So yeah, I want to look at animating. I used pivot stick animator alot a few years ago and that's what got me interested, but these programs I see look insanely complex. Any of you guys recommend any tutorials or sources?
I think Source Film Maker is a good one. It's free so you can try it, you just have to download Steam to download it, but like I said both are free, the only problem is it needs a gaming PC so I can't use it. I know they talked about it on a Rooster Teeth podcast and Gus (I hope you know who I'm talking about) was amazed because you can change any part of it at any time. It's supposed to be the next "Big thing" in animating because it's so powerful because it works in 3D and can be edited mid scene. Also, again, you can download everything you need for it for free.
2d or 3d ? how much time are you willing to devote to this? something to know before you start : animating is NOT easy and most professional level programs are NOT easy to use. it takes months to learn and years to get decent and a lifetime to perfect. i went to school for animation and have learned a lot about it, and there is way way way more to it than just finding a program and attempting to hit the ground running. as far as programs to use, my school taught Flash and ToonBoom Studio to the 2D animators. for the 3D animators, we learned in Maya. if you're interested in learning 3D animation, Maya is a very complicated program and it's going to take you a long time to get the hang of even simple things like working with primitive shapes and animations, let alone modelling your character and environment, the lighting and the render, etc. i would suggest starting by trying to animate a bouncing ball. that is basically Lesson #1 for all animators. after that, pendulums and waves. maybe then, once you "get" that, you can move on to a walk cycle.
The benefit of Maya or other industry leading software however, is the availability of resources and tutorials. Maya Tutorials, Maya 3D Training, Home of the SimplyMaya Community Creative Crash : High Quality 3D Models, Scripts, Plugins and More! :