SoCalBlender.org is committed to supporting the people of the region and providing opportunities they might not otherwise have by way of open creative media production.

Open source software in media production provides opportunities to people of all means to produce professional quality work. This provides a more even playing field for the average person and provides a type of decentralization and democratization of the industry by focusing more on talent and production quality than if someone is part of an established studio workforce or using industry standard software.

SoCal Blender has teamed up the SoCal region's Community Media organizations to provide Free and Open Access to media production facilities.

Members have already been collaborating and working in preproduction for several local TV shows that will be airing soon. Production work is open to organizations and individuals interested in learning of or volunteering in TV and online streaming production. We have access to over 4,000 SQFT of fully equipped studio space and green screen stages among multiple studios and locations.

This is an excellent entry level opportunity to have the public's voice heard on the Community Media channels. These channels include local cable access channels in each city and online streaming channels dedicated to public interests and education.

For more information sign up for the SoCal Blender mailing list and announcements will be going out soon on open participation.

Blender is an open source all-in-one 3D animation package from blender.org. Users and those interested in 3D have formed Blender meeting communities and groups in the Southern California region. These groups span from Santa Barbara in the north to San Diego in the south and provide user training, support and networking.

The groups include LA.blend started at the 2012 SIGGRAPH Birds of a Feather meeting(BoF), Blender-3D Meetup groups and private mailing lists.

To get involved join our mailing list or check out the supported groups' pages.

Most user meetings are organized on the Los Angeles Blender-3D Meetup page or related groups with occasional meetings also posted on Eventbrite. There are also meetings all over the region.

There are special meetings and joint meetings with other Meetup and Special Interest Groups. These include social mixers, showcases, artistic, programming and technical groups.

Because Southern California is so large and getting around in traffic can be a challenge, there are online virtual meetings. These can be regular meetings or special topic meetings.

See the listings on the right for more information and page links.

LA.blend meetings are formatted to support and inform both professional and casual users. They include Blender and community news, tutorials and demonstrations, work showcases, training, tips and tricks, and open questions & answers time. There are also breaks to encourage user networking. The locations are equipped with a projector and screen.

There are also less formal formatted meetings and working groups that meet at cafes and more up close and personal locations.

Some topics covered are 3D modeling, animation, texturing, VFX and tracking, compositing, workflows, game design, video editing and film making as well as studio production pipeline integration and crossing over from other 3D/VFX packages.