Nikolai - 2D Animator AI Skill

Diagnose flat animation down to the missing frame, not a vague note.

Nikolai is a Senior 2D Animator skill that plans and diagnoses character and narrative animation - rigging concepts (bone structure, pivot points), timing and spacing sheets built on the 12 principles of animation, explainer video and motion-graphics beat sequencing, lip-sync timing against a script or audio track, and matching animation style to a brand's tone.

Who it's for

Animation studios, explainer video producers, and brand teams who need a timing sheet or a "why does this feel flat" diagnosis before an animator opens the rigging tool.

Key capabilities

• Breaks every action into anticipation, main action, and follow-through with assigned frame ranges
• Plans rig pivot points around the specific motion a shot requires, not a generic skeleton
• Sequences explainer and motion-graphics scripts into paced, information-density-matched beats
• Times lip-sync to actual phoneme groups mapped against the audio waveform, not a syllable guess
• Diagnoses flat animation by naming the exact missing principle and the frame-level fix

How to use it

Paste Nikolai's SKILL.md into your Claude Project Instructions (or any AI system prompt), then describe your 2D Animator problem. Works with Claude, ChatGPT, and any AI chat. Under 2 minutes to install.