Why 2D Animation HAD To Die

When Disney released Chicken Little into theaters, and it failed, it seemed like the sky was falling for the House of Mouse. A few years later Disney would put out their final films using the traditional 2D Animation style and move completely into CG Animation. With studios like Pixar and Dreamworks leading the way, Disney had to figure out a way to stay in the game. Though after eventually finding their footing, Disney is now beginning to revert back to it's 2D Animation style, at least partially.

SOURCES

[deznkhata]

Studio ghibli is proof that 2d animation is still relevant, it's a style that shouldn't be forgotten entirely but embraced for it's uniqueness

[velociraptoryou]

2D hand-drawn animation must *never* go extinct, I’m a firm believer in that.

[SpiritaeliaWolf]

2D animation is like the worlds greatest magic trick. Everything you see, every frame, every blink, movement of hair, everything, was a concious decision made and physically created by the artist. They breathe life into a drawn image, and it’s incredible. 3D does this too, I guess, but 2D is much more personal, hands on, and special. It baffles my mind why some people don’t respect it even half as much as myself.

[KirbyLinkACW]

It's worth noting that 2D animation really only fell out in North America. Even putting aside Japanese studios like Studio Ghibli, 2D animation is still going strong in much of the rest of the world. Ireland, France, Spain and even Russia have all had award winning 2D animated films in recent years. The North American company GKIDS literally exists to collect these films from all around the world and present them to America in their purest form.

[Zombiesnyder]

Just because Disney wants something to die

It doesn't mean it has to

[uchihabomber]

Man 2D Disney was so great plus I’ve always felt that it gave so much more personality too

[korliyon]

Both 2D and 3D are great, but in my opinion, there's something magical in 2D that can't be imitated in 3D. Perhaps it's because 3D is saturated with details and shadowing, while the power of 2D lies in its simplicity.

[AlexanderSuppermann]

2D animation is not dead. It's alive. And it always will be

[seandunham]

This video completely ignores (hopefully not intentionally!) the darker reason that 3D was embraced so quickly and whole-heartedly by the corporations. Greed. Traditional animators had many long held union benefits and standards from their almost century long existence. 3D animators, however, were not under those protections and could be worked harder and longer for less money. You only have to look at events like the closing of Rhythm & Hues Studios, who completed the award winning Life of Pi and then immediately went bankrupt, to see how the new animators get treated.

[nuggetsnicole]

The emotions in the faces of those 2D characters is unmatched. As a 90s kid I miss it dearly

[ronoc]

I think Cuphead did a great job of revitalising interest in 2D cel animation, but also showing it can still find new uses. And even the online space has an army of animators regularly getting millions of views a month.

[QBG]

The French animation studio Fortiche has put Disney/Pixar (and every other animation studio) to absolute shame with their series, Arcane. It combines the best modern tools of 3D animation with hand-painted 2D details on top of the models, making an utterly breathtaking visual feast that surpasses anything I've seen outside of Japanese masterworks like Redline and Akira.

On top of setting a new high bar for artistic integrity in animation, it also sets new high bars for storytelling in adult animation and the integration of orchestral score and featured musical set pieces. Not since Cowboy Bebop have I seen a series that so thoughtfully melds visual art, music and story into something that's much, much deeper than the sum of its parts.

Seriously, if you haven't seen Arcane yet, do yourself a favor and make it the next thing you watch. Just be sure to _pay attention._ A great deal of the story's nuance is communicated through the emotive details on characters' faces, so if you're dicking around on your phone, you're missing half the plot. Yes, the animation is _that_ good.

[PoolKid]

The fact that computer animation can be made faster and cheaper than 2D animation is both its strength and its weakness. It can be made faster and cheaper, but that means that less planning and less effort has to go into them. 2D animated movies were such a big investment that the script, story, characters, casting, etc. all had to be spot on to ensure a return on investment. Now, they can pump out crap without giving it a second thought.

[extra]

The massive popularity of Anime proves that 2D animation is far from dead and in fact thriving and I’m someone that RARELY watches them (like 1 or 2 a year). I’m often more impressed by the dynamic frame by frame animated scenes and stories of anime than those present in the loads of generic 3D animated movie coming out in the west these days. There’s so much style that can’t be translated into 3D models the way they can be portrayed in 2D. It’s why most ppl complain when anime incorporates CGI models. The 2 can coexist, its only seen as outdated in the west bc Disney says so and screw what they say, everything THEY touch dies and they’re collapsing further every day

[butterskutz]

It's kinda hard for me to miss 2D when 2D is still alive today in the indie circuit. So many phenomenal animations on YouTube for example are 2D, kept alive by people who love the medium and keep it alive.
So, no, I don't miss it. I love it, and am glad to still see it today <3

[ClawBeastProductions]

I love 2D Animation, Disney should bring it back, I have been amazed at how amazing Anime is and how beautifully animated it is.

[batman]

I was born in 1995, which means I was too young to see most of the Disney animated films in theaters, and only later discovered them on VHS. I do remember seeing Tarzan and The Emperor’s New Groove, which were some of the last 2D films produced. After that, my generation was only served digital animated films like Shrek, which were good in their own way, but I wish 2D had survived.

[minixlemonade]

The amount of people who don’t differentiate or know the difference between cel animation and 2d digital is incredibly disheartening

[Darthtanos]

i have always preferred 2d hand drawn animation. there's just something there that has never once been captured by 3d or computerized 2d animation, and it's really hard to put into words what it is. it's something about the way everything moves that is just so different and just hits different with elite 2d hand drawn. feels like there's more life in it somehow.

[CaptainMarvelsSon]

Once Upon a Studio did an outstanding job of mixing the characters as they originally were designed instead of adding extra shading to the 2D characters to make them look more modern or dumbing down the 3D. What helped it feel like the characters belonged together was the use of shadows while in the real-world environment.