Toon Boom has released Harmony 27, the latest major version of its professional 2D animation software, introducing a set of new tools aimed primarily at improving character rigging, posing, and scene management. The new release, build 25334, became available on June 16, 2026.
Rather than introducing a broad collection of changes across every part of the application, Harmony 27 focuses on several targeted workflow improvements. The update is particularly relevant to animators and riggers working with complex character setups and layered productions.
New Attribute Controller for Character Rigging
One of the most notable additions in Harmony 27 is the Attribute Controller, available in Harmony Premium.
The new system provides another way to control character rigs by allowing artists to create and reuse poses without directly altering existing keyframes. This can make pose management more flexible, particularly in productions where characters contain complex collections of animated attributes.
Compared with traditional rig-control workflows, the new approach is designed to be easier to configure and modify during production. Artists can also use multiple Attribute Controllers to work with different groups of character attributes, providing more flexibility when building and adjusting rigs.
For studios relying heavily on cut-out and rig-based animation, this could make the process of creating and refining character poses considerably more manageable.
Reference View Gets a Mirror Tool
Harmony 27 also adds a Mirror tool to the Reference View, allowing artists to flip reference artwork horizontally without modifying the original drawing.
This is a relatively small addition, but it can be useful during drawing and animation work. Artists can quickly view a reference from the opposite direction while keeping the original asset unchanged. This also avoids the need to create duplicate versions of reference artwork simply for mirroring purposes.
New Selection Lock Node
Another new addition is the Selection Lock Node, designed to provide more control over which parts of a rig can be selected in the Camera view.
In complex character setups, selecting the wrong layer can become an annoying part of the animation process, particularly when many overlapping elements are present. The new node allows specific rig layers to be made non-selectable while leaving their animation, rendering, and timeline behavior unaffected.
This makes the feature particularly useful for larger rigs where keeping the working area clean and predictable can save time during animation.
A Focused Update for Production Workflows
Harmony 27 is not a complete redesign of Toon Boom's animation environment. Instead, the release takes a more focused approach, adding tools that address specific problems encountered during character animation and rig-based production.
The emphasis on rig control in particular reflects the continued importance of hybrid and cut-out workflows in professional 2D animation. By improving how poses, attributes, references, and selectable rig elements are managed, Harmony 27 aims to reduce some of the technical friction that animators encounter during production.
Harmony continues to be offered in three editions—Essentials, Advanced, and Premium—with Premium providing the full feature set and being aimed at productions with more complex requirements and pipelines.
AI Features Remain Separate Through Ember
Harmony 27 should also be viewed separately from Ember, Toon Boom's optional AI-powered add-on.
Ember is available with Harmony versions 24.1 and later and currently provides features such as AI masking, image expansion, and resolution enhancement. Toon Boom describes Ember as an optional component, meaning users do not have to activate it when using Harmony.
This distinction is important because the headline changes in Harmony 27 itself are primarily focused on animation and rigging workflows rather than being an AI-driven overhaul of the software.
Availability
Toon Boom Harmony 27 is available as the current generation of Harmony, with the release dated June 16, 2026 and identified as build 25334. The new version is available across the Harmony editions, although individual features vary depending on the edition.
For professional 2D animation teams, the most significant changes in Harmony 27 are likely to be the new Attribute Controller and Selection Lock Node, while the Reference View Mirror provides a smaller but practical improvement for everyday animation work.
Source
Toon Boom Animation — Harmony 27 Release Notes and Harmony 27 What's New
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