Welcome to the Rigging Dojo FAQ

Q: Tuition cost and pricing and fees

A: 
101 level Courses are $699 + registration fee and include free education software from Autodesk and *Alumni access.

Our advanced Apprenticeship program is $1,499 USD with a 10% discount for returning students.

All applications require payment of a $25 processing fee.

Contact us for payment assistance and details on corporate group studio training and educational institution train the trainers programs.

*Alumni access to your course materials, to review as much as needed, and the private community site full of great tips, tricks and special mini-training sessions are included free.
Pricing subject to change.

Q: Are classes live or prerecorded videos?

A: Lectures and tutorials are presented as streaming videos, classes are not live. At the mentors discretion a live chat or screenshare might be setup but that is outside of the standard format of the course.

Q: What is Rigging Dojo?

A: Rigging Dojo is the online training center for personal customized training in character rigging and technical arts.   See our About page to learn more.
We are asked quite often if we are like another online mentor school or a video learning tutor site and the answer is yes and  no, keep reading to find out what sets us apart.

Q: How do critiques and feedback work?

A: Detailed critiques are done as videos and posted for students to download and keep.  General feedback, QA and the majority of interactions happen through our student course discussion forms.

Q: What is the difference between a Course and Apprenticeship ?

A: We offer two kinds of training for students, Mentor led group training where you learn more foundation or 101 style class vs. our Apprenticeship program, 4 weeks of intensive custom one-on-one training with a Mentor where you learn just what you want to learn at an accelerated rate.

Note: Apprenticeships have prerequisites and also are only available for 10% future training discounts.

Q: How long to I have access to the course?

A: All students regardless of what training is chosen, get to  keep access to their training areas so they can review notes and training materials as well as have access to our campus lounge discussion forum full of great discussions and rigging tips and tricks and job board.

Q: Consulting and corporate training: Do you offer any other services like private consulting, character rigging or motion editing for example?

A: Yes we go beyond teaching and offer studio training, guest lectures for schools, training for teachers, project consulting including rig evaluation, workflow improvement and pipeline design.We have a network of freelance character TDs and motion capture specialists that can help your production out in many different areas with direct and actionable impact on the quality and efficiency of your project.
Some examples include cross training artists on Max and Maya, high speed ramp up on MotionBuilder for animators and TDs, School curriculum review and design, special workshops and lectures.

Autodesk Consulting partner– If your studio has a contract with Autodesk for consulting services you can receive training from us paid through Autodesk

Q: How do I sign up or apply to take a course at Rigging Dojo?

A: To apply for a course or apprenticeship go here.

Q: How does the Apprenticeship work?

A: During the registration process the student submits their detailed learning goals for that session with our registration form.

• We review the registration and match you with a mentor with experience in those areas is assigned.
• During your time with your Mentor, you will post work for critique ask questions and work hard.
• The session is asynchronous with out  set times or live lectures to attend.  All our mentors are working professionals and availability during the week varies.
• Emphasis is on setting expectations based on the goals and timeline of the class and assessment based on the students learning goals.
  • Our mentor uses his/her expertise to work with you on your goal with production needs in mind.  Therefore, goal can be adjusted by the mentor to better align with production requirements.

Q:What kind of training can I take? Autodesk Maya? MotionBuilder? Python?

A: We personalize our training to each student in our Apprenticeship program, based on desired learning goals approved by the Mentor and Rigging Dojo.

The here are some examples of what we can teach but not limited to …

• Scripting (python, pymel, mel)
• Deformations
• Rigging – foundation
• Rigging-  Face
• Rigging- Mechanical
• Motion Capture editing
• MotionBuilder basics
• MotionBuilder rigging
• Math for Visual FX
• Creature and quadruped rigging

Note: We don’t teach all of these to you at once, we work to create tech artists we would hire and work with in production, not just tutorial finishers.

Q: What do your 101 courses teach?

A: Our 101 level courses that are geared to intermediate and beginner students.  Group participation is required. The courses follow a Lecture/assignment/Critique format but with a production focus. Production focused training puts the student in the center of the learning experience. We don’t dumb down, hand hold or do the work for you. We expect students to ask questions, struggle and learn the proper foundations of why rigging is done the way it is.  This is the best way for students to learn how to learn and not just rote copy tutorials.

Q: Do you have any Special Project courses?

A: Depending on availability we sometimes also offer several special project learning opportunities like what we did with the short film rigging – partnering with Anomalia to rig student workshop characters 

Be sure to follow our social channels and blog for announcements.

Q: How long is a course?

A: Courses vary but are an average of 8 to 10 weeks and the Apprenticeship program is 4 weeks. This allows enough time to learn important material while limiting the demands on the the students work/life schedule.

Q: When can I start?

A:  For our group courses, we have two runs a year. Each with limited space. Once we reach capacity you get added to a wait list and will be contacted if space opens up. Apprenticeship start times are rolling and is based on available Mentors and their production schedule.

• Session 1 Spring
• Session 2 Fall

Q: What if the current session is full?

A: As long as you registered and request a hold on registration you will be placed on our waiting list for the next available session. The wait list is priority based where existing students wanting to continue with another session get first choice and then students on the waiting list are added based on registration order and session date selected.

Q: What makes Rigging Dojo different?

A: Every aspect of our service is built on the relationships between student and Mentor as well as student to student.  We designed our personal learning site around a customized social networking software. Students and mentors can network and share with each other including following updates like Twitter or Facebook, while still receiving private training and share their latest work, inspirations or ask for help in our Campus Lounge discussion area.

After the course is finished, students are allowed continued access to their training session for review and can continue using the open areas of the school site. If a student enrolls for another personal course they will then be assigned a mentor and training will continue in their “virtual private classroom” keeping all material in one easy to find location.

Q: Will I have homework and be graded?

A: Mentors do assign work to be completed for review and critique in order to  help the student improve. Assignments can include but are not limited to a mix of production-like problem solving and tutorials to complete and then uploaded for review.  You are responsible for creating work and asking questions in order to have feedback from your Mentor.

Q: How much time per week will I have to work?

A: Depending on what your trying to learn and how fast you are, expect around 5 to 20+ hours per week depending on your skill and availability.

Students have been spending an average of 20 hours a week working on their topics of choice.  Rigging takes dedication, hard work and time to practice. We’ve found the best way for people to learn is to do and review their efforts.  It takes focused practice to learn scripting, painting weights and building rigs. No school or training exists that can skip that process.  We show you how to work faster and be effective with your techniques, thereby speeding up your learning curve, but we can’t do the work for you.

Q: What are the software and hardware requirements?

A:    A computer capable of running Autodesk Maya and MotionBuilder or equivalent software.

• We use Autodesk Maya and Autodesk MotionBuilder software for our courses.
  • Our students get free education licenses of the latest Autodesk software with an Autodesk education account.
• A high-speed internet connection for watching video feedback and other video content.
• Firefox or Chrome web browser is preferred.
• Additional helpful tools for you to effectively communicate  with your instructor would include screen capture software is helpful.

Q: Who are the founders of Rigging Dojo?

A: Josh Carey, Brad Clark and Chad Moore are the founders of Rigging Dojo and directors of the education program and mentors.
The three founders are actively working in production and as educators.  We do what we teach and teach what we do. We all have worked together and with clients both on-site and remotely from all over the world. With years of teaching and training experience, including college level courses, short form masterclasses and in-house production training, our experiences make us a uniquely valuable source of knowledge for both amateurs as well as industry professionals. Learn more about the founders.

Q: What is your Refund policy?

The student may cancel the session within the first 5 days and receive a two-thirds refund or the student may request a one time reschedule for the next available session at no cost. If a student cancels during their first session they are not eligible for alumni status and will not have access to the student learning portal.

Q: Do I get a certificate of completion?

A: Students who complete the course work are eligible to request a certificate of completion at the end of the session that can be turned in to HR if your company offers education reimbursement.

Q: Do you have a newsletter?

A:Yes! Fill out the newsletter form on the on this page to receive great content, updates, tips and discounts.

Q: I just want to learn for free, give me tutorials.

A: The best place to start is our free resources https://www.riggingdojo.com/free-learning-resources/

Q: What if I have more questions?

A: First re-read this FAQ then ask us with our Contact page.