Pokemon anime studio OLM built an AI coloring tool that learns a show's look from three frames

OLM, the Japanese animation group behind the "Pokemon" anime series and films, has developed an AI coloring tool that picks up a show's look from just three hand-painted frames, Variety reported. OLM Digital board director Yotsukura Tatsuo described the tool at the Taiwan Creative Content Fest in Taipei.

An artist colors three frames by hand, and the system learns that show's line shapes and color palette in about 90 seconds, then colors each remaining frame in around 15 seconds. Because it trains only on a production's own frames, no other works are used, Yotsukura said. At proof-of-concept stage he estimated it has cut painting workload by around 30%, though the checkers who review every colored frame have somewhat more to do.

The tool came out of ANIMINS, a 15-month research project Yotsukura led under GENIAC, a generative AI program overseen by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. OLM is also testing AI for in-betweening and exploring anime-specific AI agents that could help new directors on long-running series.

On the same panel, Charles Beirnaert of French studio Blue Spirit said it uses no AI on Netflix's "Blue Eye Samurai." "We're not allowed to use AI for the Netflix projects," he said, adding that the answer is always no when the studio asks.