OpenToonz

Overview

OpenToonz (Toonz for short) is a free, open-source 2D animation software designed for professional animation production. It provides vector/bitmap drawing, frame animation, effects, and compositing capabilities, suitable for film, television, and educational content. Developed by Digital Video S.p.A. in Italy (first released in 1993), it was open-sourced in 2016 and is maintained by DWANGO Co., Ltd., hosted on opentoonz.github.io and GitHub. It supports Linux, Windows, and macOS and is licensed under the BSD-3-Clause license. OpenToonz emphasizes frame animation and professional workflows and has been used by Studio Ghibli for scanning, colorizing, and compositing in works such as Spirited Away. It uses a custom TZP/TLV format and supports scan import, skeletal animation, and particle effects.

History and Development

• Origins:
  • 1993: Digital Video S.p.A. created Toonz as a commercial 2D animation software for Italian animation studios.
  • 2000s: A custom version by Studio Ghibli was used for scanning and compositing in Spirited Away (2001) and Howl's Moving Castle (2004).
• Development:
  • 2005: Toonz 5.0 was released, supporting multi-layered animation and scanning tools.
  • 2015: Toonz 7.0 introduced skeletal deformation and ECMAScript scripting.
  • March 19, 2016: Open-sourced as OpenToonz, maintained by DWANGO, with a GPL version available.
  • 2017: Version 1.1.0 updated the UI and rendering engine.
  • 2021: Version 1.4.0 added Morevna Edition features (such as a Krita-like assistant and a color picker).
  • 2025: Version 1.7.1 was released, updating audio format support, GPU rendering, and effects (such as Floor Bump FX Iwa and Flow FX series).
• Community and Support:
  • Maintained by DWANGO and the community, hosted on GitHub and ReadTheDocs.
  • Supports English/Japanese/Chinese; documentation includes a user manual and forum.
  • Reddit users describe OpenToonz as "the free successor to the Ghibli legacy."
• Open Source License:
  • BSD-3-Clause.

Key Features

OpenToonz, with its core focus on frame-by-frame animation, professional effects, and Ghibli optimization, is ideal for 2D animation production. Here are its key features:

1. Frame-by-Frame Animation and Scanning
   • Supports frame-by-frame drawing, scan import (GTS tools, customized for Ghibli), and automatic line art cleanup.
2. Effects and Compositing
   • 200+ effects (such as Glare FX, Floor Bump FX Iwa, Flow FX series), particle systems, and 3D stereoscopic rendering.
3. Multi-Layer Timeline
   • Multi-layer timeline, supporting 50+ layers, keyframe editing, and Xsheet export.
4. Rendering and Export
   • Supports MP4/SVG/GIF/PSD, HDR rendering, and Dolby Cinema compatibility.
5. Hardware Compatibility
   • Minimum: 2 GHz CPU, 4 GB RAM, OpenGL 3.3.
6. Security and Privacy
   • Open Source BSD: Transparent source code.
7. Development Support
   • Lua Scripting: Custom effects.

Advantages and Limitations

Advantages

• Ghibli Legacy: Professional scanning and compositing, superior to Synfig's vector focus.
• Open Source and Free: BSD license, cross-platform.
• Rich Effects: 200+ effects, superior to Krita's animations.
• Community Support: Active GitHub, abundant tutorials.

Limitations

• Learning Curve: Steep professional interface, requires 3-5 hours to learn.
• Resource Consumption: 2-4 GB RAM, superior to Adobe Animate but inferior to Synfig.
• Comparison Tools:
  • Synfig Studio: High vector efficiency.
  • Blender: All-around 3D.

Summary

OpenToonz is a free and open-source 2D animation software. Version 1.7.1 (updated in 2025) is based on Qt 5, supports frame animation, scan import, and 200+ effects, making it suitable for professional animation production. Compared to Synfig Studio (vector efficiency) and Blender (all-around 3D), OpenToonz excels in Ghibli optimization and effects, but has a steep learning curve.