See how this retro 2D animation was created in free 3D software

Retro 2D animation has a charm that still captivates audiences, and there are more ways than ever to make it. Funny Legs is a show on YouTube whose simple lines hark back to classic mid-20th century 2D animation – but appearances can be deceptive.

The one-woman creator of the show has just revealed that she doesn't make Funny Legs in Adobe Animate or in any other dedicated 2D animation program. She uses the free, open-source 3D modelling software Blender.

2D look - 3D rig - Part 1 from r/blender

From modelling to render, Funny Legs is created entirely by Yana Zavialova, AKA CG Hitchhiker. In the video above posted on Reddit, she shared a behind-the-scenes glimpse at how she works on the series, showing that those 2D characters are really rigged 3D models that she makes look 2D using Blender.

A love of the animation from the mid-20th century animation inspired her to use “super simple-shape characters”. In the very first episode of Funny Legs, she put them to the test using many of the Disney animation principles, squashing, stretching and scaling.

Here's the result:

Magic Wand | Funny Legs Episode 01 | Cartoons for all Family - YouTube

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Yana gave a talk at the Blender Conference 2025 in which she explained her pipeline and discussed how she achieved the retro look of the animation.

In the video below, she mentions the courses and tutorials that helped her learn Blender (also check out our own Blender tutorials)

From Student to Showrunner: Best Tips to Learn Blender Fast - YouTube

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Funny Legs is a great example of why Blender features in our guide to the best animation software as well as the best free 3D apps.

The program's increasingly being considered for serious 2D animation, particularly after Gints Zilbalodis' Flow won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature last year.

For more animation inspiration, don't miss Sony's GOAT character design secrets and IKEA X Tiny Chef.

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Joe is a regular freelance journalist and editor at Creative Bloq. He writes news, features and buying guides and keeps track of the best equipment and software for creatives, from video editing programs to monitors and accessories. A veteran news writer and photographer, he now works as a project manager at the London and Buenos Aires-based design, production and branding agency Hermana Creatives. There he manages a team of designers, photographers and video editors who specialise in producing visual content and design assets for the hospitality sector. He also dances Argentine tango.

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