Course Overview

Course Description:

Introduction to Interactive Design is a beginner-friendly course for those new to TouchDesigner. In this course, we will explore TouchDesigner’s capabilities and how it can be used for creative projects. We will start by learning the different inputs - including images, videos, 3D scans, geometric shapes, audio files, remote controls, keyboards, and webcams. All these inputs are processed in real-time, allowing us to create dynamic and interactive stackable elements.

As we progress, we will learn how to stack various elements together into networks. These networks are more than just technical structures but a methodology for creating artistic expression and crossovers between visual, audio, motion, and interactive elements. By the end of this course, each student will have a new tool set of design elements to stack into personal projects. This course is for anyone looking to dive into the world of interactive design and learn how to use TouchDesigner effectively.

Learning Outcomes:

Upon completing this course, participants will gain the skills to engage in a wide array of projects integrating images, videos, 3D scans, and audio files using TouchDesigner for real-time applications. The course will teach students to activate these media elements and effectively blend them, facilitating artistic crossovers between visual, audio, and motion aspects. Through hands-on projects like the interactive music box, students will acquire the skills to integrate these diverse elements into unified digital artworks.

Course curriculum

    1. Files

    2. Discord

    1. 1. Presentation

    2. 2. Interoperability - Data Types

    3. 3. Workflows in TouchDesigner

    4. 4. Project Examples

    1. 1. Setting geometry in Houdini

    2. 2. Interface - Data Reading

    3. 3. Geometry Interoperability

    4. 4. Importing Point Data from Houdini

    5. 5. Extracting Data from Points

    1. 1. UV Space Main Settings

    2. 2. Applying Noise

    3. 3. Render Settings

    4. 4. Mixing Images

    5. 5. Mapping in Z axis

    6. 6. Modifying Color Levels

    1. 1. Geometry Settings

    2. 2. Geometry Position

    3. 3. Point Masking

    4. 4. Channels and Noises

    1. 1. Introduction

About this course

  • $70.00
  • 39 lessons
  • 3.5 hours of video content

Course Teaser

Session 1

Survey of TouchDesigner Operators

First, we will familiarize ourselves with the general capabilities and possibilities inherent within TouchDesigner through basic navigation, interoperability, and exposure to a number of case studies. With Houdini as our base, we will explore the touch points and linkages for moving procedural content from Houdini to TouchDesigner. We will then create a set of AI-generated inputs in the form of images, songs, & 3D point clouds. Each of these will be loaded into discrete modules specifically designed for interactive design. After this first session, participants will understand key parallels between Houdini and TouchDesigner as well as workflows to integrate procedurally generated content between both programs. Inputs will be modularized into discrete image, audio, and point cloud blocks to be later integrated in Session 2.

  • Introduction
  • Case Studies
  • Generative AI Input
  • CHOPs - Introduction to Audio Operations
  • TOPs - Introduction to Image Operations
  • Prepping Houdini’s Geo Spreadsheet for TouchDesigner
  • SOPs - Introduction to Geometry Operations
Session 2

Interoperability Amongst Operators (Interactive Design)

Once we've built the modules for each operator, we'll tap into their procedural features to link parameters across different operator types. By making specific parameters accessible, we'll enable a wide range of operators to react to sound and interact with different inputs. This means our operators will be able to change and respond based on audio cues and user interactions. Throughout this session, we will uncover various parameters that unify and flatten the relationship amongst diverse operators. These exposed parameters will be used to make various components along the procedural pipeline audio reactive and responsive to interactions by user input.

  • Exposed Variables
  • User Inputs - Keyboard, Gamepad, & Webcam
  • Parameters - Constants, Export, Expressions, & Binds
  • Linking & Referencing Operators
  • CHOPs + TOPs - Audio Reactive Images
  • Point cloud manipulations
  • CHOPs + SOPs - Audio Reactive Point Systems

Instructor

Jonathan Penvose

Creative Technologist & Educator

Jonathan Penvose is a Creative Technologist & Educator dedicated to the development of design thinking through storytelling. He has completed both the Design Theory & Pedagogy and Architectural Technologies program at SCI-Arc where he was awarded the Hsinming Fung + Craig Hodgetts Postgraduate Prize for his ‘Pro-Futures’ AI-Story Generator thesis. Currently, Jon is working in Virtual Production to design software integrations in support of the arts, film, and sculpture that integrate AI. He taught courses in architecture & interior design for three years at Kent State University and was visiting faculty at PUCPR in Brazil.

LinkedIn Instagram Website

WHAT YOU NEED TO TAKE THIS COURSE

  1. Houdini 19.5 or newer (Class will be taught with H20)
  2. Computer (Please see SideFX system requirements)
    1. https://www.sidefx.com/Support/system-requirements/
    2. A second Monitor is recommended, but not necessary
  3. Houdini (Apprentice License is free)
  4. TouchDesigner (Non-Commercial License is free)
  5. Access to Gmail & Google Drive

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Subscribe to our newsletter.
Add the full Houdini.School schedule to your calendar:

REFUND POLICY:


Multi-Session Courses
Students may request a refund up to 1 day before the start of the course. Students may also withdraw from Multi-Session Courses at any time and are entitled to a pro-rated refund. The withdrawal date must be 1 day before the next class they intend to drop.

On-Demand Courses
All on-demand courses are non-refundable.

Refund a Class
Please send a request to get a refund via email to [email protected].
Your written request to drop any or all of your classes must include:
  1. Student’s full name
  2. Name of the course(s) being dropped

See you in Class!