About the Course

Learning Outcomes
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Be able to use Next-gen pipelines to create real-time hair.
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Be able to use Fibermesh with confidence to create amazing hair texture.
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Be able to confidently use XGen in maya.
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You will Know how to set up your hair for lighting and rendering
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You will also have an understanding of creating Animal Fur for games.
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You will have the knowledge of creating any hair style with the Wig technique theory.
What Exactly is This Course?

Course curriculum
- 1
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2
Hair Theory
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The Wig Theory
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Creating the Wig Template & Hair Blockout in ZBrush
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Hair Theory Presentation
FREE PREVIEW -
Homework
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3
Hair Texture
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Fiber Texture Creation
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Texture Setup & Render Test
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Homework
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4
XGen Hair Placement
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Hair Card Theory
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Using XGen to Place the Hair Cards - Part 1
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Using XGen to Place the Hair Cards - Part 2
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Using XGen to Place the Hair Cards - Part 3
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Using XGen to Place the Hair Cards - Part 4
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Using XGen to Place the Hair Cards - Part 5
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Homework
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5
2nd and 3rd Layer of Hair Cards
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Adding the Texture and Testing
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Adding Second Layer of Hair - Part 1
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Adding Second Layer of Hair - Part 2
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Adding Second Layer of Hair - Part 3 - Timelapse
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Fly Away's and Flow - Part 1
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Fly Away's and Flow - Part 2
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Blend Cards
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Homework
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6
Hair Cap
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Hair Cap Theory
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Hair Cap Re-Topo and UV
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XGen Interactive Grooming
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Setup and Rendering
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Homework
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7
Getting into Marmoset
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Flow Maps
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Marmoset Setup
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Homework
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8
Beard Creation
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Beard Theory and Beard Template
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Beard Placement
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Setup and Rendering the Beard
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Homework
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9
Eyebrow Creation
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Eyebrow Theory and Eyebrow Placement
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Homework
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10
Eyelashes
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Eyelash Theory
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Eyelash Texture
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Eyelash Placement
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Homework
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11
Bonus: Animal Fur - Werewolf for Games
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Animal Fur Introduction
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ZBrush Blockout - Part 1
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ZBrush Blockout - Part 2
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Retopo
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UVing
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Fur Placement - Part 1
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Fur Placement - Part 2
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Plane Cards
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Fur to Planes
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Planes Placement - Part 1
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Planes Placement - Part 2
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Flyaways
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What Students are Saying
“Ashley's course is one of the best that I have taken. I learned a lot through this class and even more from his live sessions. He is very patient and will explain to you as many times as you need to understand. I cannot recommend this class enough.”
“Before taking Ashley’s course I struggled with hair textures, material creation, hair card placement, etc. This course really shed a lot of light on what it takes to make a proper hair mesh and material. I learned to create hair for AAA games with a method that is easy to use with and yields quick results. It is an approach to hair creation which leaves guesswork out and can be applied to any hairdo. No doubt about it, this is my best work so far. My capability and confidence has greatly improved as a result of Ashley’s course.”
“Prior to taking Ashley’s course, I wasn’t as confident creating hair cards. I had taken some other courses in the past that covered hair texture and hair card creation but they didn’t seem to give me the control of the texture creation that I wanted. Ashley introduced me to a different method placing hair cards that I hadn’t considered before that allows me to easily manipulate my hair cards, making it easier to adjust them after looking them over in Marmoset. As an instructor you would be hard pressed to find better, the feedback is great and the lessons are clear. If you’re a beginner to hair creation for games or are looking to improve your workflow I recommend you take this course.”
“I'd previously used fibermesh to create hair but I wanted to produce hair that was low poly and suitable for games especially with the growing market in AR/VR. Throughout the course Ashley demonstrates his methods for creating not only hair but also beards, eyebrows, lashes, skullcaps and even animal fur. The range he covers is just incredible and he takes you through everything step by step in an easy to follow logical way. Having a live session every week allows constructive feedback as you progress and also enables you to ask any questions you may have about the process. I got so much invaluable information from the course and would definitely recommend it to anyone wanting to create hair at a professional level.”
“This course is great for people who want to learn the process of making real time hair! Ashley does a fantastic job explaining each step. His feedback in live video sessions are also very helpful if you are unsure how to push it further. And having him as a teacher was super fun and encouraging”
Software Requirements

- Zbrush
- Maya 2018 will be used for this lecture but you can use any version from 2017 and upwards. Although I will only be teaching Maya, you can use these techniques in other software, such as 3D max. (Trial and Educational Versions Available)
- XGen will play a big part in our hair creation.
- Bonus tools. This technique could be transferred over to other software.
- Graphics Tablet.
- Photoshop (Trial and Educational Versions Available)
- Substance Painter (Trial and Educational Versions Available)
- Marmoset Toolbag
For this course I will be using Zbrush, Maya, Photoshop, Substance Painter and Marmoset. If there is any other software you would like to use instead of these, you are more than welcome to.
You must have a beginners knowledge and understanding of how to use Zbrush, Maya and Photoshop to be able to participate in this course.
Don’t let the Software, maya scare you. We have had previous students in the past never having used Maya before and they still produced some amazing results.
Bonus! Animal Fur Creation
1.5 Hours of Incredible Bonus Content

Meet Your Instructor

Ashley Sparling
Instructor
[email protected]Users of XMD
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