Graphite for Designers and Animators: What's New in Alpha 4 in September 2025

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The developers of Graphite released, this Saturday (20), the tool's new features brought this September. The most recent update, which covers the period from May to September 2025, marks the version Alpha 4 of the software and introduces more than 300 significant changes.

The project, which seeks to establish itself as a 2D creative suite in web, Linux, Mac and Windows versions, with a non-destructive workflow, is still in the alpha development phase. This means that it is not recommended to use it in your production workflow until a stable version is available.. But we encourage testing, as features are being added and refined, and community feedback is essential.

Let's detail the main points of this update.

Structural Change: Data Processing and Rendering

The most profound change in this release was the refactoring of the data format and rendering technology. Previously, the node graph processed one item at a time (as a single vector shape). Now, the system has been redesigned to process data listsIn practice, this allows operations like "repeat" or "spread" to generate multiple independent vector shapes that can still be manipulated individually by subsequent nodes. This addresses a previous limitation where such operations created a less flexible "cluster" of data.

Important: Due to this fundamental change, files created in previous versions that use transformations may display differently. The new engine may recalculate data differently, requiring manual adjustments to restore the original appearance.

Improvements to tools and interface

Layer and Trace Management:

  • Background Color: A layer can now be filled directly with a solid color. This feature is ideal for establishing a background for the infinite canvas without the need to create a giant rectangular object, making it easier to start design work or concept art on a colorful base.
  • Clipping Masks: The ability to create clipping masks intuitively has been implemented. By holding Alt If you click on the border between two layers, the top layer becomes visible only at the edges of the bottom layer. This is an essential feature for texturing shapes, confining brushstrokes to a specific area, or creating complex compositional effects.
  • Stroke Alignment and Order: The stroke has been given more control options. It can now be aligned to the center of the shape's border, inside, or outside, offering the precision needed for icon design and technical work. The option to render the stroke behind the fill has also been added, ensuring that the shape's fill is never obscured by the line weight.

Data Panel and Node Graph:

  • New Data Panel: The old spreadsheet panel has been replaced with a comprehensive data inspector. It allows you to dive into the raw data of any layer or node, displaying real-time tables with point coordinates, color values, or transformation matrices. It's a powerful tool for debugging complex procedural effects and understanding exactly what's happening at each step of the graph.
  • Graph Usability: Node organization has been improved with better categorization for easier searching. Manipulation has also been simplified with intuitive gestures: you can now drag a node over a connection to automatically insert it into the flow or shake it to disconnect it.
  • Automatic Type Conversion: The system now automatically converts between different numeric types (such as integers and floating-point). This removes a common friction point in node systems, allowing the artist to focus on the creative outcome rather than worrying about technical compatibility between node parameters.

Vector Drawing Tools:

  • Path Tool: It has received several improvements inspired by 3D software, such as Blender. The shortcut GG allows you to slide a point along its connected edges, preserving the curve's silhouette. A segment editing mode has been added (with shortcuts R e S to rotate and scale), and the use of Tab now quickly switches between path editing and object selection.
  • Shape Tool: The old Polygon tool has been merged with the Line, Rectangle, and Ellipse tools. It now allows you to create a variety of primitives, including arcs (with on-screen gizmo controls for interactive adjustment), spirals, and grids. Note: Grid rendering still has visual bugs due to limitations in supporting complex vector meshes.
  • Geometry Editing: Basic and essential operations like copying, pasting, and duplicating geometry are now available directly from the Path tool, streamlining your vector editing workflow.

New Nodes and Performance Improvements

A number of new nodes have been added to expand the capabilities of the procedural editor:

  • Data Nodes: Index (to filter a specific item from a list), Count Elements (to count items) and Path Length (to measure the length of a path).
  • Path Knots: Cut Path (cuts a path at a point) and Cut Segments (separates each segment into an individual path). These nodes are building blocks for deconstruction effects, such as animating a line being drawn or applying different colors to each segment of a shape.
  • Text Node: Now allows you to separate each glyph (letter) into an individual element, opening up the possibility of animating or stylizing letters in a word independently.
  • Nested Looping: The knot Instance Repeat now supports a "loop level" parameter, allowing the creation of nested loops. This allows you to generate 2D grids of objects and vary their properties based on both row and column indices.

Overall software performance was a key focus. Panning through complex documents is now smoother. Algorithms for vector operations have been replaced with implementations hundreds of times faster. High-resolution raster image manipulation has also been optimized, now featuring a fluid, near-real-time response, eliminating latency that can interrupt creative flow.

Next steps towards beta

The team continues working to stabilize the software and add essential features. According to the roadmap and presentation video, upcoming focuses include:

  • Native Desktop Application: A native version written in Rust, scheduled for release later this year. Running independently, without a browser, it can better utilize the system's hardware, resulting in improved performance and stability.
  • GPU Accelerated Rendering: The implementation of hardware-accelerated raster image rendering is nearing completion.
  • Animation Panel: A dedicated keyframe animation panel is planned, expanding the current procedural animation capabilities and making Graphite a more complete motion graphics tool.

Advantages and disadvantages for film and audiovisual professionals

Analyzing this update from the perspective of motion designers, animators, and other professionals in the field, we can highlight:

Benefits

  • High Potential for Procedural Motion Graphics: The ability to manipulate lists of data, combined with nested looping and nodes like Separate Subpaths, opens up a huge range of possibilities for creating complex, data-driven animations. It's possible, for example, to create particle systems, advanced replicators, and typographic animations where each letter behaves independently, all non-destructively.
  • Smoother Workflow on Heavy Projects: Performance improvements are a direct benefit. Audiovisual projects often involve complex vector logos or the manipulation of high-resolution textures and background images. Real-time response means less waiting time and a more interactive creative process.
  • Synergy with the Open Source Ecosystem: The adoption of shortcuts and concepts familiar to Blender users (GG, Tab) reduces the learning curve and improves Graphite's integration into the open source tool pipeline that many Linux professionals already use.
  • More Robust Typography Tools: For creating intros, captions, and credits, the new typography engine with justified alignment and per-glyph controls is a valuable addition that gives text a more professional finish.

Disadvantages

The disadvantage of Graphite cannot be measured at this time because it's an Alpha software, and we don't want to burn the project before it's launched. The only downside we can mention for now is that the software can't be considered for a production workflow until a stable version is released.

Thanks to the developers

It's impossible not to recognize the ambition and dedication of the Graphite development team. The progress demonstrated in just a few months is remarkable, and the transparency with which they share challenges and next steps is an example for the free software community. They're not just building a tool; they're paving the way for a more robust, open, and powerful creative ecosystem on the Linux platform. Our congratulations to all the developers and contributors involved.