where you start a session and pass it on to another instructor?

I sometimes find the 'rally' format of those kinds of 'tennis matches' super exciting to follow and the output is often very creative.

Can't wait to see what you have in store.

Count me in for some SESSIONS!

Hi Kent,

Thanks for replying.

I really like the sound of this format - it allows both the teacher and the student to explore a vast selection of topics as their interest is piqued. I see that you expect the 'sessions' themselves to grow organically over time as a direct result of your own curiosity and the requirements of the audience.

Seems like a really sensible format that affords both creative exploration and focused study. What I find appealing is that you are clearly excited by the possibilities that exist and are open to pursuing many different areas of focus.

Framing things within a pre-defined ruleset or list of limitations - means you are free to explore new things without getting trapped down the rabbit hole.

As a beginner having those guiding principles is really helpful. Having different exercises that share a similar format but explore multiple areas of interest should allow students to move organically between projects.

I don't expect you to reply to my next message as I am sure you are very busy - but I thought I would share some comments on the first theme of Minimalism.

If this is not the right place for this discussion just let me know and I'll drop it somewhere else!

With regards to MINIMALISM:

When I think of this term - my brain associates this with modern art and the modernism movement in architecture. As well as sterile science fiction environments. Things like medical bays or alien utopian/dystopian designs.

One great example of minimalism in cinema - is the recurring use of symbols in Stanley Kubrick's 1968 film:

2001: A Space Odyssey

The set decoration, environment design, framing, composition, and general aesthetic really nail that vibe of doing as much as possible with as little as possible.

Of particular note are the Monolith and the Space Station designs.
As well as the iconic HAL.

What I find most interesting about these minimalistic designs - is that they show so little but hint at so much.

They offer the suggestion of something much greater, more meaningful, and in some instances, even something sinister but they are open to interpretation on the part of the audience.

It's a fine line between reducing an idea or image into a readable symbol - whilst affording room for the viewer to engage with it.

Often, the most effective minimalistic designs straddle a fault line between familiarity and the unknown.

I look forward to tackling the planet render and seeing how I can take it a step further by introducing some of the classic science fiction elements introduced in early 60's cinema.

As an aside, on "Photoshop Tennis" for any curious readers:

"Photoshop tennis (also known as Photoshop Pong or Photoshop battle (similar in its function to a "DJ battle" or "rap battle" in hip hop music) is a game played through sequential alternating photoshopping of an image."

"..Each match of Photoshop tennis is generally played with two competing players.[2] The players pick a starting image, or one is "served" by a player, then another player makes some sort of alteration to the image in any chosen image editor (matches are not exclusive to Adobe Photoshop). They then send the altered image to the other player or players"

"This process goes back and forth until a predetermined number of rounds have elapsed, or the players otherwise wish to end the game. When the final round is over, there may be an independent judge who determines who has played the best shots, and declares that person the winner, or players may play without a clear winner. Sometimes extra rules can be enforced, such as sticking to one particular software package, or keeping to a particular theme."

source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photoshop_contest

no question, just Statement of position  

I am looking forward to those "Sessions", very exited to dive into those new Projects. Kent is one of the best, not only the way of  teaching but also the Content has a strong point of interest.

This sounds really cool Kent. Sometimes it's hard to choose between all the big cg-cookie courses, but with a 2 hr format, it would be easy to fit these in between projects. 

Also a sci fi arc vis project sounds super cool.

Ok, I'm really interested. I've been learning blender for the last 4 months and signed in on your site today. 

I'm still at the level where I don't know what to ask. But I want to know everything about Blender and these courses are what you need to immerse yourself 1000%

Is there an ETA on when this will be available?

Murphy strikes again!
As always Real Life First. Cookies can bake in the oven longer. I hear some people even like them a little on the crispy side.

sheila5 ,

Just go to Library > Stream Blender Courses

thanks spikeyxxx and @theluthier Something to do on the weekend 

for me it is popping up a sign to the new course every other time a load a new coockie window, maybe some adblocker is doing some shenanigans?

cgtin the popup shows up. I do get notified that there are reactions on this topic. But the notification bell used to show me more, such as when there were live sessions starting, before the move to mavenseed

Oohh I see, hopefully they can fix it soon:)

I just want to say I sometimes do better with small tutorials than big ones. I like projects I can do fast and not get bogged down.