Introduction to VFX in Maya and After Effects
A course by John Bashyam, Digital Artist and Director
Learn the VFX pipeline from start to finish, and create a realistic video with surreal elements by rendering and compositing objects into live action footage
The art of VFX (visual effects) and CGI (computer-generated imagery) allows you to create seamless and mind-bending scenes thanks to software like Maya and After Effects. For renowned digital artist and director John Bashyam, this art form has led him to create striking visuals for Coachella’s top musical acts, as well as for Hollywood feature films.
In this online course, John teaches you to create surreal scenes that appear remarkably realistic step by step. He walks you through Maya + Redshift, After Effects, and SynthEyes to create a playful scene of giant, life-like donuts raining down on a classic American monument. Are you ready to amaze yourself with the power of VFX and CGI?
What will you learn in this online course?
30 lessons & 25 downloads
What's included in this course?
Meet John Bashyam, a digital artist, director, entrepreneur, and your teacher for this course. He shares his creative journey, which has led him to a successful career in VFX. Hear about his inspirations, from YouTube creators, film directors, artists, and more.
Get a brief overview of the whole VFX process. John then walks you through the basic functions of Maya + Redshift, After Effects, and SynthEyes, before moving on to planning your shot.
Learn how to prep your footage in After Effects, then export it to SynthEyes, so for tracking. See how to move your workflow onto Maya for the scene layout and animation.
Next, John shows you how to fix the materials and textures by setting up a rig and keyframes for your animation. See how to add realistic lighting and reflections, and render your video.
Finally, take your CG renders back to After Effects, where John shows you how to composite the various layers, and do any necessary rotoscoping and color correction.
- 100% positive reviews (44)
- 2,644 students
- 30 lessons (7h 5m)
- 25 additional resources (7 files)
- Online and at your own pace
- Available on the app
- Audio: English, Spanish (Latam), French, Italian, Portuguese, Turkish
- English · Spanish · Portuguese · German · French · Italian · Polish · Dutch · Turkish
- Level: Beginner
- Unlimited access forever
Recommended software & tools for this course
Adobe After Effects
MayaWhat is this course's project?
Create a surreal video involving rendering and compositing giant life-like donuts into live-action footage.
Who is this online course for?
This course is for anyone who wants to create realistic VFX and CGI from scratch.
Requirements and materials
Basic understanding of 3D software (preferably Maya), After Effects, and live-action filming and 3D tracking principles is required to take this course.
In terms of equipment, you need a reasonably powerful PC with Nvidia graphics card and access to Maya, Redshift, After Effects, and SynthEyes software.
New to Adobe After Effects? In that case, we recommend taking Domestika Basics courses to learn how to use the software: Introduction to After Effects.
Reviews
John Bashyam
A course by John Bashyam
John Bashyam is a digital artist, director, and entrepreneur based in Los Angeles, California. After graduating from Loyola Marymount University with a degree in film and animation, he went on to co-found Warm & Fuzzy, an animation, visual effects, and design studio with offices in LA and Colorado.
His studio is on the cutting edge of digital technology, servicing some of the top brands in the world, including Nike, adidas, New Balance, Honda, Budweiser, Reddit, Facebook, NBC, Apple, Disney, and Lululemon, among others. He’s also worked on films like Avengers: Age of Ultron, Ant Man, Ghostbusters, The Finest Hours, The Shallows, The Walk, and Unbroken, and as a visual effects artist at Coachella for artists like The Weeknd, Muse, ACDC, Guns N’ Roses, Skrillex, Kaskade, Zedd, Kid Cudi, and many more.
Content
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U1
Introduction
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About Me
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Influences
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U2
Preparation
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Skills Needed for the Project
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The Softwares
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Planning Out the Shot
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U3
3D Tracking and Layout
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Prepping the Shot in After Effects
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Tracking the Footage in SynthEyes 1
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Tracking the Footage in SynthEyes 2
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Tracking the Footage in SynthEyes 3
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Importing the Tracked Camera to Maya 1
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Importing the Tracked Camera to Maya 2
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Placing 3D Models in the Scene 1
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Placing 3D Models in the Scene 2
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U4
Animation, Lighting, and Rendering
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The Animation 1
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The Animation 2
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The Animation 3
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Lighting 1
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Lighting 2
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Materials and Textures 1
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Materials and Textures 2
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Materials and Textures 3
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Materials and Textures 4
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Rendering Setup 1
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Rendering Setup 2
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Rendering Setup 3
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U5
Compositing the VFX Shot
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Importing the CG Renders
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Color Correction 1
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Color Correction 2
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Color Correction 3
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Export for Social Media
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FP
Final project
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Introduction to VFX in Maya and After Effects
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What to expect from a Domestika course
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Learn at your own pace
Enjoy learning from home without a set schedule and with an easy-to-follow method. You set your own pace.
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Learn from the best professionals
Learn valuable methods and techniques explained by top experts in the creative sector.
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Meet expert teachers
Each expert teaches what they do best, with clear guidelines, true passion, and professional insight in every lesson.
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Certificates
PlusIf you're a Plus member, get a custom certificate signed by your teacher for every course. Share it on your portfolio, social media, or wherever you like.
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Get front-row seats
Videos of the highest quality, so you don't miss a single detail. With unlimited access, you can watch them as many times as you need to perfect your technique.
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Share knowledge and ideas
Ask questions, request feedback, or offer solutions. Share your learning experience with other students in the community who are as passionate about creativity as you are.
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Connect with a global creative community
The community is home to millions of people from around the world who are curious and passionate about exploring and expressing their creativity.
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Watch professionally produced courses
Domestika curates its teacher roster and produces every course in-house to ensure a high-quality online learning experience.
FAQs
Yes, this course is designed for learners with intermediate experience in visual effects and animation, focusing on advanced workflows, industry-standard tools, and emerging technologies.
You’ll need access to Maya, After Effects, Redshift, and SynthEyes. Basic familiarity with these tools is recommended for following along with the course projects and workflows.
You’ll learn how to track live-action footage, import tracking data into Maya, integrate 3D animation, and composite everything in After Effects for seamless visual effects.
Yes, the course explores emerging technologies like NFTs as well as augmented and virtual reality, showing how they impact digital art creation and distribution.
Yes, you’ll learn export settings, aspect ratios, and best practices for optimizing videos and animations for platforms like Instagram and other social media.
You should be comfortable with the basics, as this course is aimed at intermediate users ready to expand into advanced VFX, animation, and compositing workflows.
Key topics include 3D tracking, camera matching, scene layout in Maya, realistic lighting and rendering in Redshift, animation rigging, rotoscoping, color correction, and social media content creation.
Adobe After Effects
Maya
Thank you! very very nice and Useful!
messi
Corso molto chiaro! Ho apprezzato tantissimo tutte le info che l’insegnante ha inserito nel corso, non è affatto scontato, in quanto principiante assoluta ho la possibilità di seguire esattamente i suoi passi!!
Excelente curso
Es muy buen curso, muy completo y el paso a paso es muy fácil de seguir y volver a ver las clases cada vez que sea necesario.