Only the BEST DVDs/Tutorials/Books/Classes to Self-Educate a one-man 3D FILM studio?

#1

I don’t care how much I have to spend on materials and I don’t care how long it takes me, but I have to know everything it takes for me to produce a film-quality CG short from start-to-finish.

There are schools for it but unfortunately I have no portfolio which is required for the good ones. I get the feeling that with the right educational materials I could make progress even faster on my own. The trouble is that when searching for sources, I get so many results that it’s difficult to pick out the most-recent and highest-quality options.

Who are absolutely the BEST online 3D schools who DONT require a portfolio to enroll?
Who makes absolutely the BEST training books and DVDs?
Where can I find tutorials that will take me from knowing nothing to being production-capable with as little wasted time as possible?

I know about places like Gnomon, and I completed a class at Animation Mentor, but is there anything out there specifically arranged for the student who wishes to become a 3D film generalist?

#2

Woah there. I’d say that any school that doesn’t require a portfolio is a school you want to avoid. Why don’t you have a portfolio?

#3

I think that there are a lot of disciplines to learn to be ‘a one-man 3D FILM studio.’

While the technical stuff I think can be self taught, if you are aiming at producing films your best bet is to go to a film school/course. Not ‘3d films’ but actual ‘shoot it on camera and edit it’ film. If you don’t know where to place a camera, or how to tell a story no amount of technical knowledge is going to help.

You will learn a LOT more about putting together something when you get more instantaneous feedback from a camera. CG takes TIME, and ironically the more skilled you get, the longer your shots will take to produce.
Learn with the freedom to make mistakes and be able to correct those mistakes quickly.

If you end intention is to work in a film studio, working on projects there is a TON of resources on this forum (if you search for it) on which courses are recommended, or what online facilities can help. Most of those threads are titled ‘School or Self Taught’ (or something to that nature).

And as Leigh said, if you want quality education its best to go to a school that vets their students.

#4

Well, I guess you should start doing a portfolio and applying at one of the “good ones” if you don’t care how long it takes.

Said that, there is no such thing as a absolutely BEST training books/3D school/coffe etc. It comes down to what works for you. Try a few different ones and see what suits your needs.
But as Pyke said, 3d is just a tool, and if you are more into the film/storytelling aspect of it, go to film school, get a camera and shoot something, and learn 3d along the way!