Cel (セル画)

Cels (celga/セル画) are the finished product of the animation process.  A cel is made from transferring dougas (finished pencil drawings) onto a clear sheet of acetate by various methods such as xerox or more rarely they may be hand painted. They are then painted on the back with cel paints using a master color key for the character (s) as a guide.  Most cels are farmed out to offshore studios that churn them out in bulk commonly leading to mistakes. Every cel that goes under the camera must be checked by someone to check for errors. Mistakes such as incorrect paint colors and disappearing objects from frame to frame can lead to entire cuts getting reanimated.