Five Best Cinema 4D Training Sites

June 17, 2009

1. FXPHD.COM
fxphd
I have been taking courses at FXPHD for over a year now, and I must say that they are by far, the best and most comprehensive way to learn Cinema 4D! Tim Clapham shows you how he makes everything look so great in a straightforward, step by step way. Yeah, FXPHD is one of the more pricy options, but It’s way worth it. Sign up for one semester and you will be hooked. Their AE training is great too.
Visit FXPHD



2. HYPA.TV
hypa
Speaking of Tim, his site HYPA.TV has been pivitol in my understanding of Cinema 4D over the years. His site is one of the only “Designer Based” Cinema 4D sites out there. If you need Cinema 4D training for broadcast graphics work, this is your place. No spinning 3D monsters here. His Download section is a great place to download projects and see exactly how he sets his scenes up. Download his lighting presets too. They have become invaluable for me over the years.
Visit HYPA.TV
Visit Download Page



3. MOGRAPH.NET
mograph
Have a specific problem or question about Cinema 4D? Head over to Mograph.Net to ask a question and search their forum. The “Mograph Central” section has become a Cinema 4D Q&A orgy lately. Everyone is really helpful.
Some of them can be a bit snarky, but its all part of the fun. Chris Smith from CSTools fame frequents mograph.net and is super great about helping people problem solve. He may just write a tool for your problem. :)
Visit MOGRAPH.NET



4. BASE80
base80
While not really project based, the tutorials and tips at Base80 really start to teach you the more advanced features of Cinema 4D. These little tutorials are really helpful when you are trying to widen your 3D horizons and try out new features that you didn’t even know Cinema 4D had.
Visit BASE80



5. C4D CAFE
c4dcafe
The C4D site may seem a bit pedestrian. I think it’s downright UGLY. But, dive inside and you will find hours of great little tips and tricks to help you navigate though some of Cinema 4D’s more technical challenges. Great resourse for those “How do I do this?” moments.
Visit C4D CAFE

UPDATE: Of course, don’t forget about all of my training videos available here. I will be adding to this list and doing some Cinema 4D to AE tutorials soon as well.

OK… YOUR TURN
I want to hear from you. Did I miss any sites that you use to learn Cinema 4D? Is there a training series that you really loved? Tell me about it in the comments.

38 Comments

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  1. Aleksey on June 17, 2009 said...

    Wow, thanks for that HypaTV website, never heard of it before.

    I know not totally motion design related, but c4d portal has some very good character animation tutorials for c4d.

  2. illd on June 17, 2009 said...

    Nicel list, but maybee you should ad http://www.cineversity.com/ also. The full membership is a little expensive, but there is also a lot of free stuff.

    sawa

    but they also have some nice free tuts.
    Like this one:
    http://www.cineversity.com/tutorials/lesson.asp?tid=1183

    a 4 part Cinema and After Effects integration tutorial, that covers multipass and compositing – I found it quite useful

  3. Pixelbinge on June 17, 2009 said...

    Damn Nick, this is awesome. Its like you listened to everything I said in my previous post. Thanks for making things happen. I don’t see how you have the time to work and post stuff daily, but I really appreciate your commitment to the site and the readers.

  4. Mota on June 17, 2009 said...

    this is good too. Specially the introduction one it’s really nice to start.
    http://www.cmivfx.com/

    Catalyst

    I agree with Mota cmivfx is a very good jumping off point for the basics, as well as more advanced concepts involving thinking particles

    bobby

    i think these guys pushing cmivfx are trolls that are working for said company.

    Oscar

    Amen to cmivfx — best one out there…

    thegorilla

    Thanks for the heads up. I haven’t checked them out yet. Their training is pretty good eh? What video should I start with?

    Bas

    imho, the TP ones are the best, since there is little understandable information about it elsewhere…

    I’m missing texturing / rendering of thinking particles in those tuts, but for the setups they’re great.

    The others are more intermediate to beginner, but still there are always some ‘OMG, I wish I had known that 3 years ago’ moments. :-P

    Catalyst

    Part 3 of the basics series is also very helpful in demystifying the material manager for those who are beginning cinema 4d.

    Mota

    I think CMIVFX “C4D ULTIMATE LEARNING SYSTEM VOL 1″ is the first tutorial to start working on C4D.
    It’s more than 2 hours explaining the UI, basics commands, customization, controls, etc… Really a good choice to start.

    John Doe

    These are good but drink a lot of coffee before watching.

  5. Leah on June 17, 2009 said...

    You missed a big one: http://www.jag4d.com/

    This site is a pain to navigate, but there are some gems in the rough: http://www.black-and-white-to-color.com/ipbsfx/

    There’s some good stuff over at http://www.viefex.com/, too.

    Great tips on http://www.bonkers.de/, but it’s mostly textual.

  6. chrisbo12 on June 17, 2009 said...

    I’m an fxphd member too. Amazing tutorials both AE and C4D.
    Some others I have run across are:
    http://www.tvgrafx.com
    http://www.c4dportal.com (great site to learn)
    http://www.3dattack.us/smf/index.php
    (Community site around C4D. Also if you go to http://www.3dattack.us/smf/index.php?topic=7.0 they have magazines you can download. They’re 2005 but still a great learning tool)

  7. Chad on June 17, 2009 said...

    I actually, just a week ago, started learning c4d (max background) and cmivfx.com has some great beginner to advanced stuff.

  8. Zavorio on June 17, 2009 said...

    “downright UGLY” lol

    Catalyst

    I began working with cinema 4d about a year ago and found their tutorials to be quite fruitful. I will admit I only just discovered Grayscale Gorilla yesterday, but i suppose it is better late than never.

    Zavorio

    The site is full of good stuff, I just found Nick’s comment to be very honest and direct. Which is very good since no one really says what ther really think so openly (flamming fear?). GreyScale Gorilla (GreyScaleGorilla?) is a blend of good ol’ tech/tutorial stuff and great design (which many many tutorials and communities really lack).

  9. Andy Wood on June 17, 2009 said...

    Yes! I’ve been looking for some other C4D tutorial sites but never had any luck. Thanks Nick!

  10. Ted on June 17, 2009 said...

    Great sites for cinema 4d. but there are a couple you missed.

    3D Attack – Publishes a monthly online mag, great forums too. A video tutorials to download.

    http://www.3dattack.us/smf/index.php

    C4des – Publishes an online Magazine just like 3d attack but its mostly a spanish magazine, the last couple of issues have been in english, really great stuff.

    http://www.c4des.com/recursos/tienda/

  11. Bas on June 17, 2009 said...

    I’ve also found quite some nice sites through delicious. Why not check out all my c4d links here: http://delicious.com/basdumoulin/c4d

    And I can highly recommend using twitter and subscribing to maxon3d ( http://twitter.com/maxon3d ) or maybe even to nickvegas :-)

    good luck!

  12. Steve on June 17, 2009 said...

    In my opinion, this link belwo is a really, really good one…

    http://www.tvgrafx.com

    this is a great resource for Cinema 4d & After Effects…free tutorials, and the ones available for purchase aren’t expensive at all. Key=He’s a broadcast designer, and a darn good one.

    illd

    Oh man, I am really ashamed not to mention tvgrafx in my post – It is really a great great source for c4D and motiondesign in general. The guy running the site is really gifted and passioned!

  13. Lost Marble Media on June 17, 2009 said...

    Nice timing with this one…I just got C4D and haven’t even started the thing up yet.

    Must leave comfort zone!!! (AE)

    Thanks dude!

    Aleksey

    are you related to moho from lost marble?

    that was the first software i did any animation in! it was heaps fun!

  14. Robert on June 17, 2009 said...

    Here are some more C4D tutorials:
    http://jorgelega.com/
    great videos too. I also thought about tvgrafx but Steve was first;) BTW his name is Keith not Key :)

    Nick – great site! Thanks.

    Bas

    great link – didn’t know that one yet. thx.

    Ryan Hamilton

    ya some cool tuts here, but I don’t understand why people give the time to record a tutorial but then not add audio.

    Pixelbinge

    This guy is nasty (as in good). Just by watching him work even without words, I picked up a lot of new techniques. Its cool because he has music playing during the tutorials so its like watching everything come alive to sound like in a commercial or something. Thanks a lot for sharing this link.

  15. Catalyst on June 17, 2009 said...

    I hope everyone knows about 3d attack in case you don’t here it is….

    http://www.3dattack.us/

    It is a pretty active cinema 4d community complete with some inexpensive tutorials and a monthly magazine (which is awesome)

  16. Brian! on June 17, 2009 said...

    perfect timing I just got cinema 4d and was looking for a way to saturate my brain with tutorials.
    thanks so much!

  17. Daniel Molina on June 17, 2009 said...

    http://www.c4des.com favorite site, its in spanish but now there is google translator so give it a shot.
    They also make a really good magazine http://www.c4des.com/recursos/tienda/index.php

  18. Leah on June 18, 2009 said...

    Hmmm…I posted some good links, but the post hasn’t shown up. Guess I’ll post ‘em on my blog instead then. :P

    thegorilla

    Sorry Leah,

    All your great links got held up in my approval queue. They are up now.

    Ted

    My comments are doing the same thing.

  19. Xavier Vasseur on June 18, 2009 said...

    For french users of C4D : http://www.weecast.fr/tutoriels-cinema-4d.html 24 cheap tutorials !
    http://www.frenchcinema4d.fr/ An active forum with some tutorials and lots of tips.

    Thanks for all this stuff Nick

  20. Martin on June 18, 2009 said...

    I can’t recommend fxphd highly enough. Tim’s teaching is gold.

    Bas

    I find it very hard to find good examples of what their classes look like on their site. Sure there are videos on the first two basic classes, but since I’m more interested in the more advanced part, I have no idea what it will be like.
    And especially with the price being $330 I want to know what I am buying…
    Anyone else feel the same?

  21. Nigel on June 19, 2009 said...

    Nobody’s mentioned the C4D [url="http://forums.cgsociety.org/forumdisplay.php?f=47"]CGTalk[/url] forum yet?
    Not so much motionGraphics based, but a good forum with a lot of CG profesionals

  22. thilo on June 19, 2009 said...
  23. thilo on June 19, 2009 said...
  24. base80 on June 20, 2009 said...

    Thanks for mentioning my site in your article!

  25. John Doe on August 1, 2009 said...

    Here’s 2 good ones:

    3dfluff.com
    c4dportal.com: Never updated but the stuff that’s there is worth a god look.

  26. Pete on August 11, 2009 said...

    Hey there,

    Please forgive the noob question but is there an actual classroom/school for learning Cinema 4D anywhere? I’m just starting out with Cinema4D. I like what I saw at a trade show a little while back and am just trying to get my feet wet with some product design and then move on to animation. Any help you guys could provide would be a great help.

    thegorilla

    I’m sure that there are some C4D classes in some schools. I’m not aware of any though. FXPHD is really a great bet. It has a forum to ask all your questions and a GREAT teacher. Plus, it’s way cheaper than real school.

    Keep rocking.

  27. tikki on October 5, 2009 said...

    nice list. very helpful sites.

  28. oliver sin on October 6, 2009 said...

    Hey Nick. These sites have been great! Do you know any good books to have for cinema 4D training as well? Thanks!

  29. tom on November 2, 2009 said...

    You say ” Download his lighting presets too” on HYPA where exactly are these presets. I looked all over his awesome site, but no Download for his his lighting presets that I can find. I looked n the DL section

  30. Aaron on November 8, 2009 said...

    I’d recommend http://www.cineversity.com for all levels of cinema4D users. Not entirely free stuff.but definitely worth looking at.

  31. Iris on November 25, 2009 said...

    Hypa.tv closed its doors?
    didn’t get a chance to check them out :(

  32. robert redman on November 29, 2009 said...

    DOn’t forget my site at http://www.pariahstudios.co.uk either. I have a rapidly growing set of C4D video tutorials, amongst other things.

    Rob

    The Gorilla

    True dat! Rock it Rob! Your tuts are great. ^^^^^

  33. greg on December 11, 2009 said...

    Why is it that most (if not all) the best C4D DVD tutorials are available only either in German or French? There’s not a decent english DVD tutorial or book available (aside from maybe that 1-2 on Amazon).

  34. Jackie on December 16, 2009 said...

    I want to take an AE course and I live in NYC. Do you recommend FXPHD over “in person” classes at SVA?

    The Gorilla

    I haven’t been to SVA. But I highly recommend FXPHD. I’m sure it’s way less expensive too :)

  35. Marcelo on January 22, 2010 said...

    I’m pretty new in this area… Hell, I’m a noob to the bone.
    I’d really like to find really good basic training to see if I can wrap my mind around this complex piece of software.
    From that on, maybe I would pay for real intense training.
    Please help?

    The Gorilla

    I have a ton of getting started with Cinema Tutorials. Look at the “Intro to C4D” and “Texturing” tutorials first. That should get you started. Then for paid, look into FXPHD or some more training from Tim Clapham.

    Leo

    Marcelo, I recommend you the full training of LYNDA.COM about the release 11.5 ! It covers all from A to Z !

    Leo

  36. Leo on January 23, 2010 said...

    Hey Nick
    Thanks a lot for all the links ! You asked about CMIVFX..

    I highly DON’T recommend CMIVFX for those reasons :

    1. I’m trying hard to learn english ( still really baaaad ) and this guy come up with his Ear-killer english. It makes you feel sick and tired :( I cannot imagine the result on a native english speaker !

    2. He is NOT a teacher ! For the sake of god, be organized and speak clearly when you do a tutorial ! This guy makes you lose easily 1- 1h30 per tutorials, searching stuff, repeating himself, etc…

    3. I have some issues with the online-player. Let me download the contents !!!!!

    I have juste finished watching the C4D 3D Matte Painting extraction tutorial. This was very instructive, but, GHOSH ! Learn to teach !
    I’m pretty sure that a guy from FXPHD ( God bless FXPHD ) can teach you this stuff in an 1 hour tutorial !!!

    FXPHD and the new training of LYNDA.COM are great great ressources !

    Leo

  37. c4dtraining on January 27, 2010 said...

    We’ve been up since about June of last year and have around 25 tutorials covering the basics through to MoGraph. More to come each week.

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