Animation is undergoing a revolution when it comes to independent creators. Indie animation, as it is called, is made by small teams and studios, unlike the bigger and more well-known corporations in the entertainment market. Over the past few years, there has been an uptick in the amount and popularity of indie animation projects and that is worth celebrating.
Bigger studios, like Disney, Sony and Nickelodeon, often have restrictions enforced upon them in order to conform to the standards of what executives want their movies and TV shows to be and what their intended audience expects them to be. And when an animation project doesn’t live up to the desires of corporate, or it strays beyond them, the production team may find themselves facing a cancellation.
But indie animation is thriving now, as people are turning away from studios cancelling their favorite shows, in favor of supporting the work and dreams of people just want to tell a great story. Indie animation has the potential to do amazing things and deserves to get more attention and support moving forward.
YouTube is the most popular platform to host indie animation because of its easy accessibility for creators and viewers. Several channels have seen massive success on the platform. Glitch Productions is one of the most notable rising stars right now. The Australian-based studio really took off after the premiere of the series “Murder Drones,” created by Liam Vickers, in 2021.
Glitch has only grown in popularity with the release of their ongoing show “The Amazing Digital Circus,” created by Gooseworx, and their upcoming show “The Gaslight District,” created by Nick Szopko. They have even partnered up with Dana Terrace, Jonathan Bailey Owen and Zach Marcus from “The Owl House” for the studio’s first 2D animated show, the upcoming “The Knights of Guinevere.” Tracy J. Butler’s webcomic “Lackadaisy” received an animated pilot in 2023, and following widespread acclaim, it is being made into a series by the studio Iron Circus Animation.
Aside from the bigger names, there are plenty of smaller channels and creators making animation projects on their own. DeepBlueInk recently came out with the five-episode mini-series “Deep Space Discounts” with plans for a second season. INUbis’s animations based on characters from the video “Poppy Playtime” are fluid and adorable, coming from an amazing collaborative effort with other creators. Joshua Palmer’s “Monkey Wrench,” hosted on his channel Zeurel, is so fun and high-quality, it feels insane that it’s not being aired on TV. All of these videos are contributing to a new golden age of animation that is wonderful to see.
The popularity of indie projects has even garnered attention from bigger companies and given them more attention and opportunities. “The Amazing Digital Circus” has been made available for viewing on Netflix as a result of how widespread it has gotten. Vivienne Medrano, who created “Hazbin Hotel,” had initially planned for her series to be on YouTube before it was picked up by A24 and streamed on Amazon Prime. This has allowed for more attention on Medrano’s work, including her other indie show, “Helluva Boss.”
Despite the popularity of these indie animation shows, it can be difficult for them to be produced, as they do not have the support big studios do. Most of them have to rely on monetary support from fan donations, merchandise sales and any YouTube ad venue. It can also take a long time for episodes to come out, leading to frustrating hiatuses.
All of these works are worth supporting, though. They show that great animation persists, in spite of interference from big studios, and there are passionate people with stories to tell through an often-underappreciated medium. Even if you can’t offer financial support, watch these indie shows, and share them with others. Give them the attention they deserve. Indie animation is the future and I can’t wait to see what it has in store.
