# Animating 3D Cartoon Characters in Blender | Domestika > A course by Ulises Cervantes · 3D & Animation · Beginner > 32 lessons (8h 6m) · 96% of the 165 student ratings are positive **Acting is one of the most important tools in animation**, as it reveals a character's thoughts and feelings through their behavior. In this online course, learn how to exaggerate actions and expressions to shape imaginary individuals and scenes that still fit within the realm of credibility. Animator and 3D artist Ulises Cervantes teaches you how **to bring cartoon-style characters to life in Blender**, following the principles of acting. He shows you a fun and efficient approach to animation and how to amaze viewers through the movements and gestures of your characters in an animated take. ## Who is this online course for? Anyone interested in streamlining their animation processes, regardless of their style. This course is also ideal for 3D artists who know how to work with Blender on a basic level, as well as artists who use other programs and would like to explore Blender with a simple and easy approach. ## What is this course's project? Create an animated take with 3D characters in Blender, applying the principles of acting. ## Requirements and materials Basic notions of 3D programs are required to take this course. In terms of materials, you need: - a notebook - a pen or pencil - a camera or smartphone - screenshot software - a media player or video program - blender 3.0 or later (you can download it for free from the website) ## Content ### Introduction Hello, I welcome you to my Domestika course! I am very excited that you have decided to join me in this course, and I know that what you will learn here will positively impact the way you work. I will start by introducing you to my work and professional career. I will tell you about the artists and studios that inspire me. I will also tell you about the problems that I faced and that I know that many people face to become a professional character animator. ### Create a performance in cartoon style In this unit I will explain what elements constitute the fundamentals of the cartoon style, the different ranges it can handle and the difference with the realistic style. You will see different examples and start working on your course project. You will work on it as if it were an assignment in a studio. Also, I will propose you a method of approach to the task of animating a shot in cartoon style. You will learn to start the process of planning the shot, from the point of view of the circumstances, emotion and personality of the characters. I'll show you how to handle the resource of references. You will see how to use your imagination to capture the emotional state of the characters in a sequence of thumbnails that will become the heart and guide of the animation. I will also explain how to create the timing structure by analyzing the audio and marking the important accents and actions on paper. Finally, I'll show you how to use the 2D animation Grease Pencil tool in Blender to check if the thumbnail sequence works in motion as you imagined. ### Bringing the characters to life It is time to get to work. During this unit you will perform the 3D execution of the animated shot. You'll see how to use the planning you did in the previous unit and learn how to execute it with confidence in the software. I will explain to you how to make passes with specific objectives. You will know the methods that I have learned through the years to have greater speed and freedom. You will learn to work in a cleaner, more comfortable and creative way. First, you will explore the rigs and learn how to adjust them to your preference of use. I'll show you how to create a low poly version of the characters. You will learn to work in spline and mostly straight ahead, using selection sets, pickers, and tools such as pose breakdown, motion trails, and pose library. We will focus on the emotion and pose of the characters and the search for movements with energy, good timing and appeal. You will see how to focus more on the artistic aspect and less on the technical issue. I will also give you tips on handling the keys in the graph editor and the timeline. At the end of this unit you will have the sequence ready for the final detailing! ### Scans, detailed and render You already have an animation with a decent quality, but you can take it one step further to polish, correct and add fine details, try smears and exaggerate certain elements more in cartoon style, using Addon Animation Layers or NLA Editor as an option. You will also learn how to do basic lighting for rendering and I will explain processes or pipeline to integrate animation into the workflow of a studio. ## Audio and subtitles **Audio:** Spanish, English, French, Italian, Portuguese, Turkish **Subtitles:** Spanish, English, Portuguese, German, French, Italian, Polish, Dutch, Turkish [Animating 3D Cartoon Characters in Blender](https://www.domestika.org/en/courses/4272-animating-3d-cartoon-characters-in-blender)