Created animation in a symbol

[lewiss15814412]

Hi there,

I have been creating an animation without realising I have been creating the whole of my animation in a symbol. I have not realised till I have finished and when I tried to export it would only export the 1 layer from the actual animation as it is unaware I have created a whole animation in one of the symbols.

I have tried to copy and paste the layers into a new document however the centre stage is not centred and when I move all the layers, they do not all move and some of my keyframes do not match up.

Is there a way to make one of the symbols become its own animation or is there a way to re-allign the centre stage without moving any of the work already created on the layers?

Thanks

[n. tilcheff · Accepted solution]

Hello Lewis,

First of all check to make sure that your layers are not guided. Guided layers do not export and have a different icon:

It is a standard practice in Flash-based TV animation to nest everything one or multiple levels deep.

Exporting should not be a problem, if your file is AS3. If it's HTML5 Canvas I cannot give advice as I don't use that often.

If you just make sure your 'symbol' is a Graphic Symbol set to 'play once' and the first frame is set to 1, it should render the content in sync with the main timeline during export.

If you don't need advanced layers switch them off, from the Modify menu > Document...

Try rendering out a PNG sequence and a video out of that in Premiere, AE or similar.

--

The misalignment when you paste frames and layers from the symbol container to the main timeline occurs because the symbol has its own coordinate system with 0,0 point being the Registration point. The Stage/Main timeline has 0,0 at the top-left corner.

If for some inexplicable reason you must really paste your work on the main timeline, do it.

Before copying the layers or frames and pasting them on main timeline you may want to create a box on a topmost layer that will serve as a frame guide. Just draw a box that matches the dimensions/location of the stage.

Make sure you save a copy of your original file.

Copy the layers, paste them on main timeline and

1. Use Edit Multiple Frames.

2. Then choose Marker Range All or the range that you need.

3. Make sure only the layers that need adjustment are unlocked while everything else is locked.

4. Very important! From the Edit menu choose Select All - this is what actually selects all the objects.

5. Move all your objects with the V-tool - this can be CPU intensive if you have a lot of stuff and you need to be patient.

If you need to see better you can lock all layers for a moment, then unlock to move again.

Keep in mind though that this should not be necessary. Actually working inside a container is preferred and working on the main timeline is considered a bad practice.

--

Finally, you can use our Set Reg Point To Transform Point to re-register the symbol container to match the registration of the stage (top left corner). Then when you paste the frames or layers in the main timeline, the animation will appear where you want it.

Good luck!

NT

[lewiss15814412]

you are a life saver! thank you so much!!