This lesson introduces the 2.5D Character Animation module, where students will learn how to rig and animate characters inside After Effects. It previews upcoming topics like professional animation analysis, rigging tools, character controls, walk and run cycles, faux 3D techniques, facial animation, and a final character-based portfolio project.

This lesson teaches students how to create animal walk, run, and trot cycles by breaking quadruped movement into clear key poses, timing, interpolation, cleanup, and secondary action. Students then practice applying these workflows to provided animal rigs while learning how to use reference footage to understand different creature movements.

This lesson teaches students how the 12 animation principles apply specifically to 2.5D character animation, helping characters feel believable, expressive, and full of weight. Students then practice principles like squash and stretch, anticipation, staging, arcs, timing, secondary action, exaggeration, and appeal using a simple provided character rig.

This lesson teaches students how to create the illusion of 3D movement using 2D artwork, starting with simple objects like bottles, paper airplanes, and rockets before moving into character faces. Students then learn how tools like Joysticks n’ Sliders can make faux 3D face rigs easier to control, helping characters look around, blink, emote, and feel more dimensional.

This lesson introduces character rigging systems in After Effects, showing how tools like parenting, the Puppet Tool, DUIK, RubberHose, and DeeKay Tool can make complex character animation much easier to control. Students learn the strengths of each rigging workflow and practice building functional character rigs they can use in future animation projects.

This lesson teaches students how facial expressions work and how simple changes to eyebrows, eyes, mouth shapes, and body language can communicate clear emotions. Students then build on their faux 3D face rigging skills by creating facial controls and animating the eight major expressions on the provided Hugo character rig.

This lesson breaks down the full process of creating a believable walk cycle, from contact poses and transfer poses to timing, interpolation, cleanup, secondary action, 2.5D details, and forward translation. Students then practice building their own walk cycle using the provided rig and key pose references, with optional Duik rig challenges for extra practice.

This lesson wraps up the 2.5D Character Animation module by showing students how to connect face controls into a full-body character rig for easier animation. Students then create a 6–10 second portfolio piece featuring a walk or run, a clear emotional change, facial expressions, and simple story-driven action.

This lesson builds on walk cycles by teaching students how to create a believable run cycle using contact, transfer, kickoff, and up poses. Students learn how to adjust timing, curves, cleanup, secondary action, 2.5D details, and translation so their character feels fast, powerful, and full of momentum.