Bringing 3D Lighting Effects to 2D Animation in Harold and the Purple Crayon [Video]

In 2021, Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) student Noah Catan, now graduated, began development on a lighting software system for SCAD Animation Studio’s 2023 short film, The Pope’s Dog. It took Catan a year to develop the software that became “Pantheon: Volumetric Lighting for 2D Animation,” meant to enable 3D lighting effects on 2D animation, similar to the revolutionary technique that made a name for itself on Sergio Pablos’ Oscar-nominated 2019 Christmas film, Klaus. But, for the last two years, working as a VFX artist at Framestore, Catan hadn’t gotten the chance to use the software in any of his professional gigs outside of SCAD projects. 

That is, until he was recruited by the crew of Carlos Saldanha and Sony Pictures’ film adaptation of Harold and the Purple Crayon, now available on Digital, releasing October 8 on Blu-ray and DVD.

“I really didn’t think I’d ever touch the Pantheon software again,” shares Catan, who served as a …