Generative AI for Cel-Animation: A Survey

Yunlong Tang, Junjia Guo, Pinxin Liu, Zhiyuan Wang, Hang Hua, Jia-Xing Zhong, Yunzhong Xiao, Chao Huang, Luchuan Song, Susan Liang, Yizhi Song, Liu He, Jing Bi, Mingqian Feng, Xinyang Li, Zeliang Zhang, Chenliang Xu; Proceedings of the IEEE/CVF International Conference on Computer Vision (ICCV) Workshops, 2025, pp. 3837-3850

Abstract

Traditional Celluloid (Cel) Animation production pipeline encompasses multiple essential steps, including storyboarding, layout design, keyframe animation, inbetweening, and colorization, which demand substantial manual effort, technical expertise, and significant time investment. These challenges have historically impeded the efficiency and scalability of Cel-Animation production. The rise of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI), encompassing large language models, multimodal models, and diffusion models, offers innovative solutions by automating tasks such as inbetween frame generation, colorization, and storyboard creation. This survey explores how GenAI integration is revolutionizing traditional animation workflows by lowering technical barriers, broadening accessibility for a wider range of creators through tools like AniDoc, ToonCrafter, and AniSora, and enabling artists to focus more on creative expression and artistic innovation. Despite its potential, challenges like visual consistency, stylistic coherence, and ethical considerations persist. Additionally, this paper explores future directions and advancements in AI-assisted animation.

Related Material

[pdf] [arXiv]
[bibtex]
@InProceedings{Tang_2025_ICCV, author = {Tang, Yunlong and Guo, Junjia and Liu, Pinxin and Wang, Zhiyuan and Hua, Hang and Zhong, Jia-Xing and Xiao, Yunzhong and Huang, Chao and Song, Luchuan and Liang, Susan and Song, Yizhi and He, Liu and Bi, Jing and Feng, Mingqian and Li, Xinyang and Zhang, Zeliang and Xu, Chenliang}, title = {Generative AI for Cel-Animation: A Survey}, booktitle = {Proceedings of the IEEE/CVF International Conference on Computer Vision (ICCV) Workshops}, month = {October}, year = {2025}, pages = {3837-3850} }