Big Fat Course

Well, do you want to become a versatile, multi-skilled individual who wants to learn more every day and expand their knowledge of multiple 2D and 3D programs? If so, you’ve come to the right place! This course might just be perfect for you if you are an artist or designer working in a small game/film studio, if you are a freelancer or even a student. Even if you want to work as a CG generalist in a larger studio, this course might be very helpful for you. However, if you are hoping to specialize in something specific, such as character animation or hyper-realistic architectural rendering, then this course might not be the right fit for you.

Yes, you will certainly learn how to create game content and how to implement it in a game, but we will not be teaching you about programming – just art and design techiques. The cool thing is that you will actually be creating content for a real game project – The Game! You will be learning useful tricks which will help you become a more versatile visual artist, such as motion graphics and whatnot.

Although you’ll be using 3D tools more often this course is suitable for those that want to feel comfortable in different environments, be it 3D or 2D environments and everything in between. As such, it is suitable for anybody with the drive to learn and experiment.

In short – to help you rebuild your portfolio. We aim to teach you all about new tools and how to use them in exciting, innovative ways. Our goal is to make you more confident using different tools and methods in your everyday routine. However, we aren’t going to push our styles right into your brain, hands and computer screen – we want to encourage you to experiment with everything you learn (and more!) so you can do your own thing and produce your own styles. We just intend to push you to the next level.

We are expecting to be able to begin this course on Monday, May 16th 2016. However, some of the videos and learning materials may be delivered even earlier than that! Just remember that both Marko and Tom are heavily involved with managing the IFCC Festival (which begins on the 23rd of May) and so, there is the possibility of the course beginning two weeks after the expected date. This is unlikely but certainly something to consider. Of course, if you visit the IFCC, you will have the chance to talk to Marko, Tom and the other TGW contributors who might also be joining us during the course – you will also get to witness all the live TGW activities as part of the IFCC program!

Mentoring will be available for a limited number of students. However, you will still benefit from reviews given to other students even if you are unable to reserve your seat on time. We will occasionally have guest mentors joining the program who will be able to provide their own unique flavour of critique and knowledge.

Providing knowledge is what we do! We will encourage you to use that knowledge to build your professional portfolio but also to experiment with- there are no limits! If you want to become a gallery artist, you have our support; if you want to become an illustrator, you have our support to. We consider all art and design as important and valuable. You can also take our knowledge and continue to pass that, and your own, onto others. Never stop learning and always learn for your own enjoyment, not to satisfy others.

There are plenty of amazing courses and workshops currently available online. For example, Learn Squared is an amazing projected founded by IFCC speaker Anthony Jones and his colleagues, Maciej Kuciara, Jama Jurbaev and Ash Thorp. Other programs such as those in Ryan Kingslein’s arsenal are also incredibly beneficial – you certainly would not be making a mistake to choose one or another, or all of them! There are also plenty of other resources available, all of which are certainly helpful; Gumroad, Cubebrush, Selz profiles with tutorials and guides from many amazing artists, such as IFCC speakers Mike Jelinek, Dominic Qwek, Mike Hill and Ben Mauro. Don’t forget to check some of Rafael Grassetti’s videos.

However, our story is a bit different from any other. This course is part of The Game Workshop project which was founded by Boonar Studio members. For those that do not know, Boonar Studio is responsible for the IFCC project (possibly one of the best art and design events on the planet!) alongside the Boonika Association. The people behind these projects are not randomly chosen and often, they work alongside one another on many different projects. So, by joining this project, you are joining one big family. Even if your knowledge exceeds what this course offers, you can still reach out and become a contributor on this website, become a Boonar Studio member or even become a speaker at the IFCC festival. Don’t be scared and get in touch! This family does not discriminate.