Toon Boom Animation has released Toon Boom Animate
(http://www.toonboom.com/products/animate/), animation software that
lets you publish animation for all types of media, from online to
HDTV. It can handle such formats and jobs as vector, bitmap, symbols,
pegs, camera, morphing, inverse kinematics, advanced lip sync and
more.

Toon Boom Animate adapts to any creative habit whether users are
trained in traditional or digital animation, according to Joan
Vogelesang, president and CEO at Toon Boom. It also supports standard
formats for seamless asset transfer and multi-channel digital output,
he adds.

Toon Boom Animate enables users to create tradigital and bitmap
animation as well as combine both styles. Users can access lip-sync
and cell swapping tools.

With Animate's user interface, you can customize your workspace as
needed. Each tool comes with a contextual interface that will let
users set their preferences in a click. Users can refine their
artwork style using multiple brush tools, textures and gradients.

Symbols and pegs work in unison in Animate. You can do keyframing in
cut-out and traditional animation. Among the effects built into the
software are morphing, advanced inverse kinematics, library building,
intelligent color ID and more. With its multiplane camera, Toon Boom
Animate enables users to set up their scene in 3D, access a Graph
editor and apply Ease control on their action.

Toon Boom Animate can import a variety of file formats, including
MOV, SWF, PSD, AI and PDF, as well as export to video in MOV and FLV.
The software runs on Mac OS X on Intel-based Macs as well as Windows
XP/Vista. Until Dec. 25, Toon Boom Animate is available at the launch
special of US$699. The estimated street price for Toon Boom Animate
is $999. The software comes with a Personal Learning Edition and over
two hours of video training.