Rigging Fundamentals LTS by Robby Branham

Build a complete character rig from scratch in Blender. This course walks you through creating a flexible armature, setting up inverse kinematics (IK), and adding squash-and-stretch controls. You’ll finish with a fully functional lamp rig ready for animation.

🎯 What you’ll learn

• Build and structure an armature hierarchy
• Set up inverse kinematics constraints
• Create squash-and-stretch spring systems
• Implement head stabilization and look-at controls
• Animate a stylized jump sequence with the rig

✅ Requirements

• Skills: Basic familiarity with Blender’s interface and 3D navigation
• Tools: 3-button mouse
• Hardware: Minimum 8GB RAM, dedicated GPU recommended

📝 Description

This isn’t just a button-pushing tutorial. Robby Branham breaks down the why behind every constraint and bone placement, so you can apply these techniques to any character.

You’ll start with a simple armature and gradually layer on complexity. The lamp rig is a perfect teaching tool — it’s simple enough to grasp quickly but has enough moving parts to demonstrate real-world rigging problems. You’ll learn how to set up IK chains that behave naturally, build spring systems that squash and stretch automatically, and create head controls that follow the body without manual keyframing.

The course also covers practical animation testing. You’ll put the rig through its paces with a jump cycle and a squash-and-stretch sequence, catching and fixing issues as they come up. Finally, you’ll set up a cinematic silhouette render to show off your work.

🧑‍🎓 Who this course is for

• Blender artists who want to move beyond basic animation
• 3D generalists looking to add rigging to their skillset
• Animators who want to build custom rigs for their characters

🧑‍🏫 About the Author

Robby Branham is a veteran 3D artist and the founder of CGFastTrack. He has over a decade of experience in Blender production pipelines, creating educational content that focuses on practical, job-ready skills. His teaching style emphasizes clear explanations and real-world workflow efficiency.

🏁 Final Result

• A fully rigged lamp character with IK arms, squash-and-stretch springs, and head stabilization controls
• A stylized jump animation demonstrating the rig’s capabilities
• A cinematic silhouette render setup for portfolio presentation