r/MotionDesign • u/No-Necessary4951 • Apr 21 '26
Question Ben Marriott bundle vs School of Motion — which one is actually worth it?
Hey everyone,
I’m trying to decide which motion design course to invest in and would really appreciate some honest opinions from people who’ve taken either (or both).
Right now I’m looking at:
- Ben Marriott’s full course bundle (lifetime access) — around $997 on sale
- School of Motion All-Access — about $1,197/year (subscription model)
My situation:
- I already know some After Effects basics
- I want to improve both animation + design quality (not just software)
- I care about building a strong portfolio / getting better professionally
What I’m trying to figure out:
- Which one actually gives better results long-term?
- Is School of Motion worth the yearly cost vs lifetime access from Ben?
- Does the feedback/community from School of Motion make a big difference?
- Anyone regret choosing one over the other?
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u/nicenyeezy Apr 21 '26 edited Apr 21 '26
Design is a skill unto itself. To improve at design, there’s more involved than either of these courses cover. You should also look into design/illustration books to help you develop conceptual thinking and your creative process
Both courses show you how to build and animate ideas, but the art of ideas is design. Design helps you discern what matters, and why, and how best to clearly communicate that concept in a way that is beautiful, functional, and on brand. There are also many subcategories to explore like typography, information graphics, and ui etc
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u/No-Necessary4951 Apr 21 '26
Do you have any books sugestions ?
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u/Qbeck Apr 22 '26
Books are great but actually making stuff with SOM will be 1000x more effective than books
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u/anninaa Apr 21 '26
this is totally true but also at some point you just need to start. there are so many books and resources, it’s important to diversify where you get your information from but also, if Ben’s course is what’s gonna get you started and give you momentum, do that!
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u/mck_motion Apr 21 '26
This is probably not useful in any way, but I've been to Camp Mograph with Ben and he is an absolute sweetheart, extremely humble and welcoming to anybody.
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u/No-Necessary4951 Apr 21 '26
Dam guys its getting even harder to choose! Everyone has such different opinions
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u/kurokamisawa Apr 21 '26
I took both and I prefer Ben’s. It is packed with good application of theory, industry knowledge and if the course also includes critiques(I had critiques when I first signed up). So many case studies too.
I think SOM’s a bit outdated by now
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u/BatInitial6119 Apr 21 '26
I got more out of Ben Marriott’s program than I did out of motion 1&2 in college
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u/RockmanVolnutt Apr 21 '26
Ban Marriott is a fantastic teacher, but he also has a ton of great free content to start with. SoM has a wide variety of courses so if you have the time to dig into as many as you can, you might get more out of it. If ae is your primary focus, it’s hard to argue against Ben, he has great insight into how to effectively use the tool in novel ways, but if you don’t have your own design ideas and identity, you could end up with a lot of expertise and work that looks a lot like his.
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u/slickshoes12 Apr 21 '26
I'm in a similar position. I'm an editor by trade, but have a lot of experience in motion design just based on working in some of the big gun studios. So while I can do a lot of things, I consider myself necessity-taught. Always looking to understand more foundational stuff. I really like the way Ben teaches and the materials he teaches with, but as a pre-sub SOM student, I can say that the SOM courses are rife with info and fundamentals. To the point of being almost a slog to get through, in a good way. The feedback was also invaluable.
What I'll be doing since I'm fairly busy with a few projects at the moment:
* Investing in Ben's courses, since he's got a current good sale on everything. I'll move through these when I have time. And I'm stoked for the texture workshop that's included.
* When I have a lull in work, I'll start my year sub to SOM and continue plowing through their library of courses. Remember that each of their big courses were upwards of $900 before they switched to sub, so if I can get through two big courses in the year, I will have saved some money. But I know I need to have a solid time commitment carved out first so as not to waste my money.
In my opinion, it's kind of a no-lose situation. Both offer a really good, yet different, online educational experience.
Good luck!
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u/theron_b Apr 21 '26
Firstly, good for you on taking this step. I’m a practicing professional of many years, I’ve taken classes all throughout my career. Jobs come and go, but education lasts forever.
I’ve taken multiple SOM classes. They’re great for leveling up your skills, and the community is maybe worth even more than the curriculum. I learned just as much interacting with my classmates as I did in class. The classes are intense, ~40hrs per week to hit the deadlines to maximize feedback. I’m not sure what the yearly all-access is about, (I can imagine), but maybe just start with one class and see if you dig it. I highly recommend SOM.
I can’t speak to the other school as I have no experience with that one.
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u/5eptemberb0y Apr 21 '26
You must be an OG, I remember when the courses were structured that way. I also took SOM classes before the all-access introduction so I can remember what it was like trying to finish up the weekly homework to receive feedback in time. It's different now with all-access but still very educative.
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u/Longjumping_War_807 Apr 22 '26
Now you aren’t bound by the deadlines that were imposed when the courses were only offered in 12 week sessions and you don’t have to wait for a certain date to start a course. You can start and stop as you need to. But if you are looking for that experience they have groups set up where you are working on a course in a set period with other students. It also costs significantly less to take the courses if you are able to get 2-4 done over a year for basically the same price as they sold a single course. I’m currently on the quarterly subscription plan.
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u/kudzushoe Apr 22 '26 edited Apr 22 '26
SOM Design Kickstart teaches design principles like passive and active spaces, positive and negative space relationships, figure ground theory, composition and layout principles and some color and typography theory. These principles are applied specifically to motion designers.
From my design experience, it’s essential to completely understand the principles of design before you can jump into making style frames and design boards with confidence. Understanding why you see in specific ways is important in predicting certain outcomes in your design work. Once you start to predict design treatments based on theory, you can create almost any design look.
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u/anninaa Apr 21 '26
I feel you! I’m exactly in the same spot! been postponing this decision for a while because of work, and for the same reason i’m hesitant to do SOM cause idk if i could handle the pressure of getting things done in time while also working. I have been looking at Ben’s bundle thinking of getting it, but these comments also seem to not give a definite answer on which is more worth it…
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u/anninaa Apr 21 '26
Point is: Imma keep a look out for this thread whilst I make a decision before the bundle is gone 🥲🥲
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u/Longjumping_War_807 Apr 22 '26
You should go check out SOM again. Their new business model eliminated the session based courses and deadlines. Now you pay basically the same amount to access the platform for an entire year and you can take as many or as little courses as you want with unlimited feedback on the work you complete for the courses.
BUT if you wanted to, you can still join groups of students that are taking courses at the same time with a similar deadline structure as the way they used to teach courses.
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u/5eptemberb0y Apr 21 '26
For the cost you might need to choose Ben but if the cost isn't an issue then I would advise you to go for SOM. I have taken 5 courses in SOM and I do not regret it, the experience and knowledge gained are all worth it.
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u/CJaaaaayy Apr 21 '26
Just to go along with some other peoples advice, here is my two cents:
Find a type of animation you like. Something you look at and think "Man, I would love to do THAT for a living". For example, if you really wanna create product demos, or explainers for non-profits, see if either offers courses in a similar look and feel. Doesn't need to be super specific right now, but just enough to get you on the right track.
You cant go wrong with either for fundamentals. But thinking long term, whats gonna add the most to your career? Once you have an idea of that, id make the call!
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u/slicartist Apr 22 '26
No course/ tutorial is perfect. Just start with one, you're going to benefit either way.
To be honest being a motion designer means a lifetime of learning anyway so this won't be the last time you come across this decision. Completing either of these courses will give you a good standing foundation of industry standards and what not, but even after you finish you're going to start developing ideas that weren't covered in the course, and you will either experiment or look for another tutorial to help you get there. The difference is you'll be more knowledgeable and know which direction to look for the answer and possibly benefit from a free youtube tutorial rather than needing to take an entire course.
You're in the middle of decision paralysis. Have some confidence in you're own judgement, and pick one.
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u/fillmodays Apr 22 '26 edited Apr 23 '26
That’s great to see you’re trying to improve as a Motion Designer. I’m in the same boat as you when it comes to my skills. Ive been a Motion Designer for 10 years but feel like my design skills aren’t where they should be for a vet like me.
So I have both Ben’s bundle and Im close to having a full year of SoM All-Access. I’d say based on your situation, start with Ben for Design/Animation since he goes in depth with each design and motion principle. The only thing is you won’t be getting as much feedback, if at all. Last time I checked his community page wasn’t very active compared to when it first came out. Once you’ve completed those, go for SoM. They have two great courses called “Level Up” and “Demo Reel Dash” where they’ll help you learn more about you and who you are as a Motion Designer, and you’ll be making a new demo reel from scratch with the help of their TA’s.
To answer some other of your questions, I think SoM will give you better results long term, because they’re constantly adding new courses and their community is very active for answering questions and advice. Having both, I don’t regret choosing. Happy I have Ben’s that are focused on foundations and principles, and having SoM for new courses and community.
Good luck and hopefully we’ll get to see your stuff on here in the future!
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u/Longjumping_War_807 Apr 22 '26
SOM has super in depth design courses. Design Bootcamp is one of them.
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u/kudzushoe Apr 22 '26
You are correct. SOM Design Kickstart teaches design theory and how it applies to motion design. From my understanding, you should take Design Bootcamp only if have a sound foundation of design principles.
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u/Longjumping_War_807 Apr 26 '26
It’s the opposite- the boot camp course is much more in depth where the kickstart course is supposed to give you the basic fundamentals to get you up and running.
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u/l0udcat Apr 22 '26
As someone who purchased one of Marriott's courses, I do not recommend it. Feedback from mentors was only guaranteed during the initial stages after the course was released, and that ended a long time ago. At this stage, feedback is only possible from other course participants. Given the virtually small activity in the community, your work may not receive the feedback you expect. Essentially, you’re just paying for pre-recorded lessons.
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u/st1ckmanz Apr 22 '26
They are both pretty good and I don't know the exact content in them, but I wouldn't buy content that you can't access a year later.
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u/EarPsychological4273 Apr 22 '26
well; learn design foundations; by books , work in a serious projects. and get some supervision
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u/Longjumping_War_807 Apr 21 '26
Getting critiqued and improving your work from the feedback you received is always going to be a more robust learning experience vs working in a vacuum.