Source filmmaker free download how to#
Source filmmaker free download series#

If your first act after watching those tutorials is to get started on a 10-minute opus with dialogue, action, and fancy camera work, there's a good chance you'll overwhelm yourself.

Source filmmaker free download how to#

Check him out.ДЄ few other highly useful tutorials: how to make your characters look like they're breathing, how to give your characters realistic eye movement, and-always critical in any Team Fortress 2 video- how to put hats on your characters. Plus, the guy has got an amazing broadcaster voice.

Source filmmaker free download series#

My favorite is YouTube user Jimer Lins, who publishes a series called 'Tip of the Day' explaining one single element of SFM in thorough detail. Outside of Valve, there are a bunch of folks out there making quality tutorials. Sure, it's 13 videos long and will probably eat up a few hours of your life, but it's well worth the time investment. You'll want to start with Valve's own video playlist for learning the interface and making your first video. (The results are far from perfect, but if you position the camera far enough away, no one will notice.) So while you're definitely at an advantage if you have a background in 3D animation, if you don't, there's no reason to let that stop you.Д«efore you try to build your first masterpiece, be sure to take a look at some of the video tutorials floating around YouTube. Another tool automatically reads WAV files to generate lip-sync animations for your character without you having to reposition a single virtual cheek muscle. One way of capturing animation allows you to hit the record button and then run through an in-game map using the WASD controls you've already spent a lifetime getting to know. There are a number of tools in the program for making things as automated and painless as possible. One of the cool things about SFM is that you can get into the real nitty gritty of keyframing and character rigging if that's what you're interested in, but it's not a requirement. If you don't know other 3D animation programs, don't worry I've been spending some time with Source Filmmaker myself-all you need to download it is a Steam account-and thought I'd offer a few bits of advice to anyone else thinking of taking the plunge. It's a good thing, too, because lowering the barrier to entry for this sort of machinima-style moviemaking has already led to a flood of terrific videos hitting YouTube. There aren't a lot of companies that would take the time and effort to build a fully featured 3D animation program and release it to the public for a total of zero dollars, but then again, Valve isn't like a lot of companies.