Syllabus
Schedule Tutorials Talks Assignments Resources
06

Resources

I will continue to update and add to this page as the semester progresses. Check back for new links. 

Course Links: 


Software (Required): 


  • Blender version 4.2.1  Download.  It’s important to ensure your home version matches the version installed in the classroom.  
  • Autodesk Maya 2024 - Make an account with Autodesk Student (must use UCLA email address)
  • Adobe CC ( Photoshop, Premiere, After Effects, Substance Painter)
  • Mixamo - sign up with Adobe account here
  •  Presentation design software You will be submitting many of your homework assignments as pdf presentations. You are welcome to use any software of your preference (InDesign, Keynote, PowerPoint, Google Slides, etc).  
  • Discord - sign up here if you don’t have an account.  Download discord app here- recommended.
  • DMA Server drop folders- see DMA FAQ page.

Software (Optional):


Miscellaneous Blender Add-ons
Other 

Hardware (Required):

  • External hard drive (SSD) - at least 500GB (Please format as exFAT)
    • You will use this hard drive to store all of your assignments. It is important that you purchase a solid state drive (SSD) as opposed to a mechanical/ standard drive. While individual drives will vary, an SSD can read/write data up to 5 times faster than HDD’s. Examples:  
    Samsung T9 1 TB SSD (around $130)  Amazon
    Samsung T7 “Shield” 1 TB SSD (around $100)  Amazon You do not need these exact drives if you already have an alternative that meets the same specs, but these would be my recommendations if you need to purchase one. 
  • A mouse (for your laptop) If you will be working on your homework / assignments on your laptop at any time, please purchase a mouse. 

*NOTE*It is not necessary for you to purchase or upgrade a computer for this course. However, if you have any questions about selecting hardware, please reach out to me or the course TA. 

Hardware (Optional): 


  • Monitor for home If you will be working on your laptop at home, a secondary monitor can be very helpful for modeling and rendering. A 4k monitor is preferred (if your laptop output allows).
  • External HDD / file storage drive (like this, for example)  Good to have for backing up files, storing assets, etc. Cheaper storage than SSD, but not ideal for opening/working on files from directly. 

AI Tools / Resources:  

Conversational AI / GPT’s 

Generative Image (Basic)

Generative Image (Advanced)

Checkpoints/Models/Workflows

Generative 3D

General References 

Sound: 



Digital Assets: 






©Breanna Browning 2024bbrowning@ucla.edu / TA vroca@ucla.eduDESMA 131 Fall 2024 University of California Los Angeles