Rigging Characters for animation in Adobe Character Animator

🔧 Project Brief: Advanced Rigging & Template Setup for Adobe Character Animator

📌 Objective

We are seeking an experienced Rigger/Animator with strong proficiency in Adobe Character Animator and Adobe Illustrator to prepare, rig, and set up a reusable character system based on an existing uniform character template and strict styling guidelines.

The final product must be clean, stable, easy to animate, and allow 360° character posing via swap sets. This will support both designers and animators in building and posing varied characters efficiently.

🡭‍♂️ Character Assets (Provided)

• Format: Adobe Illustrator (.AI)

• Views Available: Front View & Side View

• Character Groups:

  • Male Adult
  • Female Adult
  • Male Child
  • Female Child

• Structure:

  • Built on a uniform template
  • Modular parts: head (faceless), body, arms with hands, legs with feet

✏️ Phase 1 – Preparation: Template System & Component Libraries

Deliverables:

1. Master Export Templates (1 per character group):

   • Built in Adobe Illustrator
   • Layered and tagged per Adobe Character Animator naming conventions
   • Includes all body parts and organized using standard puppet structures
   • Configured for easy future expansion

2. Component Symbol Libraries:

   • Swappable sets for:

     • Dresses/outfits
     • Hand gestures/poses
     • Skin tones
     • Hair styles

   • Structured for efficient symbol replacement in Illustrator

   • Assets grouped logically by character group

3. New Angles Added (in flat 2D perspective):

   • Front ¾ View
   • Back ¾ View
   • Back View

🕹️ Phase 2 – Rigging in Adobe Character Animator

Requirements:

• Build 1 fully rigged puppet per character group (4 total), using the updated Illustrator templates

• Puppet Configuration:

  • Tagged and grouped according to best practices for CA (handles, views, triggers, etc.)

  • Use swap sets to enable:

    • Outfit switching
    • Hair/skin tone changes
    • Hand gesture switching

  • Full 360° posing/rotation across angles (Front → ¾ → Side → Back ¾ → Back)

Rig Quality Expectations:

• Clean and bug-free
• Smooth view transitions (no snapping or artifacting)
• Clearly named layers/groups for team usage

✅ Final Deliverables

1. 4 fully rigged .puppet files (1 per character group)

2. 4 Illustrator template documents (ready-to-edit, layered, and symbolized)

3. Complete symbol library of components (clothing, skin tones, hands, hairstyles)

4. User Guide / ReadMe document (brief but clear setup or usage notes)

5. Final walk-through presentation/demo of:

   • How to swap parts
   • How to pose or animate characters
   • How to extend/customize characters with new art

🔧 Tools Required

• Adobe Illustrator (latest version)
• Adobe Character Animator (latest version)
• Strong knowledge of tagging, grouping, swap sets, and multi-view rigging

Budget range: Large project ($3,000 – 5,000 USD)

Can you provide examples of your preferred style?
All work will be based on existing character sheets / design system…Styling guidelines will be provided

Who are you, and what do you do
Communications department in a Shared Service Organisation

In what capacity are you hiring?
For my company

Where are you in the hiring process?
I’m planning and researching

What type of work is this?
Single job

What experience level is needed?
Mid-level (Industry Average): $35-75