Line #122 Main/PastelChalkedFreezeFrame


1	[[quoteright:344:[[Manga/{{Trigun}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/wolfwoodzettaini_9049.jpg]]]]
2	->''"Oh no! The animation budget ran out!"''
3	-->-- '''Tristan Taylor''', ''WebVideo/YuGiOhTheAbridgedSeries''
4
5	Rather than animating a critical moment in a battle, and perhaps giving away a plot point too soon, some animators cut to or dissolve into a still image designed to look like an action shot, often blurry with motion, that shows the important hit, or dodge, or other action, without revealing anything crucial. The most attractive of these are made to look like they were done in pastel chalks, although simple black line drawings are also used. TheKenBurnsEffect is frequently employed. These are also frequently used to emphasize especially dramatic moments, especially during cliffhangers.
6
7	This technique was invented by the late, great, and highly influential anime director Creator/OsamuDezaki.
8
9	The term of art for this type of frame is "Harmony Cel." Other common terms include "Postcard Memory" or just "a Dezaki". The color is usually painted with gouache like a background would be. (Although any media could potentially be used, chalk pastels or charcoal are messy and tend to cling to paper very loosely, increasing the likelihood of smearing during handling or photography. No matter what it looks like, they were almost certainly not used.) The lines might be done as they would on a normal cel, or they might be painted in as well.
10
11	See also PicturePerfectPresentation.
12	----
13	!!Examples
14
15	[[foldercontrol]]
16
17	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
18	* As mentioned above, classic anime director Creator/OsamuDezaki is responsible for the popularity of this trope, which he termed "Postcard Memories" and invented as a way to both save on budget and highlight dramatic moments.
19	** An example of this would be ''Manga/SpaceAdventureCobra'', where he had every commercial break and final frame fade into a beautiful pastel drawing.
20	** Likewise, he animated the 90-minute retelling of ''Manga/AimForTheAce'' with chalk frames on the dramatic moments. The animation was much better than the series' own.
21	** Dezaki's ''Manga/BlackJack'' adaptations (an OVA series and one film) make frequent use of this.
22	** ''Manga/TheRoseOfVersailles'' uses the "dramatic moments" variety of this trope. Constantly. Once again, directed by Dezaki.
23	** ''Manga/DearBrother'', as well.
24	** The movie version of ''VisualNovel/{{Clannad}}'' does this constantly. Even two in a row at times. It wasn't directed by the same person who directed the TV series, but by Creator/OsamuDezaki himself. The very last anime he directed before his death, in fact.
25	** The ''Manga/KaseiYakyoku'' OAV have several as well. Three guesses as to who directed this, and the first two don't count!
26	* ''VisualNovel/{{Clannad}}'': Aside from the aforementioned movie, this is parodied in one episode of the series. Kotomi is putting on a violin recital, and though she practised hard and greatly improved, she became nervous and her already next-to-nonexistent violin skills are dropped back down to "deadly". All who are listening fall dead, one by one. As they fall, Pastel-Chalked Freeze Frames are done for each of the fallen victims.
27	* The 2012 anime adaptation of ''Manga/JojosBizarreAdventurePhantomBlood'' features this for [[spoiler:Jonathan's death]].
28	* ''Manga/SteelAngelKurumi'' is rife with these.
29	* So is ''Anime/{{Simoun}}''.
30	* Pastel freeze-frames can also be found for romantic moments, usually at the end of episodes. There are a number of these in the later seasons of ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf''.
31	* ''Manga/YuYuHakusho'' likes to end on these. Parodied during the Dark Tournament arc, when Koenma asks Jorge how to counter a weapon and we get an extended PCFF, only for Jorge to reply that he hasn't a clue. And again in the last season, where an [[LargeHam overly dramatic]] character gets this when it looks like one of his allies has died, and he remains frozen, while the other characters, drawn normally, go about their business.
32	* Of course, if you're as low on cash as the creators of ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' were, you can make at least two entire minutes of plot out of nothing but Pastel-Chalked (or Copic Marker) Freeze Frames.
33	* ''Manga/NodameCantabile'' does these a lot during the concert scenes, of either Chiaki or one of the musicians during a dramatic piece of music. Probably just to vary a bit between these and pans over ordinary stills, when the time or budget for proper animation of the musicians runs out.
34	* ''Manga/DragonBall'' and ''[[Anime/DragonBallZ Z]]'' absolutely ''loves'' to end episodes with this, although its frequency dropped in the later episodes. Would also be used for certain important impacts, such as King Piccolo blowing a rock to break Goku's arm.
35	* ''Anime/Berserk1997'' is fond of doing this for dramatic moments, usually when Guts is doing something particularly badass.
36	* The ''PokemonTheSeriesDiamondAndPearl'' episode "Arriving in Style!" uses this quite a bit. They seem to be using it for cool poses at the end of episodes or for dramatic effect during fights now. At any rate, its use is on the rise.
37	* ''Manga/ViolinistOfHameln'' is the king of this trope. Due to an impossibly constrained animation budget -- rumour has it the budget was mainly spent on obtaining rights to the classical music -- the series sometimes seems to consist mainly of ''whole montages'' of one Pastel-Chalked Freeze Frame after another. Within the fandom, the show has since gained the affectionate nickname "Slideshow of Hameln".
38	* One of the many things ''Manga/BoboboboBobobo'' plays with.
39	* Similarly to ''Manga/BoboboboBobobo'', ''Anime/MindGame'' parodies it in Nishi's fantasy in which he's a famous author.
40	* Many episodes in ''Literature/{{Slayers}}'' end with these.
41	* ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann'' uses this. In addition, the BigBad of the first arc, Lordgenome, is so badass that he exists in a constant state of Pastel-Chalked Freeze Frame. Except it averts the "Freeze Frame" part.
42	* When Holy Roman Empire runs away from Italy during one rather suspenseful part of the ''Webcomic/HetaliaAxisPowers'' anime, there are several of these shown from different angles. The story was not continued until several episodes later.
43	* ''Manga/KenichiTheMightiestDisciple'' does this whenever something awesome or dramatic happens. It's also played for comedy on at least one occasion when [[http://www.mangafox.com/manga/history_s_strongest_disciple_kenichi/c038/5.html the moment is so dramatic]] [[http://www.mangafox.com/manga/history_s_strongest_disciple_kenichi/c038/6.html it causes Kenichi to faint.]]
44	* ''Anime/SailorMoon'' employs these quite often. Haruka and Michiru's scenes are done this way more often than not, when ''not'' in any form of battle, in order to emphasize how elegant they are.
45	* There is at least one in ''Literature/SisterPrincess'', at a climactic moment in the penultimate episode of the anime, although the moment is anything but an action shot.
46	* ''Anime/OtogiZoshi'' uses these frequently.
47	* Parodied in ''Manga/NinjaNonsense'' (like everything else), when Onsokumaru fights himself.
48	* ''Manga/SgtFrog'' also used this often...
49	** Used in episode 8, which is also [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] in the dub, when it prompts the narrator to ask who told the animators to switch to sepia-tone.
50	** Also used in episode 35, where in the dub, the narrator lampshades it again by asking if someone squirted grape juice in his eyes because the screen is now purple.
51	* ''Manga/LuckyStar'' does this during [[spoiler:the ''Manga/InitialD'' spoof, going from CG to Pastel-Chalked Freeze Frame as Yui executes the gutter-wheel turn.]]
52	* Subverted in one scene of ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'', where it looks like one of these happened at the end of an episode but when it zooms out, you can see it just switched to a close view of a painting of that scene Sai made.
53	* The ''Anime/{{Macross}}'' franchise has at least two.
54	** ''Anime/MacrossZero'' has one of Shin during the FinalBattle in a dramatic moment [[spoiler:just before he decides to jettison his weapons and charge in without violence in mind, hoping that the sight will snap Sara out of her RoaringRampageOfRevenge.]]
55	** ''Anime/MacrossFrontier'' ends episode 24 with one of Sheryl Nome [[spoiler:crying out in despair after she sees Alto's fighter explode.]]
56	* ''Manga/SpecialA'' has pastel sections every single darn episode, usually when a character has just done something sweet and so "earned his watercolors".
57	* ''Manga/FushigiYuugi'' does this at times.
58	* A lot of the ''kendo'' matches in ''Manga/BambooBlade'' end with these; the last shot of the ED is also a FreezeFrame (of [[BadassAdorable Tama-chan]], natch.)
59	* Happens at the end of several episodes in ''Anime/YuGiOh5Ds'', most likely for dramatic effect.
60	* The current page shot is [[BadassPreacher Nicholas D. Wolfwood]] of ''Manga/{{Trigun}}'', pictured in his second appearance (that'd be episode 10) when he turns around and starts shooting the hell out of everything after a quickdraw competition he and Vash tricked each other into joining turns into a Vash-hunt with child hostages. This is pretty much the ''only'' use of the technique in the entire series, and it handily highlights the fact that Wolfwood is slightly nuts. Which you suspected all along, but by now you ''like'' him. Wolfwood mentions afterwards that he didn't kill anyone during said rampage, just put a lot of non-terminal holes in them. It is fortunate none of the abruptly-recruited bounty hunters had Gung Ho Gun levels of determination. The full line is: "I WON'T [[FriendToAllChildren LET ANY MORE CHILDREN SUFFER]]! ''[[PapaWolf NEVER AGAIN]]!''"
61	* Almost every episode of the 2011 ''Manga/HunterXHunter'' anime ends with one of these.
62	* The very last shot of ''Anime/CowboyBebop'''s final episode, "[[Recap/CowboyBebopSession26TheRealFolkBluesPart2 The Real Folk Blues (Part 2)]]", is a pastel chalked freeze frame, featuring [[spoiler: the lifeless (or [[ShrugOfGod unconscious]]) but serene body of Spike Spiegel]] as "Blue" by the Seatbelts plays, before the camera pans up into the sky, and then into space.
63	* Similarly to the above example, the final shot of the ''Manga/TomorrowsJoe'' anime is done in this style, showing a zoom-out of [[spoiler:Joe's dead yet smiling body]] as the somber track "Joe Forever" plays. The scene is so iconic that it's become a StockShoutOut.
64	* Several of these are used in the first episode of the ''VisualNovel/UminekoWhenTheyCry'' anime during everyone's introductions.
65	* The original ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam'' uses these from time to time. Alternate universes do it too. Dramatic shots of [[Anime/MobileSuitGundam00 Exia]] charging with its sword drawn or [[Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEED Freedom]] in pose are particular favorites.
66	** ''[[Anime/MobileFighterGGundam G Gundam]]'' '''''loved''''' these, including at least one at the end of every episode.
67	** Two episodes of ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing'', "Catherine's Tears" and "Takeoff Into Confusion", featured one.
68	** There are also a few scenes from Anime/GundamBuildFighters and its sequel, Anime/GundamBuildFightersTRY, particularly for the eyecatch or just before the ending song.
69	* ''Anime/TekkamanBlade'' throws these around quite a bit, especially when dark secrets start coming out.
70	* A series of shorts featuring various Creator/GoNagai super robots like Anime/MazingerZ and Manga/GetterRobo ended its three shorts this way.
71	* ''Anime/HeartcatchPrettyCure'' ended one of its final episodes with this, showing the girls at the beginning of their StormingTheCastle attack.
72	* ''Anime/{{Symphogear}}'' uses these instead of CallingYourAttacks, mostly because [[DiscoTech the protagonists' weapons only work while they are singing]]. The visual style and typeface vary by attacker.
73	** Starting with the second season G, pretty much every end of episode CliffHanger is punctuated by one of those.
74	* Anime/SpaceDandy himself appears this way in one episode while having an existential crisis. He gets over it a second later and pops back to normal.
75	* ''Anime/VoltesV'':
76	** Firstly, [[spoiler: when Kenichi learns that his father, Kentaro, was a Boazanian - a.k.a., a member of the race of aliens who are currently ''invading the Earth.'' And not just ''any'' Boazanian - he was their Prince, Gohl. However, he abandoned Boazania due to their cruelty towards the Hornless and led many slave rebellions, making him a DefectorFromDecadence.]]
77	** Secondly, and most tragically used when [[spoiler: Katherine takes a noble's bullet for Prince Heinel, sending him over the DespairEventHorizon. Heinel begs her not to die, but she passes away in his arms, and it is only after this that Heinel realizes that he's been in love with her [[UnknowinglyInLove all along]].]]
78	** Lastly, [[spoiler: when Heinel and Kenichi spar, and Heinel takes out his dagger, Kentaro/Gohl's face is coloured this way. He sees the twin doves on the hilt and realizes that it is the same dagger he gave to his first wife, Lozaria. Which means the boy that Lozaria [[DeathByChildbirth gave her life]] to have was the very same Prince who's been serving the cruel empire that he fled from, and terrorizing the Earth - a.k.a the same planet that brought him refuge from Boazan oppression. Once Heinel realizes that Gohl is his father, he has a MyGodWhatHaveIDoneMoment and begs his the Emperor to put an end to the war.]]
79	* Done in the first opening of ''Manga/YourLieInApril'' featuring Kousei and Kaori performing together with their respective instrument. [[spoiler:Which is used again in the finale, but it's revealed that their final duet performance is never happened, since real Kaori was doing her surgery during that time and its supposed the Kaori that playing alongside Kousei was either her spirit before leaving to afterlife or just pure Kousei's imagination.]]
80	** Also done in episode 10, with the BeautifulDreamer scenery.
81	* Used at the end of the first episode of ''Anime/FullmetalAlchemist2003'' after Edward takes off his coat to [[spoiler:reveal his automail arm]] and Father Cornello pulls a TheNamesake.
82	[[/folder]]
83
84	[[folder:Fan Works]]
85	* Lampshaded/spoofed in ''WebVideo/YuGiOhTheAbridgedSeries'': "Oh no! The animation budget ran out!"
86	[[/folder]]
87
88	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
89	* The ''Franchise/{{Rocky}}'' movies end on an Acrylic-Painted Freeze Frame.
90	* The obscure '80s teen movie ''Film/PrivateSchool'' does this in the opening, showing various scenes from later in the film drawn in this style. It's also how the movie ends.
91	[[/folder]]
92
93	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
94	* The ''Rocky'' example above is spoofed in ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'' -- J.D. and Turk keep fighting to prove their manliness. They realize that they won't be able to settle it. They have a flash of inspiration and wind up taking a photo of them both in boxing gear, and each telling the story of how they won.
95	-->'''J.D. & Turk:''' ''[together]'' ''[[Film/RockyIII Rocky 3]]'' freeze-frame ending!
96	* Amy and Rory's final episode of ''Series/DoctorWho'' ends with future-Amy narrating all the adventures she had over a shot of kid-Amy from her first appearance. It turns pastel-colored in the last few seconds.
97	* By the 3rd season of ''Series/{{Blossom}}''; they began using this; usually for the beginning of the episode or coming back from a commercial break.
98	[[/folder]]
99
100	[[folder:Video Games]]
101	* In ''VideoGame/{{Bayonetta}}'', each time a new enemy type appears (including bosses), a [[MookDebutCutscene mini cutscene]] plays with one of these, transitioning to a book (the Hierarchy of Laguna for angels, Lemegeton's Guidebook for demons in ''VideoGame/Bayonetta2'') as the name and rank/title of the enemy is given.
102	* The "Chapter Complete" bits in ''VideoGame/EternalDarkness'' end like this.
103	* The [[AnimeThemeSong opening]] for ''VideoGame/TalesOfVesperia'' uses this before it fades to black and goes to the start screen.
104	* ''VideoGame/ValkyriaChronicles'' inverts this by starting off with a sketch that begins to move. The entire art style of the game emulates a pastel chalk drawing.
105	* Done with each ToBeContinued screen in ''VideoGame/AsurasWrath'', just to make the parallels to be an interactive anime even more obvious.
106	* ''VideoGame/Killer7'' has a few of these during the level where all the cutscenes are done in anime style.
107	* ''VideoGame/NoMoreHeroesIII'' ends each Ranking episode with one of these, as one of its many {{Retraux}} throwbacks.
108	[[/folder]]
109
110	[[folder:Web Animation]]
111	* Spoofed, appropriately enough, in the [[WebAnimation/HomestarRunner Strong Bad]] e-mail [[http://www.homestarrunner.com/sbemail57.html "Japanese cartoon."]] Many subsequent toons featuring the 20X6 characers also end with these.
112	[[/folder]]
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114	[[folder:Webcomics]]
115	* ''Webcomic/{{Paranatural}}'' parodies it [[http://www.paranatural.net/index.php?id=181 here,]] just after Issac finishes [[OffscreenMomentOfAwesome an offscreen sidequest.]] The use of this trope in a webcomic is also lampshaded.
116	[[/folder]]
117
118	[[folder:Western Animation]]
119	* The ending of the ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' episode "The Cleveland-Loretta Quagmire" ends in a Pastel-Chalked Freeze Frame with the ''Rocky'' theme ''Eye of the Tiger'' playing. The scene leading up to the freeze frame is verbatim of the final scene of ''Film/RockyIII'' (see above).
120	* Some of the action shots in ''WesternAnimation/Ben10'' are replaced with slowly-sliding comic book-like images. Its sequel has yet to use this effect, presumably trying to [[DarkerAndEdgier move away from the more light-hearted nature of the original]].
121	* In ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'', a bunch of these in a row were used to great effect in Book 1, Chapter 10. This is also how a fight between Azula and Suki ended, with Suki's fate not discovered until next season.
122	* The Episode "Deep Six" of ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans2003'' ends this way.
123	* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Wakfu}}'', it is used during the two three-episode Gobbowl arcs, specifically as a ShoutOut to ''Manga/SpaceAdventureCobra''.
124	* Several episodes of ''WesternAnimation/ThunderCats'', including the multi-part Anointment Trials.
125	* The ending to the ''WesternAnimation/AmericanDad'' episode "Escape from Pearl Bailey", where Steve and his friends jump to face a mob of angry students. We can hear them getting their asses kicked, however, complete with them shouting about how they are not even taking anybody with them.
126	* ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'': Done backwards in the 1997 cut of [[Recap/SpongeBobSquarePantsS1E1HelpWantedReefBlowerTeaAtTheTreedome "Help Wanted"]]; the mid-episode title sequence ends with a paint-and-pastel drawing of [=SpongeBob=] standing before the Krusty Krab before fading into animated footage of him doing exactly that. The 1999 cut, which removes the sequence, simply jumps straight to the animated version of the shot.
127	* Every episode of ''WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2012'' ends this way, as a nod to the franchise's comic book origins.
128	[[/folder]]

Context Main / PastelChalkedFreezeFrame