Uploaded January 2020 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
In this video I try tracing a static drawing to see if it can help simplify the animation process. (Good news everyone: It does!). It's not what I originally expected to do for this Futurama project, but it's a way to get a consistent look for the characters. But then you can add to the static drawing, with smaller animations and use of the plastic tool, to bring the images to life. It also means I'll be able to work quicker with this project and possibly even finish it!
The process I followed was:
Trace:
- I watched some clips on YouTube, till I found a full length image of the character I wanted (In this case, Fry).
- I took a screenshot using the Print Screen key, trimmed it in Windows photo viewer & saved it.
- I dragged it into OpenToonz and chose Import. This created a new column
- I enlarged the images using the animate tool and locked the column
- I created a new Toonz Raster level and traced the drawing
Colouring:
- I created a new colour swatch
- I used the RGB colour picker (R key) to select the colour in an area
- I filled in using this colour.
Animating the eyes/mouth
- Extend the drawing by 1 frame
- Select the 2nd, extended frame
- Right click on it and choose Duplicate - or just press the D key
- Erase the parts you don't want (Note, you can choose to erase just lines, areas or both from the context toolbar)
- Draw in the new parts
Animating the body using the Plastic Tool
- Select the main drawing's first frame
- Choose the Plastic Tool from the tool list
- On the toolbar, click Create Mesh
- I extended the Mesh Margin size from 5 to 20, so that all of the frames will be covered (without changing the size, some of the mouth shapes could fall outside it)
- I then built the skeleton and checked if it was correct by changing to Animate mode, to test it.
- I used the Paint Rigid option to paint the legs so that they didn't move when animating the body, testing in Animate mode as I went
- After changing to Animate mode, on frame 1 I right clicked on a bone and chose "Set Global Rest Key". This adds a key with the skeleton in their 1st default position
- I then moved to a frame and either:
- right clicked on a bone and chose "Set Global Key" to add another key at the current location, so there was no movement
- or moved the relevant bone to create a key and a movement from the previous key
I then added a background image, blurred it slightly and exported the animation.
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Subscribe for regular new videos: youtube.com/c/DarrenTAnims?sub_confirmation=1
Follow me on Twitter for previews of upcoming tutorials, animations and behind the scenes:
twitter.com/DarrenTAnims
Join me at my facebook page, to discuss anything OpenToonz and animation:
fb.me/DarrenTAnims
Catch me on my occasional animation streams on Twitch:
twitch.tv/DarrenTAnims
--------------------------------------------------------------
My full list of tutorials, including a beginners guide to getting started with OpenToonz:
youtube.com/watch?v=saDNGVj46Xc&list=PL-kyUCiIIVS7LQ5U1dUIJDrYRLiQzXTP_
Chat with OpenToonz animators & developers in an OpenToonz-specific discord:
discord.gg/t8dZ5Ft
outro music courtesy of Voltaire: youtube.com/user/VoltaireMusicPage
In this video I try tracing a static drawing to see if it can help simplify the animation process. (Good news everyone: It does!). It's not what I originally expected to do for this Futurama project, but it's a way to get a consistent look for the characters. But then you can add to the static drawing, with smaller animations and use of the plastic tool, to bring the images to life. It also means I'll be able to work quicker with this project and possibly even finish it!
The process I followed was:
Trace:
- I watched some clips on YouTube, till I found a full length image of the character I wanted (In this case, Fry).
- I took a screenshot using the Print Screen key, trimmed it in Windows photo viewer & saved it.
- I dragged it into OpenToonz and chose Import. This created a new column
- I enlarged the images using the animate tool and locked the column
- I created a new Toonz Raster level and traced the drawing
Colouring:
- I created a new colour swatch
- I used the RGB colour picker (R key) to select the colour in an area
- I filled in using this colour.
Animating the eyes/mouth
- Extend the drawing by 1 frame
- Select the 2nd, extended frame
- Right click on it and choose Duplicate - or just press the D key
- Erase the parts you don't want (Note, you can choose to erase just lines, areas or both from the context toolbar)
- Draw in the new parts
Animating the body using the Plastic Tool
- Select the main drawing's first frame
- Choose the Plastic Tool from the tool list
- On the toolbar, click Create Mesh
- I extended the Mesh Margin size from 5 to 20, so that all of the frames will be covered (without changing the size, some of the mouth shapes could fall outside it)
- I then built the skeleton and checked if it was correct by changing to Animate mode, to test it.
- I used the Paint Rigid option to paint the legs so that they didn't move when animating the body, testing in Animate mode as I went
- After changing to Animate mode, on frame 1 I right clicked on a bone and chose "Set Global Rest Key". This adds a key with the skeleton in their 1st default position
- I then moved to a frame and either:
- right clicked on a bone and chose "Set Global Key" to add another key at the current location, so there was no movement
- or moved the relevant bone to create a key and a movement from the previous key
I then added a background image, blurred it slightly and exported the animation.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Subscribe for regular new videos: youtube.com/c/DarrenTAnims?sub_confirmation=1
Follow me on Twitter for previews of upcoming tutorials, animations and behind the scenes:
twitter.com/DarrenTAnims
Join me at my facebook page, to discuss anything OpenToonz and animation:
fb.me/DarrenTAnims
Catch me on my occasional animation streams on Twitch:
twitch.tv/DarrenTAnims
--------------------------------------------------------------
My full list of tutorials, including a beginners guide to getting started with OpenToonz:
youtube.com/watch?v=saDNGVj46Xc&list=PL-kyUCiIIVS7LQ5U1dUIJDrYRLiQzXTP_
Chat with OpenToonz animators & developers in an OpenToonz-specific discord:
discord.gg/t8dZ5Ft
outro music courtesy of Voltaire: youtube.com/user/VoltaireMusicPage
