Complete Maya Animation Course – Beginner to Advanced

In this series, we will learn animation in Autodesk Maya from basic to advanced techniques.
In this first lecture, we start with the fundamental animation exercise Bouncing Ball Animation, which is one of the most important practices for understanding animation principles.

In this video you will learn:
• How to set up animation in Maya
• What keyframes are and how they work
• How to create a Bouncing Ball animation
• The basics of timing and spacing
• Introduction to the Graph Editor

This series is designed for beginners who want to learn professional animation workflow step by step.

In the upcoming lectures, we will cover:
✔ Character Walk Cycle
✔ Character Run Cycle
✔ Jump Animation
✔ Weight and Timing Control
✔ Advanced Character Animation

If you want to learn animation in Maya, follow this series from the beginning.

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In this lecture, you will learn the fundamentals of animation in Autodesk Maya by creating a simple bouncing ball animation. This exercise is one of the most important beginner practices in animation because it helps you understand timing, spacing, and basic keyframing.

You will learn how to:

• Create a ball animation in Maya

• Set keyframes for movement

• Understand basic timing and spacing

• Practice the foundation of animation

This lesson is perfect for beginners who want to start learning animation inside Maya.

In this lecture, we will improve the basic bouncing ball animation by adding progressive rotation and understanding the Graph Editor in Maya.

You will learn how to control animation curves and make the motion more natural and realistic.

Topics covered in this lecture:

• Progressive rotation in bouncing ball animation

• Using the Graph Editor in Maya

• Understanding animation curves

• Improving animation smoothness and realism

This lecture will help you take your animation skills to the next level.

In this lecture, we explore one of the most important animation principles: Stretch and Squash.

Using a bouncing ball example, you will clearly understand how this principle makes animation look more dynamic, flexible, and believable.

Topics covered:

• Introduction to the 12 Principles of Animation

• Understanding Stretch and Squash

• Applying squash and stretch to a bouncing ball

• Making animation more lively and appealing

This lesson will help you understand how professional animators bring life into animation.

Learn the fundamentals of animation through one of the most powerful and essential exercises — the Pendulum Animation.

In this course, you will understand how real-world physics and animation principles work together to create smooth, realistic motion. This beginner-friendly course is perfect for students who want to build a strong foundation in animation using Autodesk Maya.

You will explore important animation principles such as Timing & Spacing, Slow In & Slow Out, Arcs, Follow Through, and Overlapping Action. Step-by-step, you will learn how to create a clean and professional pendulum animation that demonstrates natural movement and proper weight.

By the end of this course, you will:

• Understand core animation principles

• Create smooth and realistic pendulum motion

• Improve your graph editor skills

• Build a strong base for character animation

This course is ideal for beginners, animation students, and anyone who wants to improve their animation fundamentals.

In this lecture, you will learn how to animate a natural Hand Wave in Autodesk Maya, from the initial blocking stage to the final polished animation.

We will cover the complete animation workflow, including:

• Creating Main Poses for the hand wave

• Understanding Blocking and establishing the key poses

• Refining the animation with Final Poses

• Using In-Between Poses to create smooth hand movement

• Understanding how in-betweens affect the flow and timing of the animation

• Smoothing and polishing the animation for a more natural movement

• Improving the overall timing, spacing, and flow of the hand wave

By the end of this lecture, you will have a better understanding of how to take a simple hand-wave animation from basic blocking to a smooth and polished final animation in Maya.

A 30-second basic bird flying animation created using keyframe animation and parent-child relationships. The animation focuses on the anatomy and natural movement of a bird while flying, including the movement of its wings and body. Keyframes are used to create smooth motion, while the parent-child relationship helps control and coordinate different parts of the bird’s body. This project demonstrates the fundamentals of animation, timing, movement, and hierarchical rigging.

Walk Cycle Animation – Maya

Software

Autodesk Maya Rig: Ultimate Walker Rig Frame Rate: 24 FPS Total Frames: 24

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1. Walk Cycle

A Walk Cycle is a repeating animation used to create the movement of a character walking.

In this exercise, we use a simple 24-frame walk cycle with 5 main poses.

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2. Key Poses

Frame Pose

1 Contact Pose

6 Leg Up / Passing Pose

12 Opposite Contact Pose

18 Leg Up / Passing Pose

24 Same as Frame 1 ,Contact Pose

Basic Sequence

Contact → Passing → Contact → Passing → Contact

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3. Frame 1 – Contact Pose

One leg is forward.

Other leg is backward.

Foot is placed on the ground.

Character is balanced.

Set the keyframe.

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4. Frame 6 – Leg Up Pose

Back leg comes forward.

Foot is lifted from the ground.

Knee bends naturally.

Supporting leg carries the body weight.

Set the keyframe.

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5. Frame 12 – Opposite Contact

Change the leg positions:

Frame 1: Left leg forward Frame 12: Right leg forward

This creates the opposite side of the walk.

Set the keyframe.

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6. Frame 18 – Opposite Leg Up

The other leg lifts from the ground.

Leg moves forward.

Supporting leg carries the weight.

Set the keyframe.

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7. Frame 24 – Repeat Contact

Frame 24 should be the same pose as Frame 1.

This is important for creating a smooth loop.

Frame 24 = Frame 1

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8. Important Points

Keep the foot placement accurate.

Avoid foot sliding.

Legs should move alternately.

Maintain proper balance and weight.

Use opposite arm and leg movement.

Use fewer, clear keyframes while blocking.

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9. Final Key Structure

1 → Contact 6 → Leg Up 12 → Opposite Contact 18 → Leg Up 24 → Contact / Loop

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Remember:

Good Walk Cycle = Timing + Balance + Weight + Foot Placement