Become a Professional Character Animator (Udemy.com)

the teacher of the course is not just teaching me how to animate he shows how to take care of the well being in the creative process thus how to be an advanced animator which is great

Since animation is a visual art, seeing the instructor actually draw what he is describing would be helpful as well as add more interest to his instruction. This course is as much about the mental attitude needed to attain and retain a job in animation as it is in animation itself. If you already have experience animating then this will help you improve the attitude skills needed. If you are expecting to see an animator in action describing the process as he works you will be disappointed. The instructor may be trying to teach too many skills at the same time: Animation principals, mental attitude, and health that can affect it all.

Overall the information is solid, informative and especially useful if you're new to animation principles. That course is not specific to any particular animation technique so is worthwhile for both 2D and 3D animators. The video presentation is very good with each video being relatively short, making it easy to progress through them as time allows. I wasn't expecting the life style lessons for better health and improved creative output but they were a nice addition. I would have liked to see more in video examples of the various principles in action whenever I was instructed to try implementing them myself in my own software - to at least compare my efforts with what the instructor had in mind. Also a little disappointed that all those great character drawings on the video title screens are never used in any of the examples. Instead we get fairly uninspired 3D models in Maya that are functional but not that interesting visually. Could perhaps improve with more resources demonstrating the tasks set by the instructor but otherwise good value and information.

I like the approach in guiding the students, it is positive and holistic. It really shows that the program cares for the person's well being in all areas. Not just work! work! work! I really like the set up of this program.

I like the energy of the instructor and his positive can-do attitude. He expresses valuable life skills to help us become holistically better people. I'm not sure how I feel about the learning videos being so short, but with 86 videos to watch, I'm glad they were short. I didn't want to spend 13 weeks watching one of these videos every day, so I watched through them all pretty quick, don't most of the exercises and noting others to do later. There was a lot of good animation advice given which will improve my animations. The course is targetted to help people improve their 3D animations, but the advice applies to 2D as well. It was a bit deceptive that every lecture starts out with splash page full of hand-drawn cartoon characters, but we never see anything in the course related to hand-drawn characters like that. It would have been fun to see DJ applying these principles to the characters on the splash page. DJ put a bunch of extremely useful web links in the resources area. You've got to check them out when you take the course!

I think overall this course is excellent, the way it was presented and how he came across to the viewer. The one thing that I wish had more to was the content presented. It gave overviews or short explanations as to what each aspect of animation is, but nothing in great detail. There is so much more that goes into creating characters for animation, steps that are not covered in this course. But I do like the fact that he shows that there is more to conditioning one's skills to become an effective animator, that it is about yourself and how you condition your body and mind as well to succeed. This is equally important in becoming a professional. The tips and tricks are very well appreciated as well as creating a venue for animators to come together and share ideas, projects or problems. So, overall, very good course...well worth the money!

Before you take up this course, I'd suggest you have some 3d or 2d software package usage experience, this is not about how to operate a software to make animation, its about how to learn concepts and improve your animation. I found this course to be informative and putting people in the right direction. Definitely recommended for those who wish to adopt animation as a career path.

Note:This course is already for advanced student animators who have had previous training. Not for beginners! That said, consider this a booster class and Nick as your coach as he presses you forward to achieve the dream of becoming a professional animator for the studio of your choice. You'll be walked through the concepts from a professional point of view and you will be expected to do the work. If you want a daily boost of enthusiasm, this is a good class to take.

This course is really great! I had knowledge of the animation principles before this course but after the course you will get the deeper meaning and usage, now I really feel that I can use them full out. It should also be noted that I have done this course before it was in video format, and when I heared it was going to be a full video-course I had to try it out aswell, and im glad i did DJ Nicke is very experienced and know animation like the back of his hand, he explains everything so that it is easy to understand. If you are into animation give this course a try! And stick to the plan that is set, you will see improvement! It´s such a nice thing that DJ is starting a community where all have the same passion, we can learn from each other and really evolve as a animator and person. // Simon

Having worked with DJ professionally, I can vouch for his work experience in the industry. The course he put together not only shows you how to become a professional animator per se, it also gives you a lot of info how to enhance spiritual, mental and physical energy. I fully recommend this course. So buy it to get your dream job as a professional animator.