Utilizing video tutorials can be a great way to either up your game or get a start in the world of animation software.
Adobe After Effects primarily handles computer-generated imagery (or CGI), animation, green screens, and the opening/closing
credits for films—as well as video games and television production. However, you can also use this software for basic video and sound editing.
Also a part of the Adobe Creative Cloud, After Effects is most often used alongside Adobe Premiere Pro, but video editors will also find it compatible with software like Final Cut Pro.
Fun Fact: After Effects won an Academy Award in 2019 for its scientific and technical breakthroughs.
In 1990 the German company, Maxon launched Cinema 4D as FastRay for the beloved, yet doomed Amiga PC.
Several years later, the software was finally released under its current moniker for Windows. Today it is widely regarded as a user friendly—albeit expensive—3D modeling software for animation and simulation.
Although this software has been used widely for web and video-game design, it has also been used in Hollywood for such films as Iron Man, Inception, Sausage Party and Pacific Rim. It is now available for Mac and Linux, as well as Windows.
Pro tip: The newest version of Cinema 4D offers Pyro, which can simulate realistic explosions, fire and smoke.
Initially released in 1994, Blender is an open-source software for 3D computer graphics that can be used for art, 3D-printed
The software includes tools and features such as fluid and smoke simulation, soft body simulation, particle simulation, motion graphics, digital drawing, 3D modelling, raster graphics, rigging and skinning, sculpting, video editing, and a lot more.
Although Blender is free, a variety of add-ons can be purchased to expand its toolset.
Blender runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux.
The Unreal Engine was initially developed in the 1990s for the creation of video games, especially PC first-person shooters.
Although it’s still mostly used for video games, Unreal can be a great alternative for greenscreens and storyboard animation.
You can also create and modify photo-realistic sets, costumes, and props using this software.
Fun Fact: UE was used in the making of The Mandalorian and Westworld.
Unity is a popular cross-platform game engine developed by Unity Technologies. Although it has been used in filmmaking, it’s
primarily designed for video-game platforms such as mobile, desktop, console, and virtual reality.
Initially released in Denmark in 2005, it’s generally considered a good starting point for indie developers with little or no knowledge of coding. It can also create content in both 2D and 3D.
It is supported on Windows, macOS, and Linux platforms.
What is It? A game engine is simply a software framework that assists developers in designing and creating video games. They offer tools such as collision detection, sound, and animation, among others.
Initially released in 2013, Photopea is another free—albeit ad-supported—alternative to Adobe Photoshop that can be used
for Photopea icon web design, illustration, the editing of images and pictures, and the conversion from one file format to another, such as JPEGs, GIFs, and PNGs.
Although this graphics and photo editor has fewer features than Photoshop, Photopea boasts a widespread reputation for its user-friendliness, which makes it a great starter software for dabblers and newbies.
It is a web-based program, but you can download and install it as an application to your device from certain browsers.
Pro tip: The paid premium option removes advertising and increases the amount of times you can utilize the undo option.
The 3rd generation Mac Pro Tower 3.5 8 core intel Xeon w/ processor is a high end, state-of-the-art surface desktop designed by Apple containing a
new thermal architecture with three impeller fans to keep the machine continuously running at optimal performance levels.
This machine comes with a magic mouse and trackpad and contains 96 GB of Ram as well as 1 TB of storage space.
The Mac Pro Tower is also equipped with a custom add on Apple Afterburner Card for high end video quality that supports up to 8K resolution. It's compact, sleek stainless steel frame makes it durable and resistant to external damage.
Wacom has been a global leader in designing and creating drawing tablets for over 40 years now.
Wacom tablet functionality was initially used in 1992 in the screen of the Compaq Concerto computer.
The Wacom Cintiq 22:1 Interactive Display Art Tablet is a 21.5 inch display screen and comes with a rotating stand and high response pro pen. The pen features 8192 levels of pressure sensitivity, and the screen resolution is in 1920x1080 high definition. For user ease and functionality, this digital tablet also includes a multitude of express keys, which allow for quicker command execution.
The Wacom PTH660 Medium Drawing Tablet is a blue tooth graphics drawing tablet that is compatible with both Mac Os and Windows systems.
This means you can connect to either type of computer interface and run the same programs.
The tablet can be used in conjunction with the Adobe Creative Cloud Suite as well as various other digital illustration software programs, and its primary functions include graphic design and digital illustration.
