[Figures 10, 11] A familiar Maya-type Brush helps groom (left) an unruly hairstyle. A rushed styling job (right) makes the bird almost presentable.

Save your work. The result of the quick grooming from the movie is available on the companion DVD in the Chapter 3 folder as bird_3.mb. There is also a small scene file called brush_practice.mb in the Chapter 3 folder. This is a simple tuft of hair on which you can practice brushing virtual hair. The effects of the brushes are easily seen here.

Mark Jennings Smith is a seasoned artist, animator and writer residing in Beverly Hills, CA. Smith has been fascinated by CG since 1972, when at age 10 a chance encounter with the first coin-op Pong changed his life. His interest in the entertainment field led Smith and a partner to establish Digital Drama in 1994, which focused on computer-generated imagery, animation, digital painting and special digital visual effects. Digital Drama designed the digital film effects and animation for companies such as Universal Pictures, Trimark Pictures, Fox Home Ent., HBO and Showtime. Smith has contributed to several books and magazines, including a chapter in Maya: Secrets of the Pros. He also created cover art for the book and a variety of other titles in the 3D arena. He served as the technical editor for Mastering Maya Complete 2 as well as consulted and beta-tested dozens of software packages. Smith has also taught visual effects and computer animation using Maya at New York University.