Timeline and Animation

The timeline at the bottom of the editor builds motion that changes over time. There are two kinds of track: the camera track holds camera moves that travel between viewpoints, and the shape key track holds shape animation that morphs the item. Animations are saved with the item and are exported as video from the Record tab or used as short-form material.

The timeline is shown in Normal edit mode. Even when collapsed, adding a keyframe (I) or playing (Space) expands it automatically. Shape keys themselves are created and managed in the Animation tab (N) of Normal edit mode.

Layout

• Playhead — the vertical line marking the current time. Click or drag on the ruler to move it
• Start · End range — the timeline length. Defaults to 30 seconds at 30 fps; change the end value to set the length. Shrinking the range removes keyframes outside it
• Time / frame display — show the ruler in seconds or frame numbers
• Transport buttons — go to start · previous keyframe · previous frame · play/pause · next frame · next keyframe · go to end
• Auto key — while on, every camera move adds a keyframe at the current time automatically
• Add keyframe / Remove keyframe at current position / Clear all
• Record — records the timeline as video → Normal Edit Mode › Record tab
• Save — saves the keyframes to the item. The top-bar Save stores them as well

To navigate the timeline itself: Shift+drag to pan, wheel to zoom, Shift+wheel to scroll sideways.

Creating camera keyframes

1. Move the playhead to the time you want: click the ruler, step one frame with ← →, or jump with the previous/next keyframe buttons
2. Frame the viewpoint for that time in the viewport (rotate · pan · zoom)
3. Press I or the Add keyframe button. A marker appears on the camera track
4. Repeat, moving the time and changing the view. Playback needs at least two keyframes
5. Press Space to play and check. Views between keyframes are interpolated automatically

If a keyframe already exists at that time, it is updated to the current view.

Editing keyframes

• Select — click a marker. Ctrl/Cmd+click toggles several, Shift+click selects a range
• Move in time — drag a marker left or right
• Remove — put the playhead on it and press Remove keyframe at current position, or Clear all (with a confirmation)
• Everything can be undone with Ctrl+Z

Interpolation

The interpolation dropdown that appears for a selected keyframe sets how the view travels from that keyframe to the next. Select several to change them at once.

• Linear — constant speed. The default
• Ease In — starts slowly and accelerates
• Ease Out — starts fast and slows to a stop. Natural for a shot that settles in front of the item
• Ease In Out — starts slowly and stops slowly. The smoothest camera move
• Step — no interpolation; the view jumps at the next keyframe. For cut-style switches

Shape key track

Animates the item's shape over time. It is prepared in the Animation tab (N).

1. Save basis shape — stores the current shape as the basis
2. Add Shape Key — upload a deformed file with the same point order as the basis to create a shape key. Click the name to rename it
3. Set how far to morph with each shape key's weight slider and press Insert keyframe; that weight is recorded on the shape key track at the current time
4. Move the time, change the weight and insert again to build the motion. Interpolation uses the same dropdown as the camera

• If there are placed items or deleted splats, save first before adding shape keys
• Shape keys need a fixed point order, so they can't be combined with the LOD label feature in Splat edit mode

Camera move presets and video extraction

• Camera move presets — save a set of camera keyframes under a name and apply it on another item relative to the current position. Requires sign-in
• Extract camera motion from video — upload footage and the server extracts the camera motion, appending it to the timeline as keyframes. Save the scene to keep it
• Transform selected keyframes — translate, rotate (degrees) and scale the path of the selected camera keyframes at once, pivoting on the start point or the center

Playing it in the viewer

Building a timeline does not make the published viewer play it by itself. Playback is decided in Style edit mode › Style tab.

• Rotation section › Rotate mode — Auto spins the item at a constant speed (set with rotation speed); Keyframe plays the timeline's camera keyframes
• Animation section › Animation mode — None · Loop · Once. Whether the keyframe animation repeats or plays a single time and stops
• If a visitor operates the camera during keyframe playback, playback stops and hands over to direct control

→ Style Edit Mode chapter

Turning it into video

Once the timeline is done, export it as video with the record button or the Record tab (O). For vertical short-form formats use the Short-form tab (D) → Normal Edit Mode chapter.