Pivot Animator

Pivot Animator for Windows PC lets you develop 2D stick-figure sprite animations. The controls are simple enough to use. Pivot desktop app is a free animation software for Windows that is designed for creating stick figure animations.

The software is easy to use and has a user-friendly interface, which makes it perfect for beginners.

The software offers a wide range of features,s such as the ability to create figures using the Figure Editor, import figures from pre-built libraries, and add sound and background to the animation.



You can also use the animation editor to create a sequence of frames and control the timing of the animation with the Timeline.

The tool exports animation in different formats like GIF, avi, or as a sprite sheet, which makes it easy to share the animation with others. One downside of the software is that it is limited to stick figure animations and does not have the capability to create more advanced animations.

Additionally, it is not a very powerful software, and it may not be suitable for more experienced animators or for creating professional-quality animations.

Pivot Animator is a great option for beginners who are looking to create simple stick figure animations. It is free and easy to use, but it may not be suitable for more advanced animators or for creating professional-quality animations.

Whats New

• Frame inbetweening to simplify the creation of smooth animations
• Flexible (bendy) line segments for more natural-looking figures
• Canvas zoom for greater precision and detailed posing
• Virtual camera for creating dynamic zoom and pan effects
• Solid color and gradient backgrounds for quick scene styling
• Text tool with multiple style options for subtitles and dialogue
• Support for multiple colors and sprites within a single figure
• Increased segment limit per figure (up to 30,000) for complex designs
• Polyfill tool for filling larger areas and building detailed shapes
• Gradient-colored segments for realistic shading effects
• Outline options to help figures and text stand out
• Ability to edit and customize existing figure types
• Dark mode interface to reduce eye fatigue
• Informative status bar displaying pose and figure data
• Animated PNG export as a high-quality alternative to GIF
• Video export options include WMV, WEBM, MP4, and lossless FFV1
• Windows Explorer preview support for STK figure files
• GPU acceleration for improved rendering performance
• Smooth drawing with subpixel precision for cleaner visuals

Controls

The red buttons let you control the working environment and the position where you drag the stick figure to. Other controls include flipping the figure, seeing onion skins, mirroring the figure, changing the figure color, and raising or lowering the selected figure.

The selected figure can be scaled or joined with another one. The opacity can be adjusted, and the frames can be pasted, deleted, or copied. When you’re ready to play the animation, you can have a loop mode activated to keep the frames recycled. You can include a customized background picture that is in GIF, PNG, JPG, or BMP format.

Stick Figure Builder

You can create your own stick figures by using the circles and lines options. Other options include thickness adjusting, segment duplication, static generation, and more.

Export

The app lets you save and export in PIV format. This lets you import and edit your stick figure creations in the future. If you want to export in a different format, you can choose GIF, JPEG, PNG, or AVI as well. This lets you use them on web pages as images or video content.

Animation Creator

Pivot Animator does not have as many features as Adobe Animate or Autodesk Maya, but it has easy-to-use controls. People with any experience level will find the program to be comfortable to use. The results are impressive too.

How to Use

To use Pivot Animator for PC, you need to first download and install the software on your computer. Once installed, you can follow these steps to create an animation:

• Open Pivot Animator and create a new animation by clicking on File > New or pressing Ctrl + N.
• In the animation editor, you can create figures using the Figure Editor. You can also import figures from the pre-built library or from other sources.
• Once you have your figures, you can use the animation editor to create a sequence of frames for your animation. You can move, rotate, and change the size of figures in each frame to create the animation.
• You can also add sound and background to your animation by clicking on the Sound and Background tabs.
• Once you have completed your animation, you can save it by clicking on File > Save or pressing Ctrl + S. You can also export the animation as a GIF, AVI, or as a sprite sheet.
• To preview your animation, you can click on the Preview button or press F5.
• You can also use the Timeline to control the timing of your animation.
• And finally, you can publish your animation by clicking on the export button.

Pivot Animator is a simple animation software, and it is a good choice for beginners who are looking to create stick figure animations.



FAQs

What are the system requirements for using Pivot?
Pivot v2-4 will run on any version of Windows from 98 onwards. There are no additional requirements. Adequate RAM may be required for long animations. Pivot v5 requires a GPU and preferably Windows 10/11.

Can my school use Pivot without the developer's permission, and is it free?
Yes. Everyone has permission to use the Pivot app for free for personal or commercial use. If you need an installer for school network deployment, then please visit the contact page and ask for one using your school or educational authority email address.

Is Pivot Animator safe for my Windows PC?
Yes. The installer contains offers that could be flagged as adware by your anti-virus software, but they are safe, and you can choose not to install them. If you do install an offer and want to remove it, then this can be done in Add/Remove Programs in the Windows Control Panel.

What file formats does Pivot Animator support?
Pivot animations can be saved in the native '.piv' format, which can be edited in Pivot at a later time. You can also save as an animated Gif, an Avi video, or as a sequence of images in several formats. Pivot 5 also exports as animated Png and several other video formats. '.stk' files are stick figure types that can be loaded or saved from the figure creator window. Background images can be loaded from Bitmap, Png, Gif or JPeg files. Sprite images can be loaded from Bitmap, Gif or PNG files.

Alternatives

Adobe Animate – Industry-standard for 2D animations.

Toon Boom Harmony – Professional-grade animation tools.

OpenToonz – Free, open-source animation software.

Clip Studio Paint – Great for frame-by-frame animation.

Krita Animation – Free, beginner-friendly 2D animation.

Synfig Studio – Open-source vector-based animation.

Pencil2D – Simple and lightweight 2D animation tool.

Blender (Grease Pencil) – 2D/3D hybrid animation tool.

System Requirements

• Windows 7 with Service Pack 1 or later. Windows 11 or Windows 10 is recommended.
• A Graphics Processing Unit (GPU).
• DirectX version 11 or later. Run 'dxdiag' from the search bar and check the DirectX Version in the System tab.
• At least 4GB of RAM is recommended.
• 60MB of Hard Disk space for the installation files.

PROS

• Easy to Use – Simple interface for beginners.
• Lightweight – Runs smoothly on low-end PCs.
• Stick Figure Animation – Focused on 2D stick figures.
• Free to Use – No cost for full functionality.
• Customizable – Create and import figures easily.

CONS

• Limited Features – Basic tools, lacks advanced options.
• No Audio Support – No built-in sound editing.
• Low Export Quality – Limited resolution for videos.
• Frame-by-Frame – No tweening for smoother motion.

Also Available: Download Pivot Animator for Mac