Tutorial: Animating Emotion Through Body Language

https://youtu.be/pm1aw5YkSI8?si=9WcrAkJ8fjN1zG5U In this tutorial, Animation Mentor Game Animation and Character Animation mentor Natasha Krinsky shows how to communicate emotion through posing, posture, and movement instead of relying on facial animation alone. Using...

A Conversation with Disney Legend Andreas Deja

https://youtu.be/HAiTpKcUOz8 We were honored to sit down with Disney Legend Andreas Deja as he reflected on decades animating some of Disney’s most beloved characters and the making of his hand‑drawn short film Mushka. He even took us behind the scenes to the initial...

Tutorial: Animating Nonverbal Communication in Maya

https://youtu.be/vTOgdlHfceU In this tutorial, Animation Mentor graduate Nathaniel Seymour explores how to animate clear emotion and storytelling without dialogue. Using his simple “Imp Rock” character and a giant flower, he demonstrates how gestures, facial shapes,...

Free Workshop: Polishing Passes

https://youtu.be/jzuxAmadcm8 Take your animation beyond the blocking stage and into a truly polished performance. In this recorded workshop, mentor and Framestore Animation Supervisor Arslan Elver breaks down how to refine spacing, clean up arcs, and elevate secondary...

Tutorial: Introduction to MotionBuilder for Game Animators

https://youtu.be/HPl0SPH710s In this tutorial, Animation Mentor Game Animation and Character Animation mentor Natasha Krinsky walks through how to use Autodesk MotionBuilder (aka “MoBu”) to clean up and assemble motion capture for games. She shows how to bring in a...

A Conversation with Disney Legend Andreas Deja

https://youtu.be/HAiTpKcUOz8 We were honored to sit down with Disney Legend Andreas Deja as he reflected on decades animating some of Disney’s most beloved characters and the making of his hand‑drawn short film Mushka. He even took us behind the scenes to the initial...

Alum AJ Jefferies Shares Advice on Making Independent Shorts

AJ Jefferies AJ Jefferies has been making animation since he was a kid, starting with hand-drawn Looney Tunes-style shorts before moving into 3D. After working as a CG generalist, he came to Animation Mentor to focus on character animation, which helped him push his...

Free Workshop: Maya Survival Skills for New Animators

https://youtu.be/0G2588Byfxs Join Senior Character Animator Nicole Herr for this engaging recorded workshop on simple techniques and tricks to make your Maya workflow simpler and smoother. Learn the basics of layers and constraints to help push your animation...

Free Workshop: animBot Temp Controls for Maya

https://youtu.be/mLOg3pq7wEs Discover how to easily implement sophisticated constraints in Maya that offer stronger control and adaptability for your characters and props. ILM Senior Animator Mario Orlando explores practical techniques to leverage animBot tools,...

Free Workshop: Transitioning from 2D Animation to 3D Animation

Animation Director T. Dan Hofstedt discusses similarities and differences in 2D & 3D workflow, mindset, and key management, while reviewing practical strategies and approaches to adapt 2D skills to 3D character animation.