With the decreasing attention span of people, visual storytelling has become a vital part of communication, marketing, and entertainment. Today, motion graphic design is the sole creative force behind any eye-catching advertisement, explainer video, or animated UI transition. However, as the demand for immersive content continues to rise, so does the need for motion graphic design software, which could turn concepts into reality with precision.Hence, many programs have been designed to fulfill artists' needs, but the only difficulty that remains is choosing a suitable one since each tool contains distinct strengths. To address this challenge, the guide narrows down leading motion graphics software with their pricing, helping you pick one that aligns with your budget.Part 1. What is Motion Graphic Design?This creative discipline is also known as motion design, which combines animation techniques with graphic principles aiming to bring status visuals to life. Motion graphics is a technique that emerged in the mid-20th century and transformed the graphic design discipline, primarily labeled as "graphic with movement." Notably, it uses images, shapes, text, and countless other graphic elements to convey stories and messages engagingly.For this purpose, motion graphics programs have been developed for the media and design sector. Individuals from the design niche often use this technique for explainer videos, advertisement creation, user interface design, and television title sequence production. Unlike traditional animation, it focuses on character development, storytelling, and simplifying complex information. Part 2. The 7 Best Motion Graphics Programs in 2025Officially, motion graphics debuted in the 1940s by Oskar Fischinger and Norman McLaren and continued to evolve to achieve its current shape. Instead of hand drawing and other manual techniques, now, there is advanced software with unique features, some of which are explained next: 1. Adobe After EffectsSo far, the leading motion design software is Adobe After Effects, which creates stunning motion graphics and animates characters or logos. It has a comprehensive timeline to precisely animate objects using keyframes, masks, and shape layers. Besides, the software lets users integrate Cinema 4D lite directly to animate 3D objects and preview their models. Moreover, it has a wide range of built-in effects libraries to enhance motion graphics via blur and distortion effects.Pricing PlansMonthly: $34.49Yearly: $22.99/billed monthly Yearly: $263.88/billed upfront 2. Cinema 4DIt is basically a 3D animation and modeling software by Maxon, but its MoGraph Basics toolset proves it the best motion graphics software. Through it, artists can create everything smoothly, from flying logos to abstract effects, often using a single keyframe. For this reason, one can utilize its Delay Effector, which ensures the added effect doesn't start abruptly, regardless of its position, scale, and rotation.Pricing PlansYearly: $69.91/month Monthly: $109/month 3. HoudiniIt's another comprehensive software known for 3D modeling, animation, VFX, and motion graphics tools. Using this easy motion graphics software, you can access MOPS, a set of third-party digital assets, to bounce, rotate, and duplicate common motion effects. Moreover, it offers a KineFX system for keyframe animation, character animation, and rigging. Houdini even excels in simulating realistic physical phenomena that can be leveraged for motion graphics to create abstract visuals.Pricing PlansHoudini Core for Artists: $1340Houdini FX for Artists: $3195Houdini Engine for Artists: $4994. DaVinci ResolveAnother free motion graphics software is DaVinci Resolve, which contains tools for color correction, motion graphics, visual effects, and audio post-production, all together. Through Fusion's spine-based keyframe, it lets you create smooth and classy animation. Besides, it presents AI-driven tools like IntelliScript to create a timeline based on text. Despite that, using its AI-animated subtitle tool, you can animate spoken words in your imported audio.Pricing PlansDaVinci Resolve 20: Free DaVinci Resolve Studio: $2955. BlenderBlender is another free software for motion graphics that offers a range of constraints and modifiers to automate repetitive tasks, creating complex animation efficiently. Its Grease Pencil tool lets artists make 2D animations in 3D environments, which is suitable for various motion graphic scenarios. Additionally, its NLA editor allows the layering and blending of multiple animations, which proves beneficial when iterative adjustments are needed.Pricing PlansFree 6. Premiere ProWith Adobe’s umbrella, Premiere Pro is another motion graphic design software that is known for featuring hundreds of effects and transitions. Recently, it replaced the Essential Graphic Panel with the Graphics Template Panel, letting you manage and browse motion graphics templates from local folders. In addition, you can animate graphics elements in a timeline. Beyond that, users can leverage MOGRT-based transitions to add animations without starting from scratch.Pricing PlansMonthly: $34.49 Yearly: $22.99/month Yearly: $263.88/billed upfront 7. Unreal EngineFinally, this dedicated motion graphics software lets animators rig and animation directly with the Skeletal Mesh animation system and Control Rig. Through its motion design tools, one gets the flexibility to create animation shapes while having the capability to manipulate and replicate objects. Its standout feature is facilitating quicker feedback through rendering changes without any waiting time. Besides, it seamlessly integrated with MetaHuman to create realistic human characters for animation.Pricing Plans1 Unreal Engine Seat: $1203/year Pro Tips: The Best Render Farm for 3D Project RenderingUsing the above-discussed motion graphics programs would take time if you are not an expert or tech-savvy artist yet. However, the process may double the time when your system isn’t sufficient for rendering complex scenes. To overcome this challenge, you are advised to take assistance from Fox Renderfarm, a cloud computing service. It supports both GPU and CPU rendering and lets you configure their settings while submitting projects.Point to be noted, this render farm has an easy-to-use interface that doesn't require a learning curve while submitting and downloading projects, letting everyone use it seamlessly. With Hollywood-level production experience, it delivers quick service with security, confidentiality, and quality. By any chance, if you have any query, its 24/7 available award-winning customer support will respond to you within 15 minutes. Key FeaturesGuaranteed Security: While having ISO27001 Certification, Fox Renderfarm even provides Non-Disclosure Agreements to customers. Through this, it ensures your projects' rights and interests are intact, which means your projects' privacy and confidentiality are guaranteed.Multi-OS Support: This service is open to all, so whether you have Mac, Windows, or Linux, you can benefit from Fox Renderfarm. Besides OS, it supports almost all popular 3D software, plugins, and renderers, such as Blender, Unreal Engine, Cinema 4D, and RedShift.Immediate Render Speed: With Raysync's high transmission speed, it allows you to upload and download projects super quickly. In addition, it is known for firing thousands of rendering nodes while providing high availability and no waiting required for rendering projects.Affordable Rates: Being a new artist or student in the media field, you can apply for student or freelancer discounts, leaving budget constraints behind. Additionally, you can get a $25 free coupon with your first registration.API Supported: This service automatically detects the IT surrounding required and adjusts its cloud infrastructure accordingly to provide the best results. Furthermore, it supports production pipeline integration via API and massive SSD storage to boost your productivity.Part 3. Which Motion Graphics Software Should You Choose?After knowing multiple best and easy motion graphics software, you must be confused while making a choice. If this is the case, go through the following factors and see what makes a program choose: Define Type of Motion Graphics: First, clarify whether you want 2D animation, 3D motion graphics, or VFX for films and compositing. Then, decide if you need vector support or advanced rotoscoping, for which Adobe After effects and DaVinci Resolve are suitable, respectively.Evaluate Key Technical Features: Secondly, compare and evaluate key features a tool provides, such as keyframe controls, graph editor, or camera tracking. Additionally, you should check if the software supports plugins that you might need like Red Giant and so on.Compare Pricing Models & Your Budget: Following that, you must have a budget set for this motion graphic motion and, while considering it, conduct a cost-benefit analysis. As different tools have distinct features, they also differ regarding licensing and pricing models.Find Learning Resources: Now, look for learning resources online and communities available to help you when you are stuck in the process. Remember, After Effects and Blender have a huge community, while DaVinci Resolve is growing but active.Check Hardware Requirements: Before finalizing a tool, always look at your system resources and the software required. Normally, After Effects and Cinema 4D require heavy GPU and RAM, while Blender needs GPU rendering for optimized performance.ConclusionIn summary, motion graphic design is evolving and gaining the attention of the audience when well-crafted. Therefore, countless motion graphic design software have been launched, making the selection toughest. Hence, this guide has explored the best programs with their pricing and factors to help you decide on one based on your needs. Now, if you need resources for rendering because your system falls short of it, try Fox Renderfarm today.

Today, when eye-catching animation is holding the attention of nearly everyone, maintaining precision and continuity is crucial. Whether you create hand-drawn shots, full-length features, or digital storyboards, every frame counts, and continuity is what creates emotionally resonating characters. Moreover, animators rely on a variety of techniques, including onion skinning, to ensure lifelike character movements, consistent storytelling, and fluid transitions. During the early stages of motion planning, this technique helps animators bring sketches closer to reality and put life in static images. If you are a seasoned creator, you must realize the importance of onion skinning in animation, which has significantly evolved and influenced modern animation workflow. Hence, read this guide about onion skinning, its advantages, ways to enable it, and the best software that supports it.Part 1. What is Onion Skinning?It's an editing technique in animation that is used to manipulate and see frames of animation all at once. Through this, animators can conclude if the lines of each frame are precisely lined up, which is vital to producing an animation along with a smooth transition. In other words, onion layering is a technique that comes from 2D computer graphics, which allows animators to see adjacent frames simultaneously, letting them decide edits.Historically, the term derives from the comparison between the vegetable and editing technique, which was initially made by Walt Disney Studios animators in the 1920s. They observed that animation frames were drawn on semi-transparent sheets called cels, which were similar to an onion's multiple translucent layers of skin. Part 2. Benefits and Advantages of Onion SkinningAnimation involves creating the illusion of motion and transition between frames is where all happens. However, to achieve smooth motion, onion skinning plays a crucial role. Besides, there are countless benefits of this editing technique that are discussed below, and you must have a look: Ensure Fluid Transitions: Mainly, it allows animators to visualize the flow of movements between frames and fine-tune drawings by seeing the next or previous frames. Additionally, with its help, they can maintain consistency in motion, which is crucial in frame-by-frame animation, where slight errors can disrupt fluidity.Maintain Consistent Character Positioning: Secondly, it acts as a visual guide to help animators align parts, facial features, and backgrounds of animation elements. This way, they reduce the risk of visual inconsistencies and keep expressions or poses coherent, especially across fast-paced scenes.Enhance Creative Control: Since onion layering reveals how frames evolve, animators get more control over timing and pacing. Afterward, they can experiment with varied movements, including exaggerated expressions and faster action.Improves Time and Pace: This editing technique in animation helps animators measure the time and pace of elements more precisely by facilitating visual reference of action. Ultimately, they can craft more emotionally impactful, where even subtlest movements appear to be intentional.Facilitate Team Collaboration: Usually, complex animations are done in team settings, where multiple animators handle different parts of characters. There, onion skinning lets each member view what others have created in each frame and ensures a cohesive style of the entire animation.Part 3. Onion Skinning Transition from Traditional to Digital TechniquesIn traditional animation, the question “What is onion skinning?" was addressed differently since it was a manual practice. Back then, animators layer translucent paper or flipped through drawings on light tables when they had to compare frames and check smooth transitions were created. Although it proved an effective approach, it required a high degree of skill and time, especially while handling detailed sequences.As animation moved to digitalization, software started developing to replicate fundamental techniques and today, onion skinning techniques came built-in in animation programs. Now, artists can customize the number of frames, alter transparency, and adjust the color code of frames for clarity. This way, the spirit of traditional methods is preserved, and the process is streamlined with greater control all at once. Part 4. How to Enable Onion Skinning in 3D Animation?With digitization, traditional onion layering is now done through dedicated tools and software while the purpose is the same, ensuring a smooth transition. Anyhow, let us show you how to enable onion skinning in animation using varied modern software: Blender: To enable this editing technique in Blender, access Viewport Overlays and toggle the “Onion Skinning” option within the Grease Pencil tool. Through Grease Pencil properties, you can adjust Mode, Opacity, Keyframes Before/After, and Colors for customized settings.Autodesk Maya: Animators can enable this editing through Ghosting, for which they need to select the object and navigate to Animate > Ghost Selected. Additionally, they can create Motion Trails to enable onion skinning by heading to Animate > Create Editable Motion Trail.Cinema 4D: Using this software, animators need to expand the Character menu and select “Onion Skin” to activate it for Posr Morph setups or Character Objects. Plus, they can apply Ghosting Tag to display previous and next poses of objects and customize the frame range later. 3ds Max: On this software, you need to enable Trajectories to see onion layering, and for that, you should select your object first. Then, locate the Motion Panel and activate trajectories, which will immediately visualize the object's path over time. Houdini: If you need to enable onion skinning through Houdini, select the animated element and access “Motion FX View” to display motion trials. Plus, you can use “Animator Editor” within Ghosting Tools to view previous and upcoming frames for chosen elements. Tips for 3D Animators: Improve 3D Animation Rendering EfficiencyAchieving a smooth transition in animation is a time-consuming task, especially if you are a seasoned creator, and it would double if you render scenes through your local machine. To speed up rendering and just focus on enabling onion skinning, you should offload rendering to Fox Renderfarm. It is a cloud computing service that can render your complex project quickly without consuming your devices’ limited GPU or CPU resources, which delays processing.What makes this render farm stand out is its powerful CPU and GPU capabilities that you can opt for based on your project demands and get results in no time. Additionally, it facilitates automatic detection of the IT environment of the project so suitable cloud infrastructure service can be provided. Notably, as a seasoned creator or non-tech-savvy person, remember it has an intuitive interface that you will quickly adapt.Key Features3D Software Support: This online rendering service supports almost all mainstream 3D software, renderers, and plugins to provide high-quality rendering results. Hence, whether you use Blender, 3ds Max, Maya, or Cinema 4D, this service has support for all.High-Speed Rendering: While providing 99.9% uptime on Mac, Windows, and even Linux, this rendering service uses Raysync’s high-speed transfer. It helps users submit, render, and download their projects within the blink of an eye, no matter what the file size.Efficient Customer Support: Fox Renderfarm is known for the 24/7 available customer support technical team that ensures no customer query remains unaddressed.Highly Secured Process: Using a confidential private network, dedicated research servers, and bank-grade security ensures your project security. Moreover, it is an ISO27001-compliant and TPN-accredited vendor that ensures secure data transmission via a proprietary protocol.Hollywood-Level Expertise: Along with having massive SSD storage for high performance, it has experience working with Hollywood-level production houses. Among its famous projects is Ne Zha 2, which is still up in cinemas due to catchy animation and fluid motions of complex scenes.ConclusionIn summary, onion skinning has been proven a vital editing technique to ensure smooth transition ever since it evolved from traditional layering. Hence, this guide has covered in-depth details on it, from basics to benefits, transformation, popular software, and enabling onion layering through dedicated tools. However, if you need to just focus on achieving a smooth transition, you should offload the rendering headache to Fox Renderfarm and get quality results.

No doubt, it's an era of catchy animation that keeps the audience hooked, and everyone wonders "how it moves" rather than "what moves." In the animation realm, two foundational principles are ruling that transform stiff and mechanical animation into fluid, thorough & overlapping action. They are beyond technical tricks and considered storytelling tools, which animators adopt to make their character movements feel organic and emotionally resonate.Now, whether you are new to 2D, 3D, or game development, mastering these techniques is vital to making your name as an animator. Hence, read this article about follow through and overlapping to perfect your movement. Upon reading, you will master its basic steps of creation and implementation, along with some tips and common challenges to avoid.Part 1. What is Follow Through and Overlapping Action?These are two fundamental principles in animation, which enhance the fluidity and realism of movement upon simulating the effect of physics on animated characters. These concepts were derived from the 1981 book The Illusion of Life: Disney Animation by animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston. Specifically, Follow Through means the continuation of movements in an object's or characters' parts right after the main body stops moving.For instance, when characters stop moving, their clothes or accessories continue to move for a while until they get settled. Conversely, overlapping action refers to the offsets in timing between two parts of characters, which shows that not all parts/components of characters move at once. Count that example when a character raises their arm and their shoulder starts moving first, then the upper arm followed by forearm and hand. Part 2. Basic Steps to Create Follow Through and Overlapping ActionMastering concepts of these animation principles isn't enough; the real game starts with observation and intention. Hence, below are some basic steps to make your motion more realistic and fluid with follow through and overlapping action:Figure Out Secondary Elements: First off, you need to identify characters and objects’ parts that need overlapping or follow through. These could be hair, clothing, ears, loose materials, and limbs that don’t lead movements.Establish & Adjust Main Actions: Next, start animating primary motions like running, turning overheads, and even jumping. Through this, it forms a Base action which will later provide grounds for other actions.Insert Delay in Secondary Motion: Now, as the main action is added, introduce a slight delta in secondary elements. Also, ensure that these parts can't move at the same time as the body; instead, they move in reaction and take slight time to settle.Embed Arcs & Flow: Then, try to make the secondary elements’ movement follow naturally, for which you can bring curved paths (arcs). As straight movements tend to feel stiff, arcs can maintain smooth and organic flow, ensuring follow through animation.Utilize the "Follow Through Principle: When the main action stops, secondary parts continue to move briefly, which adds realism and visual interest. Hence, you are advised to make the characters' hands wiggle slightly even after the arm stops moving.Refine Timing & Spacing: Moving towards the end, you can adjust the timing between secondary and primary actions to process everything systemically. Besides, you should bring polished ease in and out of transitions since a sudden stop and start can break the movement illusion.Part 3. Implementation of Follow Through and Overlapping in 3D AnimationUpon knowing the basic steps of creating follow through & overlapping action, it's time to implement these principles in 3D animation. It's just beyond spacing and timing adjustments, meaning you need a deeper understanding of characters' movement and physical forces. Hence, look into the following detailed insights about the implementation of these concepts that you can practically apply in 3D environments: 1. Character Rigging Before actually animating, your characters should be rigged with precise bones, joints, and controllers to ensure the right motion. This process enables dynamic movements by adding controllers to body parts like arms, hair, and even accessories. Consider Elsa's cape and hair movements in the Frozen movie as an example that continues flowing even after her body stops. These are perfect examples of cloth simulation and the other two principles achieved through rigging.2. Animating with Spline and KeyframeNow, use keyframe animation to define main actions including characters' primary movements and body movements like running or jumping. Then, incorporate a spline curve using Blender or Maya software, which will control how objects move between keyframes. As an example, watch Woody in Toy Story when he throws his lasso, depicting his arms and hand movements are keyframed. Then, the lasso is animated separately, showing a slight delay, which gives the lasso enough time to follow through.3. Adding Follow Through The follow through animation in 3D requires more attention when it comes to secondary parts of the body. To simulate it, clothing and accessories are rigged to act naturally with momentum. Conversely, non-simulated elements are manually animated to have follow-through. For instance, in The Incredibles movie, when Dash runs and stops abruptly, his cape and hair continue to move, illustrating follow-through along with cloth simulation.4. Simulating Realistic Overlapping Action To implement overlapping action animation, you must precisely adjust laying or movements and timings. In this regard, you can adopt multiple layers of animation and set each part to not start and stop moving simultaneously. Here, consider the Spider-Man movie as an example, where the main character's movements are layered with multiple types of overlapping actions when he swings through the city.5. Refining with Physics SimulationLastly, to achieve accurate animation principles, you need to refine physics-based simulations, including cloth and hair simulations. In this regard, you can use Maya's nCloth tool for cloth to flow naturally and Blender's Hair Dynamics tool to let hairs move with gravity. For this, watch Brave movie as an example, where Merida's long hair is flowing with hair simulation and doesn't move in sync with her hands.Tips for 3D Animators: Improve 3D Animation Rendering EfficiencySuppose you have added long hair, flowing clothes, and accessories to your 3D characters. Plus, you have rigged them to move accurately with the follow through and overlapping action animation techniques. However, just got to know that rendering this motion requires extreme resources that your local machine would lack. If that happens, even in different scenarios, offload this task through Fox Renderfarm, which speeds up the process while maintaining animation quality.It's a cloud render farm service that can render your 3D animation project without using your local machine resources and consuming much time. Since it supports almost all 3D software, plugins, and renderers, you should focus on just animating while leaving the hassle of GPU or CPU rendering on it. Notably, it has an intuitive interface that means no learning curve is required to upload and download animation projects.Key FeaturesImmediate Render: Through Raysync’s high-speed transmission, you will witness quicker speed than ever for uploading and downloading projects. Additionally, it fires up thousands of rendering nodes, it immediately renders your projects with high availability and no waiting guaranteed.Multi-OS Support: Fox Renderfarm service can run on Windows, Linux, and Mac with over 99% runtime, meaning streamlined workflow no matter what your device. Despite that, it detects the IT environment of projects to match its cloud infrastructure and delivers the best results.Massive SSD Storage: This service provides high-performance SSD storage that can keep your project file on the cloud no matter how heavy it is. Additionally, it facilitates the integration of API through the production pipeline, all with the aim of maximizing your productivity.Discounted Pricing Plans: Offloading rendering to Fox Renderfarm doesn't mean spending a lot and going beyond budget. The service provides freelancers, educationists, and first recharge discounts that you can avail of accordingly.High-End Security: While being a TPN-Accredited Vendor and ISO27001 certified service, it guarantees your project security. In addition, it facilitates a non-disclosure agreement to clear your doubts regarding project confidentiality.Part 4. Common Pitfalls to AvoidWhile follow through and overlapping action are crucial foundations for fluid animation, there are several difficulties an animator can face; a few are mentioned next: Lack of Precise Timing: One of the most common mistakes animators make is improper timing when applying these two key principles. They delay reactions or sometimes add too quick ones, which may cause a loss of animations' realism; hence it is advised to pay attention to secondary actions' timings.Ignoring Secondary Animation: Sometimes, animators focus on primary actions while forgetting secondary ones, leading to stiff animation that lacks realism. Thus, being an animator, you should ensure secondary actions are not only present but exaggerated enough to be noted.Overusing Follow Through: As the shortage of something causes the uncanny effect, so does the overuse, which makes animation feel overly exaggerated, even distracting. Therefore, use follow-through animation selectively, avoiding mistakes made in the movie Shrek, where the character's belly and ears are exaggerated in movements.Neglecting Characters Weight: Following the above mistake, ensure characters' movements are governed by principles of weight and inertia; otherwise, it may lead to floating and lifeless animations. You can follow the footsteps of the Kung Fu Panda movie, where Po's body movements reflect his weight since animation principles are slower.Not Testing Different Angles: Animating a single viewpoint in animation actions that looks perfect from one angle but distorted from another. That's why you are suggested to rest animations from buried angles and ensure a consistent look from all viewpoints.ConclusionIn short, follow through & overlapping action are core principles of animation, bringing realism to characters and objects when accurately used in 3D animation. This article highlighted the basics, creation steps, implementation, and pitfalls to guide you toward achieving perfect animation. Now, if you want to start your animation journey, look into the Fox Renderfarm cloud rendering service to offload complex scenes and streamline workflow efficiently.