“Any sufficiently advanced technology,” Arthur C. Clarke said, “is indistinguishable from magic.”

James Cameron’s groundbreaking sci-fi epic, Avatar, makes a compelling case on Clarke’s behalf. The fact that its setting, Pandora, a faraway planet covered with lush bioluminescent jungles, floating chunks of land and slinky blue humanoids, looks thoroughly real but is almost completely computer generated certainly qualifies as supernatural.

While Cameron’s technological tour de force has raised the bar in 3-D imaging with next-gen cameras and motion-capture, 3-D technology is increasingly integrated into every facet of our lives – something not lost on the men directing a CSUMB class on it this week. 3-D technology recently led to the development of an ultrasound that allows healthcare workers to examine the fetus as if they were looking directly inside the womb, making routine checkups far more comprehensive and far less invasive. Forensic visualization provides law enforcement, attorneys and courtrooms with real-time, 3-D models of crime scenes – meaning they don’t have to travel back and forth, and can present evidence in court. And architecture visualization eliminates the high-cost, time-consuming drawn renderings.

CSUMB media arts professor Pat Watson and former Atari graphic artist Spencer Lindsay are offering a five-day, intensive 3-D modeling boot camp at CSUMB beginning Jan. 11. The class will give students the opportunity and hours necessary to delve into an area that has yet to be given priority in the regular semester’s current curriculum.

“IN A CAR COMMERCIAL, VERY RARELY IS THERE AN ACTUAL CAR.”

“3-D is everywhere; it’s popping up in all sorts of places you don’t even realize,” Watson says. “When you look at a car commercial, very rarely is there an actual car in it. Using a 3-D model is a lot cheaper and you could do high-speed radical maneuvers without any chance of anyone dying – plus they can determine the nature of ‘the shiny’ in it. Movies have been doing this for a long time so everything in the environment can be controlled.”

Lindsay, who has been at the forefront of 3-D technology for about 20 years and was involved with the video game industry for much of his career, says lately he’s been focusing his expertise on more science-driven projects with his Pacific Grove-based Lindsay Digital. A gig for the Aquarium illustrated how Pacific predators are tagged by simplifying years of tracking data into an animated map – and doubled as a prime example of how 3-D technology can make science more accessible.

“I’m turning a lot of complex data into something that more than scientists would be able understand,” Lindsay says. “It’s important for students in this area to learn 3-D, where they’ll be able to immediately apply it; Monterey Bay is home to 15 or 20 scientific institutions, like the Moss Landing Marine Lab and the Aquarium. Not only do they all deal with complex data, they all need to be able to visualize that data in some way.”

“The idea that if you do 3-D you’re going to work for Pixar or Blizzard is antiquated,” Watson adds. “There’s so much 3-D in so many places.”

In fact, one of Watson’s former students does 3-D modeling for the Department of Defense and a current student, as a capstone project, is going to do a visualization of a cancerous tumor as it grows in the brain.

“A few years ago, providing real-time, full-screen 3-D environments would have been impossible, but the software is becoming so proficient,” Watson says. “The bar is being raised higher and higher technically, so the way you prove yourself these days in design is by whether you can do 3-D.”

A focus of the camp will be the arduous modeling program, Autodesk Maya, standard software in the industry.

“I like to tell students, ‘There really isn’t a learning curve in Maya, it’s just vertical,’” Watson says. “The initial experience is so overwhelming.”

Using Maya, the students will learn the basics needed to build an original 3-D character from scratch: The process will begin with a rough, hand-drawn sketch. Over the course of the week, students will learn how to turn their sketches into 3-D polygon mesh models, texture it, add lighting and put it into a short display video.

“Hopefully, the students will walk away with basic 3-D animation skills, confidence using Maya and creating in a 3-D environment,” Watson says.

They also hope to carry away the keys to access another virtual world – without having to go to the movies.

CHARACTER MODELING BOOTCAMP happens noon-7pm Jan. 11-15 at the Media Learning Center (Building 18), CSUMB. $200. 419-9515.