Aaron McGriff

Aaron McGriff

Pixar Animator & Animation Coach

8-Part Boot Camp

Facial Animation

Boot Camp

A deep dive into crafting appealing, fleshy, connected and impactful facial animation. Using an anatomy-focused approach, you will learn the how and why behind every part of the face.

Enrol now · £260 View curriculum
Format 8 parts
Duration 12+ hours
Level Intermediate
Access Lifetime
Watch the introduction

Aaron breaks down what this boot camp covers and who it's built for.

A quick overview of the anatomy-first approach, the eight parts, and the kind of facial performances you will be able to craft by the end.

Course trailer
Free to watch
Captioned
Course trailer
What you'll learn

Master the anatomy and craft of facial animation.

Through detailed lectures, focused analysis and dozens of demos and recommended exercises, you will walk away with all of the tools you need to elevate your facial animation skills no matter your current level.

Feature-ready performances

Confidently craft facial performances in any style that are ready for production.

Anatomy-first approach

Understand the how and why behind how each part of the face moves.

Fewer revisions

Drastically reduce revision cycles by truly understanding facial anatomy.

Speed and confidence

Remove the guesswork and animate faster with a clear understanding of the face.

Lip sync mastery

Improve lip sync clarity and emotional impact from shot to shot.

Senior-level eye

Read and solve facial acting problems like a senior lead animator.

Free lesson preview

See Aaron walk through “the siren” a simple exercise for the Eee and Ooo mouth shapes.

In this sample lesson, Aaron breaks down how to approach two of the most common mouth shapes in dialogue: the Eee and the Ooo. He walks through “the siren,” a simple exercise that moves through every major mouth position, showing how each shape flows into the next and what to watch for in your rig. No theory dump, just Aaron at the whiteboard, drawing it out and explaining how it works in practice.

6 min 52 sec · From Part 4: Posing the mouth

Your instructor

Learn from a 20-year industry veteran.

Aaron McGriff

Aaron McGriff

Veteran Animator & Animation Coach

Aaron McGriff is a San Francisco Bay Area-based 3D character animator with over 20 years of industry experience working on a variety of projects from films to television programs, to commercial pre-vis, indie features, VR projects, and VFX films. Some of his recent credits include Pixar's Hoppes, Elio, Inside Out 2, Self, Elemental, Lightyear, Luca, Soul and Avengers: Infinity War. Aaron has been mentoring aspiring animators since 2010 and offers mentoring services and workshops through CG RIFF, his coaching website.

Facial Animation F.A.C.S. Anatomy Character Animation Lip Sync Maya
Curriculum

Eight parts. From concepts to polish. Every layer of the face, covered.

Click a section to see what's inside. The boot camp moves from foundational concepts through every region of the face, finishing with detail and polish.

Section A · Foundations & Eyes

Understanding Facial Concepts & Eye Animation

Build a rock-solid foundation in facial anatomy, then dive deep into the eye mask and eye expressions, the most expressive and complex region of the face.

3parts 4+hours Anatomyfocused
  1. 01
    Part 1: Understanding Facial ConceptsThe anatomy-first framework for understanding how and why each part of the face moves. Covers F.A.C.S. foundations, muscle groups, and the principles behind believable facial animation.
    01:29:28
  2. 02
    Part 2: The Eye MaskDeep dive into the eye region anatomy, from brow mechanics to lid shapes. Understand how subtle changes in the eye mask transform an entire expression.
    ~1:30:00
  3. 03
    Part 3: Eye ExpressionsPutting anatomy into practice. How to pose and animate the eyes to communicate intent, emotion, and thought with clarity and specificity.
    ~1:30:00
Section B · Mouth & Lip Sync

Posing the Mouth, Muzzle & Lip Sync

From the mechanics of the mouth and muzzle to full lip sync approaches. Learn how to build clear, fleshy mouth shapes and sync them to dialogue with emotional impact.

3parts 4+hours Dialogueready
  1. 04
    Part 4: Posing the MouthAnatomy and mechanics of the mouth region. How to create appealing, fleshy mouth poses that read clearly on screen.
    ~1:30:00
  2. 05
    Part 5: Understanding the MuzzleThe muzzle connects the mouth to the rest of the face. How to animate it so poses feel connected and three-dimensional, not flat.
    ~1:30:00
  3. 06
    Part 6: Lip Sync ApproachesPractical lip sync workflows and techniques. From phoneme shapes to timing, phrasing, and how to maintain emotional truth through dialogue.
    ~1:30:00
Section C · Detail & Polish

Adding Detail & Final Polish

The finishing passes that separate good facial animation from great. Secondary motion, micro-expressions, asymmetry, and the polish that makes performances feel alive.

2parts 3+hours Productionpolish
  1. 07
    Part 7: Adding DetailLayering in secondary motion, asymmetry, wrinkles, and the subtle details that give facial animation depth and believability.
    ~1:30:00
  2. 08
    Part 8: PolishFinal refinement pass. Smoothing, timing adjustments, micro-expressions, and knowing when a facial performance is truly finished.
    ~1:30:00
Who it's for

Is this boot camp right for you?

This course is designed for animators who want to take their facial work from functional to exceptional.

Intermediate animators

You can animate a body but faces still feel like guesswork. You want a structured approach to understand why certain poses read and others fall flat.

Working professionals

You are animating faces in production but want to reduce revision cycles, speed up your workflow, and give more confident facial notes on your team's work.

Feature-track animators

You are aiming for roles at studios where facial performance is a core requirement and you need the anatomy knowledge to back up your work at that level.

Bonus

What's Included Beyond The Lessons

Beyond the 12+ hours of lectures, demos and exercises, you get lifetime access to all content and any future updates Aaron adds to the boot camp. The course is yours to revisit whenever you need a refresher on any area of the face.

12+
Hours of Content

Detailed lectures, focused analysis, and dozens of demos and recommended exercises across all eight parts.

Ready to enrol

Stop guessing. Start understanding every muscle in the face.

Eight parts, 12+ hours, covering everything from foundational anatomy through eye expressions, mouth posing, lip sync, and the polish pass that makes performances land.

Enrol now
8 parts · 12+ hours £260
What's included

Facial Animation Boot Camp

  • 8 structured parts covering every region of the face, from anatomy to polish
  • 12+ hours of lectures, demos, and exercises from a Pixar veteran
  • Anatomy-first approach covering F.A.C.S., muscle groups, and movement principles
  • Full lip sync module from phoneme shapes to emotional dialogue
  • Lifetime access with all future updates included