Skip to main content
petecalgaro
petecalgaro
Participating Frequently
July 20, 2011
Answered

Is it possible to change the duration of the timeline in Premiere Pro CS5.5?

  • July 20, 2011
  • 8 replies
  • 123031 views

I'm used to working on Avid systems where the length of the timeline is determined by the last asset in the timeline, where it ends. I'm editing commercials and don't need or want a 10 minute timeline. Does anyone know how to change the duration of the timeline, like you can in After Effects? I've tried everything I can think of and It seems like it is not possible.... Thanks!

    Correct answer joe_bloe_premiere


    Your timeline ends with the last media file...
    ignore anything beyond that.  That's what Premiere does.

    You can use the backslash key (\) to fit your timeline view
    to the length of the assets it contains.

    8 replies

    L
    luna_1737
    Participant
    April 4, 2025

    I figured it out! Place your position on the sequence at the start of your sequence and hit 'I' (capital i), then move it to the end of what you want your total timeline duration to be and hit 'O' (not zero). That cut my In/Out Duration from an automatic 1 minute to 10 seconds!

    Ryad Arlan
    Ryad Arlan
    Participating Frequently
    March 13, 2021

    OK, So I am quite certain that the problem is with having messed with Nesting or Duration of longer clips. If you have a nested clip that is 20 minutes long and you adjusted the entire duration of the nested clip to 15 minutes then the sequence will be 20 minutes long but the work area will be 15.

     

    So you have a cutting board with bits that extend past the working area.

    See Screens. I am now Quite CERTAIN This is the "Problem" It isnt really a Problem once you know what is causing it. 

     

    But agreed, the Nested duration should not be reflected in the Sequence Work Area. 

     

    Hugo Nadeau!
    Hugo Nadeau!
    Participating Frequently
    August 28, 2020

    2020 and Premiere still don't allow you to change the length of the timeline it seems.... I am making a 5 min. clip and it always show as a 15 to 17 minutes clip to me, so resizing the timeline always looks pretty bad. I too feel this is pretty dumb in any situation. And this famous +10 minutes must be hell of a stupid thing when you try to work on a 1 min. clip... Seriously, this is the worst feature I saw in Premiere so far and it should be addressed.

      Lord Helvetica
      Lord Helvetica
      Participant
      March 14, 2018

      Go the end of the last clip in your sequence (the start of the black section you want to delete).

      Mark IN

      Hit END

      Mark OUT

      Hit X

        stuarth84115672
        stuarth84115672
        Participant
        June 19, 2020

        There are 2 factors being discussed here.

        1) Seeing only the visible data on the Timeline.

        Seeing the Timeline only where there's data was covered by using the \ (<--backslash) which is usually located just above the "Enter" key on a keyboard.

         

        2) The length of the video that gets saved & exported.

        I shortened a video a few days ago and forgot to shorten the gray line above the data on my Timeline.  I don't know what it's called but it's right below where you put the time marker.  It's the gray bar with the arrows pointing at it in the picture attached to this post.  Go to the far right end (where the 3 arrows are) and drag the blue end of the line back to where your video ends.  It will sense it when you're real close to it.  It's possible that it somehow accidentally got dragged waaaaaaay out and it's doing its job and telling the computer to export what's inside it.

         

        Good luck!

          M
          mrpimmy
          Participant
          October 1, 2017

          Same problem. Is there no solution yet?

            AntonioFigueroa.com
            AntonioFigueroa.com
            Participant
            June 6, 2019

            we are in the XXI century and adobe still does not solve the problem of the long time of the timeline, I think I will change to Davinci.

            John T Smith
            Community Expert
            John T SmithCommunity Expert
            Community Expert
            June 7, 2019

            PPro CS6 was last updated August 2013 and is End of LIfe and no longer updated

            If you want new features, you have to buy a Cloud subscription

            V
            VoiceOverFeak_com
            Participant
            March 30, 2017

            This issue hasn't been answered for me.
            In fact, when I export, the output is 30 minutes long!
            The clip is just 1:36.
            Why does it extend so much blank space and how do I eliminate it?
            Thanks.

              E
              Easilycrazyhat
              Participant
              December 15, 2014

              So I know this is already several years old, but I found a solution to the problem and figured this is the best place to post it.

              To reduce an enormous gap in your timeline, what you have to do is mess with the frame the sequence window is in. Shorten it horizontally, then bring it back to normal. As you mess with it, Premiere will adjust it. Hope this helps someone out there.

                t@nstaafl
                t@nstaafl
                Participant
                December 7, 2021

                Nice tip. Thank you!

                  J
                  joe_bloe_premiereCorrect answer
                  Inspiring
                  July 20, 2011


                  Your timeline ends with the last media file...
                  ignore anything beyond that.  That's what Premiere does.

                  You can use the backslash key (\) to fit your timeline view
                  to the length of the assets it contains.

                    petecalgaro
                    petecalgaroAuthor
                    Participating Frequently
                    July 20, 2011

                    My sequence ends when it ends, but the timeline continues for 10 minutes, so that when I zoom all the way out I see a sliver of my sequence and a bunch of empty timeline. I want to be able to zoom al the way out and see only the sequence - have it fill the whole thing - just like it would in Avid software.

                      J
                      joe_bloe_premiere
                      Inspiring
                      July 20, 2011

                      To zoom the timeline to fit your assets:

                      With the timeline selected, hit \ - (backslash key)

                      Terms & ConditionsAccessibility statement
                      Using the community Terms of use Privacy Cookie preferences Do not sell or share my personal information ad choicesAdChoices