What do the movies The Princess and the Frog and The Iron Giant have in common? Beside both being relatively old (one released in 2009 and the other released in 1999), they are both animated in two dimensions.
The new SpongeBob SquarePants Movie coming out Feb. 6 is using two-dimensional animation for the underwater scenes and computer-generated imagery for the above-water scenes, despite the 2004 SpongeBob movie and popular television show not using any CGI. Using CGI not only disrupts the continuity of the above-water scenes in the 2004 Spongebob film and the television show, but puts off longtime fans of the series with the new character design.
2D animation is a process by which the artist hand-draws every frame of a film. The frames are then placed on clear plastic sheets called “cels.” Each of the cels is then placed on a hand-painted background. As many as 24 cels can make up one frame in a 2D-animated picture.
Unlike 2D animation, CGI animation is created with computers.When the figure is created, animators can change the facial expressions, body positions and lighting very easily, unlike with 2D.
Filmmakers have been leaning toward using CGI because of its convenience and speed. Although CGI is easier, 2D is a traditional animation method and should not be cast off the wayside.
The decline of 2D-animated films has only accelerated throughout the 2010s. The last 2D movie Disney released was Winnie the Pooh in 2011, and the movie only made around $30 million across the globe. This may seem like a lot, but the movie Disney released before it was Tangled, which made around $590 million. Tangled was made using CGI to look more modern.
Using CGI in the new SpongeBob film feels odd not only because the characters have never been shown that way, but also because it seems to be a careless ploy for the attention of kids who didn’t grow up watching the classic cartoons.