Animate character's facial expressions!

Choose your own vector character illustration made in Illustrator or Download one to get started.

We'll start by preparing the Illustrator file for animation, then switch to After Effects and look around there. I will show you some basic tools and shortcuts, and how to get started animating with keyframes.

Next, we'll rig the character’s face and get to animation with keyframes. When planning the animation I will use this quick sketch/ storyboard for reference. Feel free to reference it or use your own storyboard if you'd like.

We'll also create a loop and an intro to the main animation. Also we will use effects and one expression called Wiggle to polish the animation.

The last step will be collecting the file and exporting the final piece as video and gif.

What you'll need:

Adobe Illustrator
Adobe After Effects
Adobe Media Encoder
Adobe Photoshop
Optional: donation-based plugin to reposition anchor points in After Effects called... RepositionAnchorPoint :)
If you're interested to learn more about animation, consider looking into The Animator's Survival Kit book by Richard Williams, which includes all main principles and approaches in traditional animation and much more!

This doc will contain all necessary info like class syllabus, lessons overviews, resources and a list of After Effects shortcuts we'll be using in this class.

Also here's my final After Effects file for reference.

Don’t forget to share your progress and final work in the project gallery and social media. I’d love to see what you come up with!

Jot down questions and thoughts, and I’ll do my best to get back to you ASAP!

Find me here: Website Instagram Behance Dribbble Vimeo Twitter Youtube

Sophie Brannigan

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