Creating Character Line Art

• You must draw your figure first.
  
  An anime cell is essentially a painting done on a translucent sheet. Like any painting, an anime cell needs a drawing as its basic frame. Create the drawing on a sheet of paper first. Be sure to incorporate the classic style of anime by drawing a character with large eyes, a small nose and a simple mouth. Transfer the drawing to a translucent acetate sheet using a graphite sheet. Place the sheet between the drawing and the translucent sheet and trace the image. Remove the paper and paint the transferred lines using black animation paint.
  
  

Coloring the Cell

• Painting the cell will make it spring to life.
  
  Once the black lines are dry, flip the cell over. You will be painting on the back of the cell. The reason for this is that this is the best way to preserve the bold line work you have created. Add small details, like the color of the eyes, first to ensure you don't loose any detail. Add shadows first using browns and tans for the shadows on the skin and darker versions of your clothing's color scheme. Add the midtones next leaving a small space around the upper outer edges of each section of the figure for highlights. Add highlights using lighter versions of the midtone color. Place these only where the light is shining the brightest on the figure.
  
  

Creating the Background

• Once the cell is against the background, it is ready to be photographed.
  
  Create the background on illustration board. Many anime backgrounds are created using watercolor paints. This provides a stark contrast between the crisply painted figures in the foreground. Decide on a setting for the background. You have a myriad of choices for settings in anime. You can paint a forest, medieval castle, bombed out city ruins or the inside of a space ship. Draw the picture in pencil first. Lay down a thin coat of water and then begin adding your midtone colors. Add shadows next. Let the painting dry, then add highlights using colored pencils. Place the cell on top of the background, and you have a completed anime cell ready for photographing. Create an animated sequence by repeating Sections 1 and 2 with slight variations in each picture, such as the limbs slowly moving up and down to simulate running. Place lights around the cell so the image is well lit. Photograph each cell, remove the cell but keep the background in place and place a new cell image over the background.