Cartoon Explainer Video Maker
A 50–60 second narrated lesson acted out by your own cartoon cast — about 20 shots, every one drawn in code, the characters the same in every frame.
What you walk away with
A 1080×1920 MP4 of a 50–60 second explainer with captions and sound, its post caption, and a cast you can pick again for the next one.
- Output
- 1 video · 50–60s · 9:16 · 1080p
- Time
- ~5 min / video
- Preset
- 7 steps
What is the Cartoon Explainer workflow?
The narrated cartoon explainer — one cause and effect, seven scenes from the hook to the recap, a new shot every few seconds, characters reacting instead of talking — as a workflow. Say what to teach; a cast of up to three characters is designed for it (the viewer who makes the mistake, the doubter, the explainer) and each is drawn once as a sheet of six expressions, cut out so they look identical in every shot. The narration and its shot list are written to the format's rules, recorded line by line, the props drawn, and the whole film drawn frame by frame with captions and sound. Each step explains what needs to happen, why it matters for reach, and how to do it in the dashboard.
What a run does, step by step
- 1Brief · Full briefCents
- 2Cast · A cartoon castCents
- 3Story · ExplainerCents
- 4Narration · A take per lineCents
- 5PropsCents
- 6Render · Motion graphicsFree
- 7Caption · Post captionCents
- Time
- ~5 min per video, hands-off
- Cost per run
- Under $0.50 a video on your Gemini key, measured: the three cast sheets about $0.16 once, props a few cents each, the voice about a cent. The film is drawn in code.
- You get
- 1 video · 50–60s · ~20 shots, your cast · Captions + sound
What this preset made
Before you start
- What to teach: one idea, in a line — and a source if you have one.
- A ppl.studio account with your own Gemini key: the cast's three sheets (about $0.16, once), the props, the words and the voice cost well under $0.50; the film is drawn for free.
The Cartoon Explainer guide
- Step 01~~1 min
Get a cast drawn — or pick yours again
Up to three characters are designed for your topic — the viewer, the doubter, the explainer — each one simple shape, a few colours and one signature item, and each drawn once as six expressions: neutral, shocked, laughing, crying, thinking, pointing.
Why this matters: Faces carry the emotion so the narrator can stay calm and clear. Drawn once on one sheet, a character can't drift between shots — and the same cast every week is what makes a channel recognisable.
OutcomeThree characters, six poses each, cut out.How to do it with ppl.studio
Each sheet is one picture on your Gemini key, cut into its six poses on our side. Your next explainer can reuse the cast for nothing.
- 1.1
Reuse it
Pick the cast again from your gallery's cast sheets: the second video costs no pictures.
- Step 02~~1 min
Get the story written and voiced
Seven scenes — hook, familiar world, disruption, mechanism, discovery, consequence, recap — 85–100 words, one sentence a line, and a shot list: ~18 shots, at most three things on screen, one reaction per scene, one moment that holds.
Why this matters: The hook speaks to the viewer's own problem, never introduces a character; the narration never names the cast; no colons, acronyms spelled out — the rules that keep a listener with the voice. The shots change every few seconds so the frame is always moving.
OutcomeThe narration, the shot list, a voice take per line.How to do it with ppl.studio
Written on your Gemini key, checked against the format's rules (what still breaks is fixed once, quoting each rule), then recorded line by line.
- 2.1
Listen once
If a line sounds off, record that one line again — the rest of the track stays.
Output: 150–180 words, 24–34 shots, 7 scenes.
- Step 03~~2 min
Get it drawn
The props are drawn and cut out, then the film is drawn frame by frame: each location its own colour, the characters bobbing, hopping and landing, labels in pills, captions word by word, a sound on every landing.
Why this matters: Drawn in code, every frame is exactly the shot list — sharp text, the same characters, nothing generated twice — and a phone check runs on every shot: the safe areas, three things at most, labels of four words.
OutcomeA 1080×1920 MP4 and a post caption.How to do it with ppl.studio
Drawn on our side with no video model — free, about a minute.
- 3.1
Watch it muted
The captions should carry the whole story on their own.
Output: One 9:16 MP4, 30 fps, captions burned in, −16 LUFS.
How it compares
Cartoon Explainer workflow FAQ
Is it a video model?
No. The characters are drawn once as pictures; the film is drawn in code from the shot list, so they look identical in every shot and nothing is generated per frame.
What does it cost?
Under $0.50 a video on your Gemini key (measured: three cast sheets $0.16, props a few cents each, the voice about a cent). Reusing a cast costs no pictures.
Related workflows
Ready to run the Cartoon Explainer?
1 video · 50–60s: ~5 min per video, hands-off. No credit card to start.