Bundle - Advanced Body and Facial rigging workshops (2026)
Tue, Feb 03
|Recorded & Live Meet Sessions
14 weeks of intensive workshops to learn how to create complete character rigs for animated films. Enroll in both of our workshops together to take advantage of a discounted price.
Time & Location
Feb 03, 2026, 7:00 p.m. – May 26, 2026, 10:00 p.m.
Recorded & Live Meet Sessions
About the event
Dive into the world of body and facial rigging, where you'll explore both the artistic and technical aspects needed to create high-quality deformations for animated films. In this advanced course, you'll learn the skills necessary to craft appealing, expressive rigs that meet the demanding standards of animated films.
Our workshops combine flexible self-paced learning with live feedback and community support.
🎥 Weekly live sessions on Google Meet focused on review, and personalized feedback from your instructor.
📺 Recorded lessons with assigments every week in English with optional Spanish subtitles
💬 Discord community with classmates and instructor for questions and collaboration
🌍 Live feedback available in English or Spanish, based on your preference
⏳ Access to all course content for 2 years after completion, so you can keep learning at your own pace.
🧑🤝🧑 Two 3D character models included, free to use them in your practices and demo reel (or bring your own).
Attending live sessions is optional, all sessions are recorded, and your feedback can be captured in the recordings.
Instructor
Hector Abraham Torres
Is a Character Rigger at Walt Disney Animation Studios with over 10 years of experience in the industry, he also worked at Sony Pictures Imageworks and other big animation studios.
Hector also an international speaker and instructor which contributions have made him a respected figure in the animation community.
Projects worked:
- Tiana
- Moana 2
- Spider-Man Across the Spiderverse
- Monsters At Work
- Paw Patrol the Movie
- SpongeBob in the Run
- Max Stel Turbo
Overview / Syllabus
Advanced Body Rigging:
Week 0
Introduction and presentation
Get to know your instructor and classmates
Discover how the workshop will run and what you’ll be learning
Explore the resources and setup for your upcoming sessions
Group 1 Live Session: Tuesday, February 03, 2026
Group 2 Live Session: Thursday, February 05, 2026
Week 1
Body Anatomy (Muscles and Bone Structures)
Correct Topology for animation
Retopology tools in Maya
Marking Menus, Hotkeys, and Scripts.
Assignment: Model ready to start the rig.
Group 1 Live Session: Tuesday, February 10, 2026
Group 2 Live Session: Thursday, February 12, 2026
Week 2
Creation of joints and controls
IK Splines
Constraints, connections and utility nodes
Squash and Stretch
Tangents & Follows behaviors
Assignment: Spine and neck rig
Group 1 Live Session: Tuesday, February 17, 2026
Group 2 Live Session: Thursday, February 19, 2026
Week 3
IK/FK Chains
Squash & Stretch
Ribbons
Bend controls
Controls Automation
Assignment: Cartoony arm/hands rig
Group 1 Live Session: Tuesday, February 24, 2026
Group 2 Live Session: Thursday, February 26, 2026
Week 4
IK/FK Chains in legs
Squash and Stretch
Reverse foot control
Ribbons in legs
Locks
Assignment: Cartoony leg rig
Group 1 Live Session: Tuesday, March 03, 2026
Group 2 Live Session: Thursday, March 05, 2026
Week 5
Parent Switch Spaces
Mirroring
Global Scale
Weight painting
DQ, Classic Linear and Weight Blended Skin
Clothes Transfer
Assignment: Rig Assembling and Binding
Group 1 Live Session: Tuesday, March 10, 2026
Group 2 Live Session: Thursday, March 12, 2026
Week 6 &7
Matrix Nodes
RBF Maya solver
Pose Editor
Corrective blendshapes & Sculpting Tools
Extra Add-ons
Assignment: Final Rig with corrective blendshapes
Group 1 Live Session: Tuesday, March 24, 2026
Group 2 Live Session: Thursday, March 26, 2026
Advanced Facial Rigging:
Week 0
Introduction and presentation
Get to know your instructor and classmates
Discover how the workshop will run and what you’ll be learning
Explore the resources and setup for your upcoming sessions
Group 1 Live Session: Tuesday, April 07, 2026
Group 2 Live Session: Thursday, April 09, 2026
Week 1
Face Anatomy (Muscles and bones structures)
Correct Topology for animation
Retopology tools in Maya
Marking Menus, Hotkeys, and Scripts.
Types of facial rigging
Assignment: Model ready to start the rig.
Group 1 Live Session: Tuesday, April 14, 2026
Group 2 Live Session: Thursday, April 16, 2026
Week 2
Creation of joints and controls
Local joints and controls
Constraints, connections and utility nodes
Advanced Jaw setup
Ribbon Applications
Lips system
Assignment: Jaw & Lips Rig
Group 1 Live Session: Tuesday, April 21, 2026
Group 2 Live Session: Thursday, April 23, 2026
Week 3
corrective blendshapes on joints
Blendshapes splitting.
Combo shapes
Nose & Cheek controls
Layered Skinning
Assignment: Skull controls and blendshapes
Group 1 Live Session: Tuesday, April 28, 2026
Group 2 Live Session: Thursday, April 30, 2026
Week 4
Motion Path applications
Types of curves
Brows Joints setup + Corrective Blendshapes
Inbetween Shapes
Assignment: Brows Rig
Group 1 Live Session: Tuesday, May 05, 2026
Group 2 Live Session: Thursday, May 07, 2026
Week 5
basic vs complex eyelid setup
Wires and point on curves.
Autoblink
One per loop skinning
Eye Sockets setup
Assignment: Eyelids Rig
Group 1 Live Session: Tuesday, May 12, 2026
Group 2 Live Session: Thursday, May 14, 2026
Week 6 &7
Eye Squash
Sticky Lips
Cartoony Tongue and Teeth Setups.
Combining local rig to main rig
Nonlinear Maya deformers
Anim Pickers
Assignment: Extra deformers and finish rig
Group 1 Live Session: Tuesday, May 26, 2026
Group 2 Live Session: Thursday, May 28, 2026
Level
Intermediate to advanced
This workshop is not intended for complete beginners, but everyone is welcome to join.
We will cover the rigging fundamentals, but the workshop spends more time on intermediate and advanced concepts.
Requirements
Computer with an internet connection and a microphone for online classes.
Autodesk Maya 2019 or later installed.
Basic knowledge of Maya is required before taking the workshop.
Groups are limited to only 10 students, so we recommend saving your spot in advance
Language
Recorded sessions are conducted in English and include optional English and Spanish subtitles.
Live sessions are offered in English or Spanish.
If overall enrollment allows, we may open the English group for Tuesdays and a new one in Spanish for Thursdays.
If not, we’ll combine participants and alternate languages if needed to accommodate everyone.
If you have any questions or require alternative payment options (some with no fees, including installment plans),
please email us at contact@hatrigs.com
You can also reserve your spot with an initial payment by emailing us.
You will be contacted within 24 hours after your payment to confirm your start dates and gather your preferences and information.
Order Details
Advanced Body & Face Workshop
14 weeks of Workshops for learning advanced character rigging techniques
US$1,170.00
+US$29.25 ticket service fee
Total
US$0.00