Created by Hornet Director Eran Hilleli and his engineer partner Finn Ericson, Looom is an iPad app that rethinks traditional animation tools and unlocks a more free-form way to learn and create animation. As Eran says, “It’s like a Gameboy for animation, translating a pretty tedious craft into something fun & full of flow."
Eran is an animator-designer who is equal parts artist and technician. Whether it's Augmented Reality characters, audio programming synthesizers, or award-winning 2D films, Eran always pushes the boundaries of creative ingenuity. With Looom, he's gone one step further: he has created the boundaries themselves.
Hornet Director Bee Grandinetti describes Looom as an animation playground: “For a person that tries to animate properly like a grownup everyday, Looom feels like a much needed and welcomed release from that pressure. It’s such a fun playground where you can just have fun with things in a way less pretentious way. It brings all the play back into the game.”
“I love the simplicity of the design and UI. The rolling wheels are very clear and efficient to show each frame of the animation with the ‘onion skins’ option. It’s a great tool to explore and record many animation ideas!”
-Yukai Du, Hornet Director
Using Looom feels more like playing an instrument than operating software. You can explore lines, shapes and colors through loopable time and rhythm. The drawing tools are simple and there is no timeline or keyframes but reels that you can add to, speed up, or slow down in realtime.
“I’m so happy my Apple Pencil broke! Really liked playing with the messiness of Loooming with your fingers.”
-Natalie Labarre
