synfig

Why we included this project

Synfig Studio is a free, open-source 2D animation program built around vector and bitmap artwork. Instead of drawing every frame by hand, you set key positions on vector shapes and the software computes the in-between motion, with layers, filters, and parameter linking for assembling character puppets. The bone and skeleton distortion tools are especially useful for cutout animation from bitmap images. It runs on Windows, Linux, and macOS, and because it is actively maintained, it is a practical free, self-hosted alternative to commercial animation suites. Developers curious about how tweening, vector deformation, and animation interpolation are implemented in C++ will also find plenty to study here.