A lightweight, free, and open-source 2D frame-by-frame animation software designed for animators, designers, and game developers. Built with Electron and HTML5 Canvas.
Dolphin Animate replicates the classic, intuitive timeline workflow of Macromedia Flash & Adobe Animate without the heavy subscription fee or bloatware.
- 🎬 Classic Flash-Style Timeline:
- Frame Spanning (Exposure): Normal frames share vector data with their parent keyframe, preventing file bloat and redundant memory allocation.
- Standard Keybindings: Toggle keyframes with
F7(Insert Blank Keyframe), copy drawing withF6, and extend exposures easily usingF5.
- ✍️ Advanced Vector Brush & Pencil:
- Smooth Variable-Width Strokes: Real pressure sensitivity (Wacom/drawing tablet) or mouse-speed pressure simulation via the
perfect-freehandlibrary. - Auto-Smooth: Dynamically simplifies rough freehand drawings into clean Catmull-Rom Bezier curves.
- Thinning & Spacing controls: Prevent negative/out-of-bounds inputs, and enjoy zoom-corrected drawing consistency at any zoom level.
- Smooth Variable-Width Strokes: Real pressure sensitivity (Wacom/drawing tablet) or mouse-speed pressure simulation via the
- 🔄 Free Transform Overhaul:
- Scale, rotate, skew, and move selected vector strokes or groups.
- Set custom pivot points (anchor points) to define rotation and scale centers.
- 🛠️ Complete Toolset:
- Fill Tool: High-quality flood fill with gap closing and anti-aliasing.
- Eraser Tool: Intelligently splits and cuts vector lines.
- Shape primitives: Rectangles, Circles, and straight Lines.
- Motion Guide: Path-based guides for movement.
- 📦 Game Dev Export Options:
- Export as a Sprite Sheet (with full JSON metadata, perfect for Unity, Godot, Unreal, or web engines).
- Export as animated GIFs, PNG sequences, or MP4 videos.
To run the application locally in development mode:
- Clone the repository and navigate into it:
git clone https://github.com/Agony270313/Dolphin-Animate.git cd Dolphin-Animate - Install the dependencies:
npm install
- Run the development server:
npm run start
To package/build the production installer executable (.exe):
npm run build| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| V | Selection & Transform tool |
| B | Brush |
| P | Pencil |
| E | Eraser |
| G | Fill (Paint Bucket) |
| R | Rectangle |
| O | Oval (Circle) |
| L | Line |
| T | Text |
| A | Pen (Vector Anchor Path) |
| M | Motion Guide line |
| F5 | Extend exposure / Insert frame |
| F7 | Insert blank keyframe |
| F6 | Insert duplicate keyframe |
| Delete | Delete selected object(s) |
| Ctrl + Z | Undo |
| Ctrl + Y | Redo |
| Space / Enter | Play / Pause playback |
| Arrow Keys | Move selected object 1px (Hold Shift for 10px) |
- Electron: Desktop framework.
- Vite: Ultra-fast bundling and assets hot-reloading.
- HTML5 Canvas: Low-level, high-performance rendering.
- Pure TypeScript/JavaScript: Minimal external dependencies for longevity and execution speed.
This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details. Free to use, modify, and distribute for personal or commercial projects.
Adobe Animate, Macromedia Flash, and related trademarks are the property of Adobe Inc. Dolphin Animate is an independent open-source project and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Adobe Inc. or any other trademark holder.