A new report from YouTube’s “Culture and Trends” team finds that independent online animators are attracting audiences at rates comparable to major studio productions.

A total of 61% of 14 to 24-year-old animation fans said they like watching animated series created by independent animators for YouTube as much as or more than series created by a major studio. The same age group watches animation memes weekly or more at a rate of 66%, while 63% watch YouTube-native animated series at that frequency, and 57% watch animatics weekly or more.

The report, produced in partnership with research firm SmithGeiger, surveyed thousands of active online users between the ages of 14 and 49 across the U.S. YouTube researchers also interviewed prominent creators and analyzed platform data from around the world.

Three Production Formats

The report identifies three primary video formats used by online animators: 

1. Animation Memes: Brief animations of original characters set to audio, designed to be remixed by other creators. 
2. Animatics: Traditionally a preliminary production step, used by online creators as finished products. 
3. Full Episodes: Typically comparable in quality to mainstream animated programming and are often released alongside trailers or clips. 

The report notes that younger viewers, many of whom create their own animations using tools like Blender and Alight Motion, “do not make the same kinds of distinctions as earlier generations” regarding production quality.

Global Reach

The report highlights the cross-border performance of YouTube-first animation. “Alien Stage,” a Korean animated series, generated over 330 million views in 2025, with more than 90% coming from outside Korea. “The Amazing Digital Circus,” from Australian studio Glitch Productions, appeared on YouTube’s Trending Topics lists in eight of 12 tracked countries after releasing only four episodes.

Fifty percent of animation fans between the ages of 14 and 49 said they watch animated series in languages other than their own. The report cites dubbing and auto-translation tools as contributing factors, noting that the pilot episode of “The Amazing Digital Circus” includes subtitles in 18 languages and audio tracks in 21.

Fan Participation and Funding

The report documents how several creators have built audience engagement into their production process. 

“EPIC: The Musical,” a YouTube-first adaptation of Homer’s “The Odyssey,” accumulated more than 1.3 billion views of related videos and generated over 4,000 uploads of related animatics in the first six months of 2025 alone. Creator Jorge Rivera-Herrans sourced artists from the fan community to produce official animatics for the series. “One of the things that makes EPIC special, if not the biggest thing, is really the community,” Rivera-Herrans said in the report.

On the monetization side, animated series “Dungeon Flippers” and “Far-Fetched” both exceeded their Kickstarter fundraising targets. Glitch Productions ties merchandise releases to each new episode. “We generally like to turn each episode that we drop into a spectacle, or an event, and tied to this event is some merchandise,” said Kevin Lerdwichagul, the company’s cofounder and CEO. “Every time someone buys a piece of merch, that goes into funding more shows, more episodes.”

The full report is available here