Squigglevision revolutionized 1990s television animation by using constantly wiggling line art to create the illusion of movement with less costs. First appearing in British animated children’s show Roobard and Cutard by Grange Calveley, and revived by Tom Snyder, this patented technique powered cult classics like Dr. Katz: Professional Therapist and launched the careers of comedians like H. Jon Benjamin.
Squigglevision is an animation method where the outlines of characters and objects never stay still. Instead, they vibrate slightly, or “wiggle”, cycling through a series of alternate drawings to create the impression of life and motion. Even in completely static shots, the viewer sees a constant oscillation that tricks the eye into perceiving activity. The effect can also be done digitally, emulating the looseness of traditional sketch animation but in a cheaper and more efficient way than frame-by-frame hand drawing.
Although the animation technique was first seen in Roobarb and Custard in the 1970’s, Tom Snyder, founder of Tom Snyder Productions, revived Squigglevision in the early 1990s. He was an educator as much as an animator, always interested in finding economical and clever ways to use media. His use of Squigglevision found its first big stage with Dr. Katz: Professional Therapist in 1995. Coming at a time when animation costs were a major hurdle for television, Squigglevision offered a uniquely cost-effective solution, reflecting the growing interest in computer-assisted techniques that could streamline production.
Squigglevision relies on a simple loop. Animators create five slightly different versions of the same image. These variations are cycled rapidly in sequence, a process known as a “flic.” Each line wiggles just enough from one frame to the next to create the signature jittery look. Tom Snyder’s animators did this in Autodesk Animator running on DOS, and although the software was basic, it was powerful enough to achieve the effect.
Once the flics were created, they were merged into complete sequences using Avid Technology’s editing systems. Squigglevision followed what Snyder called an “economy of motion” principle as characters didn’t need to move much, because the linework already gave a sense of life. This minimized the need for complex or time-consuming animation sequences while keeping production nimble and cost-effective.
By the late 20th century, animation was becoming increasingly expensive, with CGI budgets averaging $33.7 million per film in 2018 and stop-motion shows costing around $50,000 per finished minute in the industry according to an article by Beverly Boy Productions, while traditional hand-drawn television animation demanded large teams and time-intensive processes that only well-funded studios could sustain.
Tom Snyder’s response was to strip animation to its most efficient elements, creating Squigglevision as a cost-saving solution. As he explained in interviews, “I made a Squiggle because I can do it about one thousandth the cost of any of my competitors in the United States.” adding that “there are almost no disadvantages.” and that a casual living room conversation cost no more to produce than an elaborate helicopter sequence, since the method equalized the effort required across different types of shots.
The first major Squigglevision show was Dr. Katz: Professional Therapist, which ran on Comedy Central from 1995 to 2002. The series followed therapist Dr. Katz as he treated stand-up comedians, who performed much of their material in therapy sessions. This gave the show a unique mix of animation and live comedy performance, and introduced audiences to performers like H. Jon Benjamin and Laura Silverman and even earned a Peabody Award. Its use of “retroscripting,” where dialogue was improvised rather than tightly scripted, further highlighted how the animation style allowed for fast, flexible production.
Squigglevision wasn’t limited to adult comedy. In 1997, Snyder’s studio created Science Court, an educational series that turned scientific concepts into courtroom drama. Airing on ABC Kid’s One Saturday Morning block, it brought the jittery style to younger audiences while showing how adaptable the technique was to different formats. Characters like Judge Stone (voiced by Paula Poundstone) and Professor Parsons (voiced by H. Jon Benjamin) made science more approachable through humor.
Another landmark was Home Movies, which premiered in 1999. Its first season used Squigglevision, but the team switched to Flash animation from season two onward. The change came after criticism of the wiggling effect from both viewers and reviewers, as well as practical difficulties in animating more complex movement.
By lowering costs, Squigglevision gave smaller studios a chance to compete. It allowed creators to develop shows that would have been financially impossible with traditional animation budgets. This democratization of production influenced later animation approaches and inspired experiments in digital workflows.
Snyder’s style was especially well-suited to comedy. The looser animation paired naturally with improvisation-heavy dialogue, making space for new kinds of animated sitcoms. The retroscripting process was well received and even made its way into several modern shows such as Rick and Morty.
While today computer-generated imagery dominates, making up about 85 percent of the animation market as of 2022, Squigglevision was one of the early experiments with digital assistance in TV animation. Its combination of digital editing and hand-drawn input paved the way for the workflows that would become standard
While Squigglevision broke ground in the 1990s, its greatest legacy may be how it paved the way for new forms of digital animation. The vibrating line effect gave shows like Dr. Katz and Home Movies a distinctive identity, but as audience expectations shifted toward smoother visuals, studios began experimenting with other tools that allowed for more complex movement and staging. By the early 2000s, Flash animation emerged as the next cost-effective innovation, offering greater flexibility and broader creative possibilities. Shows that began in Squigglevision carried their unique voice and humor into this new medium, showing how Snyder’s invention was not an endpoint but an important transitional chapter in animation history. That said, Squigglevision never truly disappeared. Today, indie animators and experimental filmmakers still use the technique or modern variations of it to evoke nostalgia, emphasize imperfection, or lean into a hand-drawn aesthetic in an otherwise digital landscape.
Although rarely used in mainstream television, Squigglevision’s look still finds echoes in modern work. Animators recreate the wiggling aesthetic in After Effects or Blender, with indie creators often employing it as a nostalgic callback to the 1990s. In this video by Writing and Design, we see how Squigglevision and variations of it can be done in 3D softwares like Blender:
Many modern styles use intentional imperfections to achieve warmth and personality. Squigglevision can be seen as an ancestor of this trend, reminding animators that rawness can be an artistic strength. Short-form content on social media platforms, vlog-like animatics, and others often employs Squigglevision-inspired techniques as a deliberate aesthetic choice, especially when the goal is to highlight humor, indie charm, or raw emotional tone. Its low-cost and instantly recognizable “wiggling” look ensures it still resonates with audiences, proving that even decades-old methods can retain cultural value when reimagined for new formats.
Squigglevision’s limitations forced its creators to focus on dialogue, timing, and character rather than complex visuals. This shows how constraints can spark new forms of creativity, but it also highlights the need to balance efficiency with artistic goals.
Squigglevision showed that bold visual choices can spark strong reactions, which is valuable feedback for any animator. While some viewers found the jittery effect challenging, others embraced it as part of the charm that set shows like Dr. Katz apart. The technique highlighted how cultural and demographic factors shape the way audiences respond to new styles, reminding creators that experimentation is worth the risk.
Squigglevision was revolutionary in its approach, but its transition into other animation styles shows that revolutions must evolve. Animators today can learn from its example by adopting new tools while also refining production pipelines to match audience expectations.
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