AET Courses

324D: Principles of Animation

Unique: 21685
Instructor: Lucas Dimick

An introduction to the principles of animation for 2D and 3D systems. Use various techniques to convey a sense of weight, emotion, and story for simple and complex objects in both 2D and 3D.

330T: In-Field Installations

Unique: 21688
Instructor: Mk Haley

A collaborative effort across skillsets to develop and deliver interactive installations suitable for the 2023 Bee Cave BuzzFest.

324J: Visual Storytelling

Unique: 21689
Instructor: TBA

An introduction to graphic communication, visual storytelling, and digital visualization of objects, spaces, environments, information, and data using pre-rendered, realtime, and procedural systems. Topics covered include: 2D and 3D previsualization techniques, infographic design, data processing, and rendering systems.

330T: Mixed Reality for the Masses

Unique: 21690
Instructor: Jose Kozan

Discover an introduction to augmented reality platforms and hands-on development of social media AR for Instagram and Snapchat, and AR experiences delivered via the web (WebAR). Explore creative AR interactions with 3D models, animated characters, sound assets, and visual effects, to promote learning opportunities and branded marketing.

330T: Special Event Production

Unique: 21719
Instructor: Mk Haley

Develop and deploy the skillsets to plan and execute the operational and management details related to live events and conference type events.

330T: Game Art Pipeline

Unique: 21730
Instructor: Bill Byrne

An introduction to creating and working with game ready assets in 2D and 3D.

333: Interactive Environments

Unique: 21739
Instructor: TBA

An applied course focused on design strategies and technology for creating interactive experiences in virtual, augmented, and physical environments. Students will create solutions for multiple real-world scenarios.

333: Mobile Game Design

Unique: 21740
Instructor: Tyler Coleman

An introduction to game systems in a myriad of structures used commonly today. Create and apply play systems which establish the framework for user experience and content design.

333: Game Character Animation -wb

Unique: 21744
Instructor: Kyle Chittenden

In this course, students will learn the process of creating 3D gameplay animations, techniques to improve their animation workflow, and how to implement their animations into Unreal Engine.

334C: Level Design

Unique: 21745
Instructor: Andrew Augustin

Design and build interactive 2D or 3D game levels (game maps) using an industry standard tool such as Unity or Unreal. Students will also learn the design pipeline for creating levels from concept and layout, to white boxing, creating and integrating environment art and sound, world building, and adding simple scripted interactions, animations, sound effects, and VFX. This course also touches on the different design process for small indie games compared to big AAA games and you will have the opportunity to design a level for an existing game as well as for your own game ideas.

334F: Video Game Scripting

Unique: 21750
Instructor: Tyler Coleman

Introduction to scripting interactive content for games using an industry-standard scripting language and game engine.

337N: Intro to Narrative

Unique: 21753
Instructor: Shannon Murray

Explore the origins, formal elements, and best practices of good storytelling across multiple mediums through study, analysis, and writing practice.

334K: Video Game Prototyping

Unique: 21754
Instructor: Tyler Coleman

Explore rapid prototyping techniques for video game art and design using ideation, storyboarding, pitching, prototyping, testing, and documentation.

339: Drawing for Designers

Unique: 21765
Instructor: Yuliya Lanina

The course is designed for students who wish to develop a strong foundation by learning how to effectively draw and communicate ideas in visual form. This class will focus primarily on traditional drawing techniques with some exercises combining traditional and digital.

339: DxD Studio

Unique: 21775
Instructor: Yuliya Lanina

Build on acquired knowledge and skills to facilitate the creation of a collaborative visual project for an Austin business.

339: Immersive Audio

Unique: 21780
Instructor: Kyle Evans, TBA

Take your sound and music to the next level! In Immersive Audio, students will learn to work with spatial audio systems to create public sound installations and immersive experiences. Topics include designing novel multichannel audio systems, binaural audio mixing, and combining spatial audio and visual tech to design immersive installations.

339: Themed Entertainment Design

Unique: 21805
Instructor: MK Haley

Explore best practices behind the design of themed entertainment experiences through a variety of lectures, group projects, and individual study.

339: User Interfaces

Unique: 21808
Instructor: TBA

A synthesis of data visualization and user interface design for games, simulation, and digital environments. Topics include infographics, accessibility, and user centered design.

339: Video Game Audio

Unique: 21809
Instructor: Chris Ozley

Game Audio will cover foley/recording/editing techniques, middleware implementation (FMOD/Wwise) and in-engine audio implementation (Unreal/Unity) for game audio. We will explore numerous real-world problems and exercises for generating dynamic and responsive audio using industry standard software and techniques. This course introduces students to the workflows and softwares to give them the ability to begin implementation in their own works.

341D: Digital Musicianship

Unique: 21810
Instructor: Sam Lipman

Explore harmony, chord progressions, and song structure in the MIDI grid.

342C: 3D Modeling & Texturing

Unique: 21812
Instructor: Isaac Oster

Utilize hard surface and organic modeling workflows, modern texturing techniques, and physically-based shaders to create efficient assets based on clear content goals.

343: AET Studio

Unique: 21813
Instructor: David Cohen, Jessie Contour

An opportunity for students to experiment with their own AET ideas while intersecting with other disciplines in our industries.

342D: 3D Materials & Lighting

Unique: 21814
Instructor: Isaac Oster

An introduction to surfacing 3D game models using state of the art workflows and tools.

344D: 3D Previz in Live Environment

Unique: 21815
Instructor: Matt Smith

Instructs students on how to bring an idea from concept to fully rendered pitch-ready environment by utilizing 2D and 3D technical drafting tools in Vectorworks, and a lighting visualizer.

348C: Live Event Engineering

Unique: 21820
Instructor: Matt Smith

Examine a variety of design elements controlled over live entertainment networks, including hardware and software components and how they communicate with one another. Combine programming techniques, technical research, and design process.

153: AR/VR: Intro to the Metaverse -wb

Unique: 21823
Instructor: Vik Parth

Learn about the history of Augmented and Virtual Reality, the Metaverse, and the future of wearable technology. Students are required to have their own HMD and a capable computer. Students may be required to go through some light reading material on AR/VR and the Metaverse. Preferred HMD: Oculus Quest 2.

350C: Advanced Creative Coding

Unique: 21824
Instructor: Eric Freeman

Continue to learn advanced computational concepts and their application to more diverse creative media domains including; audio, video, music, and the web.

353: 2D Animation for Games

Unique: 21829
Instructor: Andrew Augustin

This course is designed to give aspiring artists the tools and comprehensive knowledge to create beautiful, functional, and dynamic art for video games. Students will take a look at the brief history of 2D animation in film and interactive media and will understand the differences between the two. Throughout the course, students will design, create, and animate their own visually stunning scenes, which will include everything from characters, background elements, particle effects, and even UI.

374: Independent Study

Unique: 21840
Instructor: N/A

Additional Option: Independent study partnership with Applied Research Lab at UT (ARL:UT). This full semester, 3-credit independent study will integrate with the training and simulation team at ARL:UT to focus on experience capture and simulation using virtual/augmented reality data and realtime game technology. To be eligible, you must be a US citizen, have upper division status, and experience with game engine technology and coding systems. Learn more about ARL:UT here. Contact Michael Baker if you're interested.

378H: Honors Senior Thesis

Unique: 21850
Instructor: N/A

372: SDP with David D.S. Cohen

Unique: 21835
Instructor: David D.S. Cohen

In this section there is a lot of freedom in the projects you chose to do, as long as they reflect AET industry and practice. Some examples of projects that would be a good fit for this section: video games (both traditional or alternative); a digital to physical music and animation experience; storytelling through augmented reality, virtual or mixed reality, and much more. Basically, anything that falls within the world of AET, and which is centered around immersion and/or interactivity, is an appropriate project in this section.

Note: Types of projects that would not be a good fit are traditional informational or art sharing websites, graphic novels, fan art, zines, traditional LPs, or physical books. Basically, if you don't see it being taught in AET, it probably isn't an appropriate project for this section.

372: SDP Next Level Arcade with Jessie Contour

Unique: 21839
Instructor: Jessie Contour

In this section all student groups will collaborate to produce custom Alt-Ctrl Arcade Cabinets. These arcade projects cover many disciplines including game design, game art, programming, game audio, fabrication, and hardware. All students groups in this section will submit their projects to Alt Ctrl GDC as well as have the option to participate in the annual Bee Cave BuzzFest.

372: SDP Interactive Music with Chris Ozley

Unique: 21830
Instructor: Chris Ozley

In this section students will collaborate in teams with a lighting designer to plan, compose, rehearse and perform a live musical composition for a large-scale event. They will have the opportunity to utilize a variety of tools for live performance, including the state-of-the-art Ableton Push 2 controller, and students may opt to incorporate their own musical controllers and sensors into the performance. The semester culminates with the annual Bee Cave BuzzFest, where all students will perform for an off-campus audience.

339: Business of Entertainment

Unique: 21755
Instructor: Natasha Davison

Explore the fundamentals of producing entertainment from inspiration to execution as well as all aspects involved in producing live stage and on screen commercial productions.

339: Drawing for the Storyboard

Unique: 21770
Instructor: Jason Buchanan

Learn the art and skills of drawing a storyboard, even if you can’t draw. A storyboard is a set of sequential drawings used to tell a story—a graphic organizer that helps to illustrate a narrative. Used often in entertainment applications like film, TV, theatre, gaming, and immersive experiences, storyboards are also valuable in the development of advertising videos or demonstrating a production process.

348G: Projection Design

Unique: 21799
Instructor: Kate Freer​​​​​​​

Introduction to the creative and technical design process in the field of projection design for live performances.

339: Scene Paint & Environmental Rendering

Unique: 21800
​​​​​​​Instructor: Karen Maness

Explore the drawing and painting of architecture, natural environments, fabric, and surface finishes for the entertainment industry.

353: Game Programming Paradigms

Unique: 21825
Instructor: Sarah Abraham

This course explores game programming paradigms in C++ using the Unreal Engine. This includes understanding and mastering event-driven, component-oriented and object-oriented programming, as well as collaborative software development using source control, bug-tracking, and code documentation. Over the semester, students will develop these skills and apply them toward building a game on the Unreal Engine.

377: Game Capstone 2D

Unique: 21845
Instructor: Paul Torpac

Work in small teams from different disciplines to develop 2D games.