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I assumed phonemes weren't simply about the lips, but also the tongue.

I dunno. There are people who lip read. Maybe they'd be the best to ask about the differences. :)

I'm sure lip readers would pay more attention to the tongue and might see the difference. Most people who don't read lips won't.

As I think about this, the lips do much more than simply open or close. "P" for example initially looks like an "M," but has to end in a very slight pucker. Usually, "F" is not simply about how open the lips are, but where the jaw lines up so that the bottom teeth can press against the upper lip. Etc.

I suspect though that the tendency with animation is to way overdo the extent of phoneme movement, and thus things would look exaggerated. No subtlety, no realism.

FWIW.

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