OpenToonz

If you're looking for a 2D animation software but you don't want to spend a lot of money on an expensive subscription, you should try OpenToonz.

As you probably know, OpenToonz is based on the software used by the famous Studio Ghibli. It is a powerful hand-drawn animation, but the Morevna Project improved it by adding it new features that make the creative process much easier for the independent artist. To give you an analogy think about it as a BMW Alpina vs the standard BMW or I could say it is the DarkAudacity vs the Audacity - if you used any of them.

While the original project is great, the Morevna Edition comes with some extra things that I personally find very useful.

I will mention only three of them

First, the Morevna team integrated MyPaint brushes, which gives you a more natural (not sure if this is the correct word) feel when you want to draw something. Second, they also added Assistant Guides, which are excellent if you need to draw perfect parallel or perspective lines without struggling for hours. Third, a great addition is the advanced color selector, which is very helpful if need to choose better color harmonies for your characters.

Some other features

One of the best things about OpenToonz is the indexed color palettes. If you have a sequence of drawings and decide to change a color, you can edit the palette and it updates automatically across all all of them. The result is that you will save a lot of time.

You can also work with vector and bitmap tools, and if you want to automate some repetitive actions, you can also use a scripting engine. For those who like more complex movements, the motion tweening and bone system (with IK support) are amazing. You can even add particle systems for special effects, which will make your animation look more cinematic.

Conclusion

OpenToonz (the Morevna Edition listed on dAppCDN) is a professional studio software. It is free, open-source, cross-platform and incredibly powerful. Not to mention that it also runs on Windows, macOS and Linux. I have to be honest and if you are a beginner, the learning curve might IS a bit steep, but once you get used to it, you will realize that you don't need an expensive software or a subscription to create a high-quality animation. If you like it, I would highly recommend a donation so that the Morevna team can come up with better versions in the future.

Release build (v1.4.0-morevna) Latest v1.4.0-morevna move cursormanager into toonzqt