🎯 Morning Session: Interface & Core Concepts
🟢 Exercise 1: The Reverse Engineering Challenge (30 min)
Objective: Improve observation & troubleshooting skills by recreating an unknown network.
🔹 How it works:
- Prepare a pre-built TouchDesigner network (a simple visual effect, animation, or UI).
- Remove all labels and operator names.
- Split participants into teams and provide each with the project file.
- Their goal: Reverse engineer the effect and explain how it works.
✅ Takeaway: Helps understand node flow, operator families, and debugging.
🟡 Exercise 2: Operator Scavenger Hunt (45 min)
Objective: Learn operator functionality in an engaging way.
🔹 How it works:
- Prepare a list of specific visual effects (e.g., “Apply a blur effect”, “Distort an image”, “Animate a shape”).
- Each team must find the right operators and build a small network to achieve each effect.
- They document their findings (operator name, key parameters, why they chose it).
- After 30 minutes, each team presents one of their discoveries.
✅ Takeaway: Encourages exploration & problem-solving.
🎨 Afternoon Session: Working with Images (TOPs)
🟠 Exercise 3: The Visual Remix Challenge (1 hour)
Objective: Explore image manipulation & compositing in a fun way.
🔹 How it works:
- Each participant is given a random set of images (or bring his/her own).
- The goal is to remix them creatively using TOPs (compositing, effects, masking, etc.).
- Each participant presents their before & after transformation.
💡 Variation: for more interactivity, integrate live webcam feeds.
✅ Takeaway: Reinforces TOP workflows and creative problem-solving.
🟢 Exercise 4: Generative Pattern Duel (45 min)
Objective: Explore procedural visuals with a fun competition.
🔹 How it works:
- Each participant is given 30 minutes to create a dynamic pattern using Noise TOP, Ramp TOP, Feedback TOP, etc..
- Customise it (colors, motion, interaction).
- At the end, the participants battle:
- Two participant present their patterns side by side.
- The other Participants vote (e.g., most hypnotic, best color use, most unexpected).
✅ Takeaway: Encourages exploration of procedural textures & real-time animation.
🟡 Exercise 5: Animation Relay (45 min)
Objective: Learn collaborative animation creation.
🔹 How it works:
- Participants start with a blank canvas.
- Every 10 minutes, they pass their project to another participant, which must add a new element or effect.
- The process repeats 3 times.
- At the end, all participants present their unexpected final animation.
✅ Takeaway: Encourages collaborative creativity and layered design thinking.
💬 Group Discussion Topics
- “What makes a TouchDesigner project easy to read?”
➝ Talk about best practices for structuring networks, using annotations, and organizing workflows.
- “How would you use TouchDesigner in your own work?”
➝ Get participants to brainstorm creative uses in different industries (VJing, data visualization, installations, etc.).
- “What challenges do you face as a beginner?”
➝ Open discussion to identify common struggles and share problem-solving strategies.
⚡ Bonus: Daily Wrap-Up Challenge
At the end of the day, have a 15-minute “One-Minute Project” challenge:
📌 Each team creates a quick 10-second animation using what they learned that day.
📌 They export it as a video and showcase it in a mini “film festival” at the end.