Animation Cels: Production Cels, Sericels and What to Check
What a production cel is, how it differs from a sericel, limited edition or giclee, why cels ended, what to check before buying and how to store one.
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A production cel is a clear plastic sheet, inked on the front and painted on the back, that was photographed to make a cartoon. A sericel is a silk-screened copy made later for collectors, and limited editions and giclees are also made for sale. Check for a studio seal or certificate, what kind of background it has, and its condition.
What makes a cel a production cel?
In traditional animation, each character drawing was transferred to a transparent sheet. The outlines went on the front in ink, and the colors were painted on the back, often in gouache. The sheet was laid over a painted background and photographed, one frame at a time.
A production cel is one of those working sheets. It was made to be filmed, not to be sold, so it may carry tape marks or margin notes. Sotheby’s condition notes for cels describe them as working materials with irregularities from studio use.
A cel laid over a background is often sold as a “setup”. Sotheby’s, for example, has offered a 1992 Batman: The Animated Series production cel with its hand-painted background from the episode “It’s Never Too Late”. Whether the background is the original painting or a later copy changes what you are buying, so the listing should say which.
Production cel, sericel, limited edition or giclee?
Van Eaton Galleries, an animation art dealer, defines the main types this way:
| Type | How it was made | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Production cel | Hand-inked or xeroxed lines, hand-painted, used on screen | Original production art |
| Hand-painted limited edition | Same methods as production cels, made for sale | An edition, not used on screen |
| Sericel | Silk-screened onto a cel layer | A limited edition print on a cel |
| Giclee | Ink sprayed onto fine art paper by a printer | A print on paper, not a cel |
Wikipedia’s cel article adds that some special or limited edition cels are printed rather than hand-painted. Sellers sometimes blur these labels, so read the description for the words “production” and “used in”.
What should you check before you buy a cel?
- Type: the listing should say production cel, sericel or limited edition, plainly
- Seal or certificate: Sotheby’s has offered Batman: The Animated Series and Scooby-Doo cels with a Warner Bros. seal and certificate of authenticity; ask for provenance when there is none
- Background: a hand-painted production background, a printed or color-copy background, or none; Sotheby’s describes one Scooby-Doo cel on a color photo reproduction background
- Condition: paint lifting or cracking, yellowing, warping, and tape residue
- Frame: whether the cel can be removed for inspection, and what it rests on
Original production cels from TV cartoons on eBay
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What were cels made of, and why did they stop?
The earliest cels were celluloid, a cellulose nitrate plastic. Wikipedia notes it was flammable and unstable, so studios moved to cellulose acetate and later polyester. The Walt Disney Animation Research Library and the Getty Conservation Institute identified all three in Disney’s archive of more than 200,000 cels from the 1920s to 1989.
Digital ink and paint replaced the sheets. Disney’s Computer Animation Production System (CAPS) colored scanned drawings on screen. After a single test shot in The Little Mermaid (1989), The Rescuers Down Under (1990) became what Guinness World Records lists as the first fully digital feature film.
Television followed through the 1990s. Wikipedia dates the decline of cels in favor of digital ink and paint from the mid-1990s, and Animation World Network covers the change in TV production from 1994 to 2000. Shows from the 1980s, such as Filmation’s He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, which first aired in 1983, came before that change. The 1980s hub lists the cartoons we cover from that decade.
Should you buy a sericel instead?
A sericel is a fair choice if you want a favorite scene and do not need a one-off production cel. It is a print made in an edition, so its value comes from the image and the edition, not from use on screen.
Check that the edition number, the studio’s name and any certificate match the listing. Sellers sometimes list sericels next to production cels, so read the title before you compare.
Sericels and limited edition cels on eBay
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How should you store and display a cel?
Care for cels
The Getty and Disney project named yellowing, warping, cracking, shrinking and paint pulling away from the plastic as typical problems. Even careful display carries risk: the AIC paper reported microcracks and paint delamination found on Disney cels after an exhibition. The CCI also advises against handling plastics directly and against adhesive labels, so hold a cel by its mat or backing. Frame a cel behind glazing, out of direct sun, and never hang it above a radiator or fireplace. Cellulose nitrate is highly flammable, according to the same CCI guidance, so a very early cel needs specialist advice.
Which cartoon titles have cels on this site?
The table lists the titles on this site with an animation cels section. Each row links the title page.
| Show | Era | Aired | Studio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Batman: The Animated Series | 1990s | 1992 to 1995 | Warner Bros. Animation |
For figures and lunch boxes, see our guides to vintage action figures and metal lunch boxes.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a cel and a sericel?
A production cel is a hand-inked and hand-painted sheet that was used to make the film or show. A sericel is a limited edition made by silk-screening the image onto a cel for sale to collectors.
Are giclees the same as cels?
No. Van Eaton Galleries describes a giclee as a modern print made by spraying fine droplets of ink onto art paper. It is a print, not a painted cel.
When did studios stop using cels?
Disney's last feature with hand-painted cels was The Little Mermaid (1989); The Rescuers Down Under (1990) was made with its digital CAPS system. Television animation moved to digital ink and paint from the mid-1990s.
Do production cels come with a certificate?
Some do. Sotheby's has offered Batman: The Animated Series and Scooby-Doo cels with a Warner Bros. seal and certificate of authenticity. When there is no seal, ask the seller where the cel came from.
How should I store an animation cel?
Keep it cool, dry and dark. The Canadian Conservation Institute advises avoiding UV and sunlight for plastics, and notes that deterioration roughly doubles with every 5°C rise in temperature.
Sources
- CelWikipedia
- Computer Animation Production SystemWikipedia
- First fully digital feature filmGuinness World Records
- FAQ & Common Animation TermsVan Eaton Galleries
- Animation Cels: Conservation and Storage Issues (AIC 42nd Annual Meeting)American Institute for Conservation
- Disney/Getty animation cel conservation projectConservation DistList
- Caring for plastics and rubbersCanadian Conservation Institute
- Dr. Toon: The Silent RevolutionAnimation World Network
- Modern animation in the United StatesWikipedia
- Batman: The Animated Series production animation cel setupSotheby's
- Scooby-Doo production animation celSotheby's
- He-Man and the Masters of the Universe (1983 TV series)Wikipedia
