Was using pivot, but need something better

[Sticketeer]

Hey everyone! I am new to these forums, but they seem really cool! As the title sais, I was once using Pivot for stickfigure animating. I wan't something better, but as easy to use. Preferably free please! 13 year-old doesn't have much money :(

- Thanks in advance

[Evil Demon Creature]

Better how? What are the specific things you don't like about pivot?

(because you aren't going to find something as easy to use as pivot. Either it'll be something that requires you do draw every fame by hand, or one that has menus/options that are not easy to figure out by just looking at them)

But if you tell us what you need, then our answers are more likely to be ones that help you.

[jtg91]

yeh you cant get any easier than pivot, i cant think of any programs that you wouldnt need to take time in learning the basics for. i guess toon boom express is your next step but it does cost $99. hope this is any help to you sorry if it isnt

[SacreJacques]

I use PAP when I feel like doodling and stick-figuring. It has a free version. But it's for frame-by-frame animation.

http://www.plasticanimationpaper.dk/

I never used these, but Synfig (http://www.synfig.com/) and Ktoon (http://ktoon.toonka.com/) are free for animating.

[RageArtworks]

Synfig is a little hard for beginners. KToon is Linux only, for now.
Anime Studio, previously Moho, does cut-out animation. You draw the figure once, you draw a skeleton over it, and you animate the skeleton. The figure moves with it. Animating the skeleton works just like animating with pivot. Except you AS creates motion for you. You make the keyframes, AS creates the inbetweens.

EDIT: Oh, and you can get Anime Studio for about $49.99, I believe. The pro version costs $199.99.

[SacreJacques]

Anime Studio takes some time to learn, but once you set up the bones, Stick figures and full drawings are both about as easy to animate.