James Crossley shows some methods for creating flat characters in a 3D world.

There is a certain appeal to having characters that look hand-drawn or hand-painted. In a digital world, that means using a 2D animation app like Spine, ToonBoom, Ae, Moho, or others. Some other alternatives work with a hybrid of 2D and 3D objects simultaneously, like Bender’s Grease Pencil. You can also create a 2D flat character in a 3D app, like Cinema 4D or Maya. There are a lot of advantages to doing that, and some drawbacks too.

2D in 3D.

A new breakdown from James Crossley shows some of the methods he uses to get that classic 2D flat character look in Maya. Crossley plans to create a series of examinations covering character building, rigging, and animation using flat puppets in Maya. One of the benefits is having access to Maya’s animation and rigging toolset, not to mention the sheer speed of a 3D viewport.

The first goes over some of the modeling methods that Crossley uses to create that flat look. Great stuff here!