Animate drawings with Pencil2D
Tutorial – Pencil2D
Pencil2D, an easy-to-use painting and 2D animation program, lets you create small animations quickly. Despite the simple user interface, you might need a little help getting started.
If you want a hand-drawn ball to drop elegantly from the ceiling in a YouTube video, Pencil2D [1] is the program for you. Thanks to this drawing program, artists can do more than just paint pretty comic figures, balls, or other objects on virtual paper; they can also animate these objects. If required, the tool imports bitmap images or photos for use as backgrounds.
Pencil2D is primarily intended for cartoon artists, but the software also lets you quickly create animated illustrations or diagrams. All you have to do is add a little of your own artistic talent. An impressive YouTube video [2] shows what professional animators have created with Pencil2D. The program is licensed under the GPLv2; the source code is available from GitHub [3].
Some distributions have Pencil2D in their repositories. Arch Linux users will find the tool in the pencil2d package in the Arch Users Repository (AUR). On current Fedora systems, you can fetch and install the package by typing:
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Kubuntu Focus Goes Ultra
The Kubuntu Focus team has upped the performance ante of its M2 and Zr laptops with the latest, greatest CPUs from Intel.
-
Linux Gamers May Soon See Less Mouse Lag in KDE Plasma
Gamers using KDE’s Plasma desktop have been suffering from a slight input delay in mouse movement that could lead to getting fragged.
-
Three Lines of Code Improve Linux Storage Performance
A developer changed three lines of code, giving Linux storage performance a 5% bump.
-
AUR Hit Again with Malicious Packages
Once again the Arch User Repository is plagued by a high volume of malicious packages.
-
Alpine Linux 3.24 Features Fresh Desktops and a Newer Kernel
If you're a fan of Alpine Linux, it's time to upgrade because the latest version has been released with KDE Plasma 6.6, Gnome 50, and Linux kernel 6.18 LTS.
-
EU Open Source Strategy Plays Key Role in Tech Sovereignty Package
Comprehensive measures adopted by the European Commission aim to reduce dependency on non-EU countries.
-
Linux Foundation Report Indicates AI Driving Tech Hiring
Within growing security and skills gaps, AI has been found to be a positive driving force behind tech hiring trends in Europe.
-
United Nations Open Source Portal Goes Live
A new open source portal seeks to coordinate and scale open source efforts across the United Nations system.
-
KDE Linux Drops AUR
KDE Linux developers have dropped the Arch User Repository from the build pipeline due to security concerns; other distributions should consider doing the same.
-
California May Exempt Linux from Its Age-Verification Law
After backlash from the Linux community, California may be backing off on its promise to force all operating systems to verify age, but one platform may still have to comply.