SS25 – TK – Unity VFX : Audio-Reactive Particles & Real-Time Effects

Description

Unlock the full potential of real-time visual effects in Unity with this specialized course designed for artists, designers, and developers. Whether you’re transitioning from TouchDesigner or diving deeper into Unity’s powerful VFX tools, this hands-on program will equip you with the skills to create high-quality, interactive, and audio-reactive particle simulations.

Through a structured, project-based approach, you’ll learn to design millions of particles that react to music, integrate Unity’s Visual Effect Graph, and explore real-time rendering techniques to enhance performance. You’ll also gain insights into Unity’s different rendering pipelines (HDRP, URP, Built-in) and how to choose the best one for your projects.

The course covers custom scripting, shader-based effects, and optimization techniques, ensuring that your visuals remain efficient even in performance-intensive applications. You’ll also implement interactive elements, such as microphone input and mouse-based controls, to create immersive, dynamic visuals for live performances, installations, and multimedia projects.

What You’ll Learn

Unit 1: Getting Started with Unity & VFX Graph

• Installing Unity and understanding different versions
  & rendering pipelines (HDRP, URP, Built-in)
• Navigating the Unity interface, object placement, lighting, and scene setup
• Introduction to Visual Effect Graph (VFX Graph)

Unit 2: Interactive VFX & Cross-Device Deployment

• Preparing and building projects for different devices & platforms
• Making VFX Graph interactive using Unity’s node-based workflow
• Exploring particle math for dynamic effects
• Understanding lighting & shading in VFX Graph

Unit 3: Advanced Techniques & Real-Time Interactions

• Using 3D meshes as particle spawn points & collision surfaces
• Introduction to Signed Distance Fields (SDFs) for particle interactions
• Integrating character movement with particle systems
• Optimizing and fine-tuning high-performance VFX for real-time applications

By the end of the program, you’ll have the knowledge and hands-on experience to build standalone applications that showcase cutting-edge audio-reactive VFX, pushing the boundaries of real-time graphics in Unity.