Definitions

As a fellow animation addict, we thought that you might be interested in familiarising yourself with some of the lingo. The following is a glossary of terms commonly used within the wonderful world of animation. We hope it helps.

Background:
The scenery for an animated cartoon. Usually created on an art board with watercolours, these highly prized original works are photographed underneath the cels during production of a cartoon.

Cel:
The actual piece of material on which cartoon characters are rendered. The term cel is derived from ‘celluloid nitrate’, an early form of the material used in the animation industry until the mid-1940’s. Nowadays, each cel is a sheet of clear acetate, normally 10.5 x 12.5” (a twelve-field cel) or 16.5 x 13.5” (a sixteen-field cel) in size. Every movement of a character requires an individually hand-painted cel. By painting on transparent acetate, animators are able to create the illusion of life as characters move through the environment created by the background painting.

Cleanup:
An animation pencil drawing used in the refining of an animated movement. A reworking of the animator’s original rough pencil drawings, these ‘cleaner’ drawings feature much smoother line work. It’s these drawings which are transferred to the production cels.

Extremes:
These drawings are generally the beginning and the end points of a character’s specific movement. In-between drawings are placed between these two extremes to fill in the motion. Extremes are usually done by the lead animator or director of a production.

Full animation:
This is the oldest form of animation, using one cel for every one or two frames of film. It provides the best quality of movement, but because of its extreme cost is rarely used today, with the exception of occasional full-length feature films.

Genga/Douga:
One-of-a-kind original anime pencilled sketches used to create cels. With so much of today’s anime being computerised, Genga/Douga are considered like cels – both in quality and worth.

Hand-inked line work:
An early method of tracing line work from animation drawings by hand onto cels. This process was the only way of transferring line work until the ‘Xerox process’ was developed in 1960.

In-between:
The additional drawings needed to fill in the action ‘in-between’ the extremes.

Limited animation:
A way of reducing the amount of drawings and cels necessary to give an illusion of movement. Developed during the television era, this form of animation is much more cost-effective than ‘full animation’. Though limited animation greatly reduces the time to create an animation production, the resulting sequence contains less character movement and is not as pleasing to the eye.

Limited Edition cels:
A cel which is produced exclusively for the animation cel retail market. Limited Editions recreate classic moments from great cartoons, hand-painted using the same materials and techniques as were used in making the originals. Each is numbered and usually distributed in quantities limited to 750 and under.

As the great majority of original cels from the 1940’s, 50’s and 60’s are no longer in existence, Limited Edition cels allow collectors an unparalleled opportunity to enjoy some of the greatest moments in the history of animation.

Limited Edition etchings:
In order to create limited edition etchings, a studio-authorised artist etches or scrapes an image into a copper plate. This plate is then inked and pressed into high-quality acid-free rag paper to create the black outline of the character. Each piece is then meticulously hand-painted with watercolours to bring the image to life.Created in limited editions of 500, etchings make wonderful gifts and beautiful accent pieces for lovers of classic animated characters and films.

Limited Edition giclees:
Sometimes described as 'digital lithographs', giclees are created using extremely sophisticated computer equipment to create a reproduction virtually indistinguishable from the original.Most giclees start with an original painting or illustration in oil, watercolour, or charcoal. The original work is scanned and colour corrected under the supervision of the artist before being printed with a extremely high resolution giclee printer. From the French term for "spray of ink", giclee printers lay down millions of microscopic ink droplets with such precision that the images, colours, and subtle nuances of the original piece are reproduced with breathtaking accuracy and beauty.Giclees are created on high quality acid-free rag paper or on canvas, and are generally done in limited editions of no more than 750 pieces. They are often signed by the artist. Limited edition giclees are a beautiful addition to any home and any art collection.

Limited Edition hand-pulled lithographs:
Hand-pulled lithography is a time-honoured means of producing high quality fine art reproductions. Once the artist has painted the original work of art, skilled artisans create individual printing plates for each colour represented in the piece. Depending on the number of colours, there can be dozens or even hundreds of plates required.

Each plate depicts only that part of the piece which is to receive that colour. Paint is applied by hand to the first plate, and is pressed onto the paper with the use of historic presses dating back to the late 1800’s. Once the first colour has dried, the second plate is painted and applied. This painstaking process continues until all colours and all parts of the original image have been recreated. Hand-pulled lithographs are created on high quality acid-free rag paper, and are generally done in limited editions of no more than 750 pieces. They are often signed by the artist. The quality and artistic heritage of hand-pulled lithographs makes them central to many fine art collections.

Limited Edition serigraph cels:
Serigraph cels are created by silk screening each individual colour onto the acetate cel, one at a time. Each serigraph cel contains anything from 10 to 50 colours. This time-consuming process results in a beautiful piece of art which faithfully reproduces the colours and details of the original. Produced in limited editions of between 1000 and 7500, serigraph cels offer the most affordable entry into collecting animation fine art.

Model sheet:
A group of character drawings illustrating different poses, expressions and attitude of a cartoon character. These sheets are circulated to the animators to give a uniform look and feel to a character throughout a production.

Nitrate cel:
An early version of the animation cel made of celluloid nitrate, which proved to have flammable characteristics.

Original production cels:
Production cels are the one-of-a-kind original cels that were used in the creation of an animated film or television show. Each has been hand-painted by studio artists on a piece of acetate, and has been photographed over a background painting to create a frame of the finished production. Production cels are highly sought after by collectors, with very rare pieces from the early days of animation fetching prices in the tens, and even the hundreds of thousands of pounds.

Original production drawings:
Prior to the creation of cels, each character pose and action had to be drawn in pencil. Original drawings are very desirable for two main reasons. Many collectors prefer drawings because it is at this stage that the animators have really exercised their talents and brought the characters to life. Another appealing aspect of drawings is that they generally cost significantly less than a comparable production cel.

Peg holes:
A system of registration points on an animation drawing board and camera which correctly positions cels, backgrounds and drawings with other cels, backgrounds and drawings.

Promotional cel:
A piece of art created by an animation studio to showcase their star characters in ideal poses. Generally used for advertising or giveaways to VIP guests at the studios.

Rough pencil drawings:
An early attempt by animators to establish a proper and even flow of movement. The characteristic loose pencil lines would eventually be cleaned up and transferred to a cel. This is considered the purest work of an animator.

Settei/Settings:
Settei is what anime animators use to learn how to draw in the style of an anime show. Each animator gets a book of settei to learn from, but they are not pencilled pictures. They are simply duplicates of the original pencilled sketches.

Serigraph cels:
A mass-produced cel which is created by a mechanical silk-screen process.

Storyboard drawing:
A group of drawings used to lay out a storyline visually by animation directors. Each drawing highlights specific actions and dialogue of characters and is placed in sequence on giant boards. The art from these drawings is quite rough, but usually very expensive as it must successfully communicate the feelings and ideas which the director is trying to present.

Xerox process:
A process of transferring linework from animation drawings to cels photographically. Largely used in the animation industry since the early 1960’s.