The O Key in Pencil 2D: Quick Onion Skin Activation for Animation

Published on January 08, 2026 | Translated from Spanish
Screenshot of Pencil 2D showing the Onion Skin function activated with multiple overlapping frames in transparency, animation interface with visible timeline.

The O Key in Pencil 2D: Quick Onion Skin Activation for Animation

In the 2D animation software Pencil 2D, the O key provides immediate access to the Onion Skin function, acting as a toggle that displays multiple frames simultaneously during the creative process. This multiple visualization capability significantly optimizes the workflow by eliminating the need to navigate complex menus, allowing animators to create smoother and more coherent movements between consecutive frames 🎨.

Advanced Onion Skin Customization

While the basic shortcut activates or deactivates the visualization, users can exhaustively customize the number of previous and next visible frames through the specific settings menu. This adaptability allows adjusting the overlap to the specific needs of each project, precisely controlling the visual intensity and the number of transparent layers that serve as reference during the animation process.

Available configuration options:
  • Adjustment of the number of previous and next visible frames
  • Control of the opacity and intensity of overlapping layers
  • Customization of differentiated colors for past and future frames
Artists rely on these spectral appearances of past and future drawings to create organic movement, making Onion Skin a fundamental tool in digital traditional animation.

Integration into the Animation Process

The constant use of this shortcut during the animation process considerably speeds up the correction of motion arcs and the synchronization of complex actions. Creators can quickly switch between normal view and overlay to compare exact positions, thus maintaining creative concentration without significant technical interruptions that slow down the work.

Advantages in the creative flow:
  • Immediate correction of trajectories and motion arcs
  • Instant visual comparison between consecutive frames
  • Maintenance of work pace without technical pauses

Impact on Animation Quality

It is fascinating how a function that essentially shows ghosts of drawings has become an indispensable instrument for bringing animations to life, allowing artists to visualize the temporal evolution of their creations. This ability to see the immediate past and future of movement completely transforms the creative approach, facilitating the production of more organic and professional animations with less technical effort ✨.