Anticipation, Action & Reaction Tutorial

In this very simple tutorial we show how to animate an anticipation, action and reaction in Autodesk Maya, using the Yellow Beetle "AnyCar" rig. Instead of animating the Beetle out of the frame, we add a "smear frame", to get it off screen as fast as possible, in the style of the old Tex Avery or Chuck Jones cartoons.

The reaction at the end is the camera shake, simulating the air pressure as the car whizzes past. 

Robots, Vehicles & Machinery Demo Reel

Above is a selection of the best Robots, Vehicles & Machinery animation created by our talented students at Animation Apprentice. The cartoony yellow car is one of our weekly exercises, as is the helicopter airship.  Congratulations to all our students on their excellent work.  The reel was cut by Miguel Teixeira. Song: Get Back Music by: CreatorMix.com

Animate a Vehicle Coming to a Sudden Stop

In this super simple beginner animation tutorial we show how to animate a vehicle coming to a sudden stop. The free tutorial uses the free "AnyCar 3.1.4 for Maya" rig, downloadable here from Creative Crash.  

This is a fun, simple tutorial that is aimed at animation beginners in Autodesk Maya, part of our series of animation basics for students who have never used Maya before.  

Animate a Traffic Cone Being Knocked Over

Animate a Traffic Cone Being Knocked Over

In this beginner's animation tutorial we show how to animate a traffic cone being knocked over by a speeding car.  It's based on the Yellow Beetle animation tutorial - which you can find here.  

You can however use any vehicle, and animate it by simply setting a keyframe at the start and the end of the motion.  The timing of the traffic cone is very simple; with just a few rotation keyframes we can add texture to the scene. 

Animate a Yellow Beetle In Motion

In this animation beginners' tutorial we show how to animate a yellow Beetle in Motion, using the free "Swappable Car Rig with Ubershockies - The AnyCar 3.1.4 for Maya", downloadable here from Creative Crash.  

This is a fun, easy to replicate tutorial that is aimed at beginners in Autodesk Maya. 

Airship Rig - How to Use It

Airship by Kiel Figgins

Kiel Figgins' excellent airship is one of the free rigs we recommend for student use here at Animation Apprentice. It's a great rig for learning the principles of drag, follow-through and overlapping action - a crucial part of the animator's skill set.

You can download the airship here at Animation Buffet (an excellent site for free rigs); it forms part of Figgins's "Rig Set Five".

So what's so special about this airship, and how can student animators get the most out of it?

Free Rig - Yellow Beetle by Aaron Parker

Yellow Beetle by Aaron Parker

One of the great benefits of working in Maya is the large and growing number of free rigs, props and sets now made available through our community of users.

Today we look at one of the most imaginative vehicle rigs - The Yellow Beetle by Aaron Parker - available for free download at Creative Crash. It has some flaws and quirks, but it's a great little rig, and you can do some really fun animation with it.

Free Bonus Week at Animation Apprentice - cars!

Free Bonus Week at Animation Apprentice

Animation Apprentice recently became a 31 week course - at no extra cost to our students. We've added a free extra week as a way of saying thanks for completing our existing 30 week course in character and creature animation.

The new bonus week is listed as Module 6 - week 31, and it's completely free. In Week 31 we will cover vehicle animation - a big source of work in the visual effects world where, increasingly, digital effects are tending to replace stunt cars. Animating vehicles and cars is fun to do and in many ways less complex than character and creature animation, but it's still important to have a good variety of work on your demo reel. Producers like depth in animation reels, and an animator who can tackle a variety of work will rarely be out of a job.