Animation meme

An animation meme is a type of Internet meme consisting of a short animation, typically featuring a character (often an OC or characters from fandoms) dancing, singing, or acting along to a specific audio clip, usually music. A key characteristic is that the original animation is often created with the express purpose of being mimicked, adapted, and spread by other animators using their own characters and interpretations, functioning similarly to other meme templates. This participatory and template-driven nature generally distinguishes them from longer, non-template-based animated music videos (AMVs) or original short animated films, although boundaries can sometimes blur.

Characteristics

Animation memes typically exhibit several defining characteristics:

• Template-based: They usually follow a specific structure or set of key keyframes, actions, poses, or visual sequences tied to the audio, designed to allow for relatively easy recreation and reinterpretation by others. The original creator often explicitly encourages others to make their own versions.
• Music Synchronization: The animation is tightly synchronized to a chosen audio clip, frequently a repeating segment or loop of a song, dialogue, or sound effect. The audio choice is central to the meme's identity.
• Use of Original Characters (OCs): A predominant feature is the use of creators' own OCs, allowing for personal expression and character sharing within the community. Characters from existing media (fan characters or canon characters) are also frequently used.
• Short Duration: Most animation memes are brief, often under a minute and sometimes only a few seconds long, focusing on a specific loopable sequence or concept. This facilitates both creation and consumption.
• Community Driven: The format thrives on participation, imitation, and adaptation within online animation communities. Sharing, commenting, and creating derivative works are core aspects.
• Stylistic Variety: While specific memes might develop stylistic conventions (e.g., "pastel memes," "edgy memes," particular tweening styles noted in community discussions), the overall art style can vary widely between creators, reflecting diverse skill levels and aesthetic preferences.
• Accessibility: While quality standards can rise, the template nature often makes participation accessible even for beginner animators using simpler tools or techniques like tweening.

History

The precise origins of animation memes are difficult to pinpoint, emerging from the confluence of early Web animation, GIF culture, and online creative communities. Precursors can be seen in short, loopable animations set to music shared on platforms like early YouTube and DeviantArt in the late 2000s and early 2010s. The Flipnote Studio application on the Nintendo DSi was also a notable platform for sharing similar short, music-synchronized animations among users, fostering a community with shared practices.

The term "animation meme" and the specific subculture recognizable today gained significant traction in the mid-to-late 2010s (circa 2016-2018), particularly on YouTube. This period saw the formalization of the practice where creators would explicitly designate an animation as a "meme," often providing templates or encouraging others to create their own versions using a specific audio clip and sequence structure. The naming convention helped differentiate these participatory animations from other forms of online animated content like AMVs or comedic shorts.

Creation process

Creating an animation meme typically involves several steps:

1. Choosing Audio and Template: The creator selects an existing animation meme template, identified by its characteristic audio clip and associated animation sequence, or sometimes pioneers a new one.
2. Storyboarding/Planning: Key poses and actions are planned out, often following the structure of the original meme template but adapted for the creator's chosen character(s).
3. Animation: The sequence is animated. Techniques vary widely based on skill and tools, ranging from frame-by-frame animation to extensive use of tweening. Common software includes professional tools like Adobe Animate, Toon Boom Harmony, Clip Studio Paint, and Procreate, as well as more accessible applications like FlipaClip, Alight Motion or even Scratch.
4. Editing and Synchronization: The animated segments are edited together and precisely synchronized with the audio track using video editing software.
5. Sharing and Tagging: The final video is uploaded to platforms like YouTube or TikTok, often using specific titles (e.g., "[Meme Name] // Animation Meme") and tags to identify it as part of the trend and credit the original meme creator.

Original meme creators sometimes provide a "base" or template (e.g., simplified lineart or key poses) to make participation easier.

Culture and community

Animation memes are deeply embedded in online creative communities, flourishing on platforms such as YouTube, TikTok, DeviantArt, Instagram, and Scratch. They serve multiple functions within these spaces:

• Skill Development: Provide a structured format for animators, particularly younger or hobbyist creators, to practice techniques like lip-syncing, timing, character acting, and software use.
• OC Showcase: Offer a popular way to introduce, develop, and share original characters and their personalities.
• Trend Participation: Allow creators to engage with current trends, gain visibility, and feel part of a collective creative movement.
• Community Interaction: Foster interaction through comments, critiques, collaborations ("collabs"), and participation in related activities like Multi-Animator Projects (MAPs), which share some similarities but are typically larger-scale collaborative works not necessarily based on meme templates.

The collaborative and derivative nature is central, with community norms generally emphasizing crediting the original creator of the meme template. However, controversies can arise regarding proper credit, inspiration versus copying (tracing), and the perceived originality of adaptations. Over time, community expectations regarding animation quality and complexity within popular memes have reportedly increased, sometimes leading to pressure on creators.

Examples

Identifying specific "notable" animation memes that achieve widespread recognition beyond the niche community can be challenging due to the decentralized, rapidly evolving nature of Internet trends and the reliance on specific audio clips that may be subject to copyright. Virality is often contained within the animation meme community itself. Examples are typically defined by the audio used and the core animated sequence associated with it.

Some examples frequently mentioned or listed within community spaces or blogs (though not always meeting Wikipedia's standards for reliable secondary source coverage) include:

• Examples mentioned in less formal sources like community lists or blogs include trends associated with audio clips from songs like "Moonlight," "Lambada," "Heartache," or viral sounds like "Chipi Chipi Chapa Chapa," "Dokterspiele," and "Mama's Boy". (Note: These lists often lack robust sourcing and may reflect transient community popularity rather than broad notability).

It is important to distinguish participatory animation memes from the broader category of memes that simply use static images or short GIFs derived from mainstream animated shows (e.g., scenes from SpongeBob SquarePants or The Simpsons used as reaction images). While those are also "animation-based memes," the term "animation meme" in the context of the subculture described here specifically refers to the participatory, template-driven format often featuring OCs.

Criticism and reception

Animation memes face several criticisms:

• Repetitiveness and Originality: While the template nature fosters participation, it can also lead to perceptions of repetitiveness or a lack of originality, with many videos following very similar structures.
• Rising Quality Standards: As mentioned, the increasing expectation for higher quality animation in popular memes can create pressure, potentially discouraging beginners or leading to creator burnout. Some argue it pushes the boundary away from a simple "meme" towards demanding short animated films.
• Community Issues: Like many online communities, the animation meme space can sometimes experience issues such as gatekeeping, conflicts over alleged tracing or idea theft, and drama surrounding popular creators or sensitive content depictions.
• Ephemeral Nature: Trends rise and fall rapidly, meaning significant effort might be invested in a meme that quickly loses relevance.

Despite these criticisms, the format remains popular and valued by participants for its creative outlet and community aspects.

Influence and impact

Animation memes have had several impacts:

• Gateway to Animation: They serve as an accessible entry point for many individuals to learn and practice animation skills.
• Music Discovery: Certain songs or artists have gained significant viral popularity after being featured in a trending animation meme.
• Community Formation: They have fostered large, active online communities around shared creative interests.
• OC Development Culture: They have heavily influenced the way original characters are developed, shared, and popularized within online art communities.
• Platform Content: Animation memes constitute a significant genre of content on platforms like YouTube and TikTok, contributing to their ecosystems.

See also

• Internet meme
• Web animation
• Flash animation
• Flipnote Studio / Flipnote Hatena
• Animated music video (AMV)
• Multi-Animator Project (MAP)
• Original Character (OC)
• Machinima
• Fandom
• User-generated content
• Participatory culture
• Tweening
• List of internet phenomena
• Digital art
• Online community

References

This article "Animation meme" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Animation meme. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.

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