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Maya & Unreal: 3D Character Animation Jump Flip Fundamentals

Name: Maya & Unreal: 3D Character Animation Jump Flip Fundamentals
Rating: 3.9 (10 reviews)

Complete Guide from Beginners to Pros Body Mechanics: Autodesk Maya, Unreal Engine, Unity, Game Development & Design

Created byClass Creatives

Last updated 11/2025

English

What you'll learn

Animating with Keyframes using Autodesk Maya
Understanding Unreal Engine's A.R.T. rigging tools for Autodesk Maya Animation Creation Process
Animating Production Ready Jump Flip Animation Cycle
Learn Step by Step How to Animation in Layers Using VIdeo Reference to Create Pro Level Game Animations in Maya
Exporting Character Animation to Unreal Engine or Unity Game Engine
Understanding Production Process of Animation Using Unreal Engine's A.R.T. rigging tools for Autodesk Maya

Course content

7 sections • 30 lectures • 3h 14m total length

Jump Flip Course Introduction4:35
Overview of the Jump Flip Course:
Animating the Jump
Animating the Landing
Additional Breakdown Polish
Refining details and Final Polish
Exporting Animation for Unreal Engine
Bonus/Outro & Additional Courses from Class Creatives
Course Setup Getting Started with Autodesk Maya3:27
Udemy Rating System Very Important Info!1:54
Please remember to rate your instructor/course and leave comments about the course. It is very important for us to also hear your feedback on what we are doing well, and what we can improve on in future courses, and how to improve the current course. We appreciate the time you take for being a valuable student of ours!
Overview of the Project0:53
Project outline and course direction. Information for previous course recommendation to understand rig creation, image plane import to Maya, and best animation practices.
Creating Idle Start Pose6:05
Creating idle animation pose, this will transition to the Idle/Attack Lectures from Class Creatives for a complete game cycle library creation.
Anticipation Extreme Pose7:40
First key pose for the extreme anticipation pose.
Adding Breakdown Transitions6:41
Creating breakdowns in to the next extreme pose.
Take Off Keypose9:02
Importance of straight legs prior to takeoff to generate power in the body.
Advanced Skeleton Vs. ARTv1 | Python 3 & Post Maya 2022 Unreal Mannequin6:51
If you would like to work with Unreal Mannequins post Autodesk Maya version 2022, utilizing Advanced Skeleton offers full support of all Autodesk Maya versions.
All of the workflows outlined in the course will be identical, and you will be able to go to and from Unreal and Maya seamlessly.

The developer offers full support of the rigging tool and interface on their website.

We have attached a fully functional Advanced Skeleton Mannequin rig compatible with Advanced Skeleton in this lecture in the resource section.

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Since Autodesk discontinued Python 2 for Maya 2023, you may be searching for alternatives to Unreal’s ART tools to animate and rig your characters with the latest versions of Maya that can then be implemented into your Unreal projects.
In this video, we'll discuss how to pose and work with our unreal mannequin rigged with Advanced Skeleton and the Unreal ART tools helping you transition from one workflow to another great alternative. Overall you will find that both toolsets offer everything you will need to create great poses from your video reference image plane, and you can achieve outstanding results regardless of which rigging solution you utilize for your animations. We won’t cover every feature but hopefully this video will help you get started with the basics regardless of which toolset you are familiar with, or even if it is your first time posing and animating characters rigged with either method.
Frequently Asked Questions0:02
PDF guide of our most frequently asked questions from students

Switching IK/FK Leg Pose6:26
Starting pose of the foot off the ground for FK.
Animating the Spin Flip7:37
Flipping the character in the air.
Adjusting Timing, Landing Prep, & IK Transition4:41
Adjusting timing of the flip, preparing landing pose, and switching back to IK
Euler Filter for the Flip4:59
Applying Euler filter to maintain rotation of the poses.
Additional Spin Breakdowns & Landing Prep5:39
Adding more keys to the spin to prevent gimbal to preserve the spin poses, and prepping the landing.
IK/FK Settings and Options5:56

Sculpting Breakdown Poses for the Arm & Shoulders7:19
Additional pose breakdowns to clean up arcs.
Arc Tracking & Leg Breakdowns10:25
Additional pose breakdowns to clean up leg arcs.
Adding Breakdowns to Anticipation Pose9:31
Additional breakdowns to clean up start of animation poses.
Neck, Head, Root, & Feet Breakdown Polish11:21
Tracking arcs and adding weight to overall motion. Adding delays, and additional polish.
Animation Break-Down Posing

Animating Finger Drag & Arcs9:23
Finger animation to accentuate previous pose arcs, smearing, and breaking the joints to create more power/drag in the animation.
Final Details & Refinement10:52
Finger animation on other hand, implementing similar aspects of smears, drag, and arc enhancements.
Onion Skinning, Mesh Duplication, & Arc Tracking9:38
Duplicating mesh for unique breakdowns, and to track arcs in the body.
Final Graph Editor Curves6:12
Refining curves and details from previous pose changes to smooth out last minute hitches and pops that might exist.
Duplicating Limbs for Smear Frame Effect8:57
Faking smear frame effect with duplicated limbs to help time fx blurs, and illustrate what can be possible of rig is designed with additional limbs to create cartoony effect.
Polish Refinement

Snapping Export Node to Root for Export10:26
Snapping node to follow the root translations and rotations for Unreal/Game Engine of choice integration. Slight adjustments are needed to get the curves smooth for game engine integration. Snap tool can be found here: https://www.highend3d.com/maya/script/anim-snap-for-maya
Export Settings4:22
Export settings for Unreal engine, and splitting up animation in to 3 sections for gameplay program integration.

BONUS LECTURE: Why 99% Fail (And How to Get 1-on-1 Pro Mentorship)1:11
You've finished this course and now have the foundation.
So why do 99% of artists fail?
Because for most, courses are not always enough. To truly master your craft, most artists don't have access to 1-on-1, professional feedback from industry pros to land their dream job, finish their indie game/short film, or command a higher salary with negotiation tactics that work.
Stop being a 'passive' student and learn today from our world class roster of industry pros from studios such as Naughty Dog, Disney, Pixar, ILM, Sony, Google, NVIDIA, Insomniac Games, Epic Games, and more.
https://www.classcreatives.com/pages/mentorships
Our Pro Subscription contains curated content that is exclusive to our website. We also have twice as many courses as our introductory library on Udemy that will never be released here.
https://www.classcreatives.com/bundles/pro

Requirements

No prior knowledge of Autodesk Maya, Unity, or Unreal Engine needed.
The course utilizes Maya 2018, but prior knowledge of any 3d animation/modeling package is a plus.
Programming is a plus, but not required.
All Concepts Taught Can Be Applied to Any Animation Software or Animation Creation Process of User's Choice

Description

Hi there!

Welcome, and thanks for choosing Class Creative’s Maya & Unreal: 3D Animation Jump Flip Fundamentals | Complete Guide From Beginners to Pros | Body Mechanics!!

In this foundation course we will be learning the fundamentals of Character Animation for games (specifically for the Unreal engine, but this method will also work for other game engines such as Unity).

Learn everything necessary for a Character Animation Jump Flip utilizing Autodesk Maya taught by a AAA game professional with university level accredited instruction!

Autodesk Maya is the industry standard 3D animation software, understanding the concepts in this course will help you land a job in the game, film, tv, or music industry. In this course you will learn how to animate your custom created character from scratch.

We will cover the following core skill sets:

Getting started with Maya and understanding the animation process
Understanding how to utilize the reference image plane in Maya to create a realistic game engine ready Jump Flip Animation
Strong Fundamentals of Animation Body Mechanics
Process of using IK/FK controllers and best practices of Unreal Engine's A.R.T. tools for Autodesk Maya
How to Blend Custom Animations to Existing Idle to Create a Loophole and Programmable Animation
Unreal Engine's A.R.T. rigging tools for Autodesk Maya
Understanding hotkeys to animate and rig quickly
Animating with keyframes
Animating a production ready jump flip quickly and efficiently
Exporting the character rig, and animation to the Unreal Engine

NOTE - Course does NOT include custom character mesh. ART tools will include mannequin mesh which will allow all animation and lessons to be animated without a mesh or completing a custom rig. Course is strictly showing the process of animating a character of choice, for ANY character regardless of software or rig limitations. Maya 2022 for Mac OS (Pc/Linux Maya 2022 both currently support Python 2) currently only supports Python 3; the Art tools will require Python 2 which is currently only supported in Maya 2020 on Mac OS.

UPDATE - We now provide and support current versions of Maya with a provided Advanced Skeleton Unreal Mannequin rig for the animation course if you choose not to use the ART tools Mannequin rig for Maya 2022.

We’ll be utilizing the latest software packages that top tier gaming studios of today use to create all of your favorite titles!

Autodesk Maya, Unreal Engine’s Maya Animation Rigging Toolset (A.R.T. for short), and the Unreal game engine.

Why Learn From Class Creatives?

This course features an accredited university level animation instructor who has over 15 years of experience animating both keyframe, and motion capture for studios such as Naughty Dog, Insomniac, Guerilla Games, Sucker Punch, Google, Disney and more. Whether it be a complex hyper realistic animation or a cartoony stylized “Disney” character animation it ALL starts with the fundamentals which we cover in these lectures.

Who This Course is For:

Whether you are just a beginner interested in Character Rigging and Animation, or a Master professional looking to brush up on your current skill set, this course has material you surely won’t want to miss!

As with all Class Creative’s courses, we’ve laid out a structure that covers the full spectrum of industry standard character workflows from start to finish.

Please remember, if this is your first time creating rigging or animating a 3D character, we highly recommend that you follow the outline carefully, according to how our instructor’s have structured the course. We wouldn’t want you to miss out on any details!

However, if you are an advanced user and are looking for something specific to add to your repertoire feel free to dive in and skip to any sections you’d like to focus on.

Who this course is for:

Competency using a computer.
Developers who want to add game development to their skill-set.
Anyone with a passion for learning game development.
Anyone who wants the ability to create assets for games.
Anyone Interested in Character Animation
Anyone Wanting to Develop New Skills for Unreal Engine, or Unity

Maya & Unreal: 3D Character Animation Jump Flip Fundamentals

What you'll learn

Explore related topics

Course content

JUMP FLIP INTRO10 lectures • 47min

ANIMATING THE JUMP6 lectures • 35min

ANIMATING THE LANDING2 lectures • 12min

ADDITIONAL BREAKDOWN POLISH4 lectures • 39min

REFINING DETAILS & FINAL POLISH5 lectures • 45min

EXPORTING ANIMATION FOR UNREAL2 lectures • 15min

BONUS Lecture1 lecture • 1min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: