In the ever-evolving landscape of 3D animation, the charm and distinct style of anime have captured the hearts of artists and audiences alike. Blender, the powerful open-source 3D creation suite, has become a go-to tool for bringing these captivating anime visions to life. This article delves into the world of Blender add-ons specifically tailored for anime-style projects.
From intricate character models to ethereal environments reminiscent of beloved anime films, these add-ons offer tools and assets that streamline the creative process. Whether you’re a seasoned animator or a budding artist, our curated list of Blender add-ons will open new avenues for your anime-inspired projects, helping you to translate your imagination into stunning 3D realities.
Blender Add-Ons for Making Anime
BToon
BToon is a Blender add-on designed for toon rendering, offering specialized features to enhance the creation of anime-style visuals. Key aspects of BToon include:
- Toon Shading with BToon Skin Material: This component of BToon focuses on providing a simple toon material for skin. It features controllable rim lighting, Subsurface Scattering (SSS), and specular effects, tailored specifically for use with the EEVEE rendering engine in Blender​​.
- Contour Rendering Approach: BToon employs a unique mesh-based technique for rendering contours. This method involves duplicating, flipping, and displacing meshes outward to create a distinct contour effect. The process allows for texture-controlled thickness, viewport displacement of contours, and easy reproduction in other real-time rendering environments like Unity. However, it does not support ridges, valleys, and suggestive contours. The implementation involves applying ‘Solidify’ and ‘Displace’ modifiers to selected objects and creating an emission-based material with backface culling for the contours​​.
GhibliGenerator
The GhibliGenerator is an innovative Blender add-on designed for creating anime-style assets with ease and flexibility. It leverages Blender’s internal procedural textures, offering an infinite array of customizable options tailored to stylized workflows. The add-on is user-friendly, synthesizing various approaches to create stylized assets quickly and efficiently.
Key Features:
- Dynamic Interaction with Light: Objects created with GhibliGenerator can interact with standard scene lights, enabling them to receive colored light and cast dynamic shadows. This feature allows for the quick tinting or shading of entire scenes, enhancing the stylized anime effect.
- Customized Driver Control Panel: Each asset includes a control panel with drivers, allowing users to adjust common settings like colors, opacity, and texture scale directly from the 3D Viewport, streamlining the workflow.
- Versatile Asset Types: The add-on includes a wide range of asset types, categorized as Ground Planes, Objects, Effects, and Backgrounds. This variety ensures that users have access to all necessary elements for creating comprehensive anime scenes. Examples include Grass, Water, Sand, Ice, and Stone Paths for Ground Planes; Rocks, Rain Planes, and Smoke Clouds for Objects; Action Planes and various Flash effects for Effects; and Blue Sky, Sunset, and Starry Night for Backgrounds.
Limitations: While offering versatility and ease, the GhibliGenerator does have some limitations related to its lighting and shadow casting features, which users should be aware of for optimal use.
Free Blender sky environment shading
This free asset for Blender offers a custom procedural environment shader ideal for anime-style projects. Key features include adjustable sun direction with settings from midday to sunset, a night mode with optional stars, customizable sun and horizon colors, control over sun intensity and scale, and adjustable floor height. Users can also personalize features like cloud position, color, and size. Compatible with both Cycles and Eevee render engines, it requires larger sun size values in Cycles. Note: It does not include a moon feature.
Blender 2D Anime VFX
This add-on, originating from a tutorial by Cody Winchester, is an essential toolkit for anime creators using Blender. It features a variety of pre-designed 2D effects such as smoke, flame, and sparks, which are ideal for enhancing impact scenes in animation. With its user-friendly interface, it allows for easy integration and customization of these effects, adding depth and excitement to your anime projects. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced animator, this add-on streamlines the process of incorporating dynamic visual effects into your work.
Anime style Smoke & Explosion FX
This Blender Add-On, inspired by Kristof Dedene’s tutorial, offers users the ability to create stunning smoke and explosion effects reminiscent of old-style anime. It simplifies the process of adding a classic, vintage anime touch to your scenes, ideal for animators and artists aiming to replicate the iconic aesthetics found in early anime. Easy to use and integrate, this add-on is perfect for bringing dynamic and nostalgic effects to your animation projects.
Blender Geometry Nodes Anime Building
This add-on offers a diverse collection of apartment and generic building models, stylistically reminiscent of the visually stunning environments seen in Makoto Shinkai’s anime films. It is designed for creators seeking to infuse their 3D scenes with the distinctive and detailed architectural elements characteristic of anime. Easy to integrate and versatile, these models can greatly enhance any Blender project aiming for that iconic anime aesthetic.
