Hand Animation by Anna White

Anna White breaks down hand animation into a clear, practical workflow. You’ll study anatomy, explore gesture, and learn how to push poses so they read clearly in a shot. This course is all about giving your characters hands that feel alive and intentional.

🎯 What you’ll learn

• Hand anatomy and how it affects movement
• Blocking and refining natural hand poses
• Using gesture to support storytelling
• Avoiding common stiff or “spider” hand mistakes
• Polishing finger and wrist motion for readability

✅ Requirements

• Skills: Basic understanding of 3D animation principles and familiarity with keyframe animation.
• Tools: Autodesk Maya or equivalent 3D animation software.
• Hardware: A computer capable of running Maya smoothly.

📝 Description

Hands are often the hardest part of character animation. They’re small, complex, and every mistake shows. Anna White’s approach cuts through the noise. She starts with the basics of hand anatomy, showing you how bones and tendons actually move, so you can build poses that feel grounded in reality.

From there, it’s all about gesture. You’ll learn how to use hands to push a character’s emotion and intent. A simple finger curl or a relaxed wrist can change the entire read of a shot. Anna shows you how to make those choices deliberately, not by accident.

The course also covers common pitfalls. You’ll see why hands end up looking like spiders, how to fix stiff fingers, and how to keep motion natural without overdoing it. By the end, you’ll have a solid workflow for blocking, refining, and polishing hand animation that supports your character’s performance.

🧑‍🎓 Who this course is for

• Animators who want to improve their character performance with better hand motion
• Students who understand basic animation but struggle with hands specifically
• Anyone looking to add more storytelling nuance to their shots

🧑‍🏫 About the Author

Anna White is an experienced character animator with a background in feature animation and game cinematics. She has worked on projects that demand high-level performance and has developed a reputation for clear, practical teaching. Her focus is on helping animators build strong foundations so they can tackle complex shots with confidence.

🏁 Final Result

By the end of this course, you’ll have a polished hand animation shot that demonstrates clear gesture, solid anatomy, and strong storytelling. You’ll also have a repeatable workflow you can apply to any future animation project.