This book takes an in-depth look at the methods and technology that professionals use to create realistic and believable characters using computer technology.

The art of creating animation is the ability to generate believable characters that have emotion and life. Regardless of your medium good animation comes from the application of solid fundamentals and an extensive body of knowledge. "Inspired 3D Character Animation" provides you with a comprehensive set of processes and procedures for animating characters in the digital environment. By taking a close look at the day-to-day activities and practices of veteran film, commercial, and game animators, you will get a look into the processes necessary to implement these ideas into the world of 3D computer graphics software.

A good read

This book helped me a great deal with character animation. If you have doubts on how to start of with animation then this book will benefit you. The interviews could have been a lot better but the little bits of information that are in the book make up for whatever it lacks. Like the others side, just read and absorb it and your skills will improve.

Better than other reviews here would lead you to believe ...

I’m a bit surprised at the bad rap this book has gotten in earlier user reviews. Suggesting to "just read the manual that came with the software" is preposterous -- these comments are often made by people who think that knowing how to set keyframes in a piece of software makes them GOOD animators, and nothing could be further from the truth. A thorough understanding of how the body moves, how the mind thinks, how external forces affect the body, and other sometimes slippery subjects are critical aspects of the good animator’s toolset.

While there are no earth-shattering revelations in this book (how many could there be when the animation industry is over 90 years old), the topics discussed in these pages, often illustrated with short exercises, make a good launching pad for people wanting to go from someone who knows how to make a character move, to someone who knows how to make a character come alive.

The book does a good job of relating traditional animation concepts to the 3D medium, and several of the interviews are enlightening. As a college animation instructor and professional computer animator, I find satisfaction in opening this book in my classroom to point out that artists from celebrated studios such as Industrial Light & Magic and Sony Pictures Imageworks are saying the same things that I am telling my students. My Advanced 3D Animation students spend several weeks reading chapters from this book and applying the information through mini-assignments, which I hope lead them to realize all that they must consider in bringing a character to life. This book is not designed to teach something new to the computer animation veteran -- instead, it fulfills its purpose of showing intermediate to advanced level students of animation a path that they need to take in becoming successful character animators.

While the price of this book is a bit steep, there are several pieces of advice that should be in any character animator’s mantra. The information can lead to a big payoff if you really absorb it.

Great Reference for character animation in 3D

I bought both Inspired 3D Character Setup and 3D Character Animation books 2 years ago now, and I still refer to them on a regular basis - to the point that they are literally falling apart. I am doing post-graduate studies in 3D animation and specifically I am focusing on traditional 2D skills and how they can be utilised and/or adapted in the 3D workspace. For me, this book has been an invaluable source of reference, and it reminds me that I really must keep an open mind about animation production methods and procedures and encourage and accept helpful criticism from my peers - otherwise you get stuck in your ways and don’t grow. I especially enjoy the interviews, because I really like to hear first-hand industry experience from experts, but I must say that ALL of the content has been relevant and helpful to me.
One criticism that I have read about the inspired series is that the pages are too wide, but I actually like them like this because the book will stay open on the desk so that you don’t have to hold the pages down with something.
Yes, I think I would prefer that a CD was provided with the book, and yes, I think it was a bit expensive, but I definitely got plenty of practical, helpful advice from it - much more than many other books which are supposedly addressing 3D character animation.

A few tips that are ok but overall worse 3d book i’ve read

This is probably the worse 3d book i’ve ever read. It tries to meld in traditional 2d animation and 3d together but it’s attempt fails. The author admits to not really relating figure drawing to his line of work while all the interviews with the animators swear by it. Gesture drawing the figure is the primary fundamentals of animation according to the best animation schools, best 3d studios, and best animators in the industry. I do however respect the artist for being a stop motion animator. Also the tutorials are too concise. If you’re not too familiar with the Maya interface and langauge then you’ll be very frustrated. The interviews are so lame where the author leads into Q&A and answering his own questions and fulfilling his own answers.

I’m glad i checked mine out at the library. Save your money and look for a Maya book with better reviews.

Too pricy for the information

This book is definitely got a few good articles, but the price makes it absolutely overrated and not worth.

Not sure what the last couple of reviewers are talking about

I found that for the first time, a character animation book actually talks about character animation and NOT what is simply in the manuals. It’s about time that someone talked about fundamentals AND HOW THEY ARE APPLIED IN 3D COMPUTER ANIMATION. Anyone can read a manual and make objects move but making them live is another thing entirely. Take it from someone who has had to review endless reels filled with junk, no timing, no command of overlap, anticipation or holds. Just by learning AND IMPLEMENTING the information in this book, you can put yourself ahead of 90% of all applicants for character animation jobs. Tips on approach, especially by Sean Mullen and Richie Baneham, are priceless. I recommend reading this title in all rejection letters we send out.