Domestika - Online courses

I’ve bought 11 courses. I would get excited to see them on Facebook ads. I’ve been too busy to even do the courses. I watched the first one more than actually took it. Figured I could get back to it when time permitted. When I finally found some time this week to sit down and start a course, the whole setup seemed different. I guess they’ve changed the app in the weeks I’ve been otherwise occupied. Now none of my courses play right on my iPad Pro. They start and then they go off track and drag. I’m using the latest app version, so that’s not the problem. I’m gonna want my money back if I can’t figure out how to access what I paid for. I won’t buy any more courses until then, either. What’s gonna happen, if Domestika can’t get it together, is someone will come and do what they’ve done here better. I love the concept, the brightly lit videos and the variety of topics and artists! But not the frustration. I’ve also been bothered by the very poor translations from Spanish to English. So, I’ve tried to avoid the Spanish language courses and opt for the few in English. Get it together, please, Domestika! I want to LOVE you, not feel regret that I ever saw you go by in my Facebook feed.

Man, Domestika is awesome. TLDR; the material is better than anything else out there at the price point, and more professionally presented to boot. For context to this review, I’m a native English speaker with a pretty loose grasp of Spanish (ie., not enough to follow a conversation but maybe enough to know when a word has been obviously translated incorrectly in closed captions). Almost all the courses I’ve purchased are in Spanish (some in Portuguese). I was reluctant to purchase courses when I knew I’d need to follow along with translated captions, since I thought not being able to focus entirely on the on screen instruction might slow my uptake of the material. I’m glad I went ahead and took the plunge on that first course, ‘cause I’m hooked. While I do need to occasionally mentally re-translate the captions - eg., “animar” gets auto-translated to “cheer up” rather than the context-appropriate “animate” - this isn’t the fault of the instructors or Domestika, but a translation algorithm, and it’s not a barrier to learning. The instructors are phenomenal. I’m focusing on courses in hand drawn animation, composition, and character design, and the material and the delivery of it has all been totally spectacular. You can find courses on other websites that are in English and cost the same, but the quality of the instruction just isn’t on par with what’s on Domestika. This fact has even prompted me to revisit learning conversational Spanish using Duolingo, in hopes that eventually I’ll be able to absorb the material without the distraction of the captions.

Are you feeling stuck? You just want to get your creative juices flowing but you lack the energy? Here’s what I have done and it might work for you too. 😃 I have bought multiple Domestika courses in several categories and have them queued in my app; stored and ready for me to reach into any time I’m in the mood to open my mind up, see something new I’ve never seen before or review something that really made me think. My problem is that I have so many demands on me outside of my creative work. I often discover that when I finally have the TIME to work on some of MY OWN PERSONAL PROJECTS... I lack the inspiration, energy or the motivation to actually do the work! 😫 When this happens, I go through my courses, pick one that intrigues me at that moment, watch one segment, and in just a few minutes I’m suddenly ready to go out and put my creative resources to work, express myself, tell the world who I am, make my own personal difference! It’s like a mini creative warm up hack that gets me off the preverbal fence and out into that beautiful blooming field! I LOVE these courses. I love meeting these wonderful people who have been doing work that changes and inspires the world, and are willing to share what they know with me... a total stranger, 💕 But they don’t feel like strangers anymore, they feel like my friends and mentors, and I’m so grateful for the amazing work they do that has come into my world, and made me a part of a much larger community of people getting things done and making joy happen!