Motion User Guide
- Welcome
- What’s new
-
- Intro to basic compositing
-
- Intro to transforming layers
-
- Intro to transforming layers in the canvas
- Transform layer properties in the canvas
- Transform tools
- Change layer position, scale, or rotation
- Move a layer’s anchor point
- Add a drop shadow to a layer
- Distort or shear a layer
- Crop a layer
- Modify shape or mask points
- Transform text glyphs and other object attributes
- Align layers in the canvas
- Transform layers in the HUD
- Transform 2D layers in 3D space
-
- Intro to behaviors
- Behaviors versus keyframes
-
- Intro to behavior types
-
- Intro to Parameter behaviors
- Audio behavior
- Average behavior
- Clamp behavior
- Custom behavior
- Add a Custom behavior
- Exponential behavior
- Link behavior
- Logarithmic behavior
- MIDI behavior
- Add a MIDI behavior
- Negate behavior
- Oscillate behavior
- Create a decaying oscillation
- Overshoot behavior
- Quantize behavior
- Ramp behavior
- Randomize behavior
- Rate behavior
- Reverse behavior
- Stop behavior
- Track behavior
- Wriggle behavior
-
- Intro to Simulation behaviors
- Align to Motion behavior
- Attracted To behavior
- Attractor behavior
- Drag behavior
- Drift Attracted To behavior
- Drift Attractor behavior
- Edge Collision behavior
- Gravity behavior
- Orbit Around behavior
- Random Motion behavior
- Repel behavior
- Repel From behavior
- Rotational Drag behavior
- Spring behavior
- Vortex behavior
- Wind behavior
- Additional behaviors
-
- Intro to using generators
- Add a generator
-
- Intro to image generators
- Caustics generator
- Cellular generator
- Checkerboard generator
- Clouds generator
- Color Solid generator
- Concentric Polka Dots generator
- Concentric Shapes generator
- Gradient generator
- Grid generator
- Japanese Pattern generator
- Lens Flare generator
- Manga Lines generator
- Membrane generator
- Noise generator
- One Color Ray generator
- Op Art 1 generator
- Op Art 2 generator
- Op Art 3 generator
- Overlapping Circles generator
- Radial Bars generator
- Soft Gradient generator
- Spirals generator
- Spiral Drawing generator
- Use Spiral Drawing onscreen controls
- Star generator
- Stripes generator
- Sunburst generator
- Truchet Tiles generator
- Two Color Ray generator
- Save a modified generator
-
- Intro to filters
- Browse and preview filters
- Apply or remove filters
-
- Intro to filter types
-
- Intro to Color filters
- Brightness filter
- Channel Mixer filter
- Color Adjustments filter
- Color Balance filter
- Example: Color-balance two layers
- Color Curves filter
- Use the Color Curves filter
- Color Reduce filter
- Color Wheels filter
- Use the Color Wheels filter
- Colorize filter
- Contrast filter
- Custom LUT filter
- Use the Custom LUT filter
- Gamma filter
- Gradient Colorize filter
- HDR Tools filter
- Hue/Saturation filter
- Hue/Saturation Curves filter
- Use the Hue/Saturation Curves filter
- Levels filter
- Negative filter
- OpenEXR Tone Map filter
- Sepia filter
- Threshold filter
- Tint filter
-
- Intro to Distortion filters
- Black Hole filter
- Bulge filter
- Bump Map filter
- Disc Warp filter
- Droplet filter
- Earthquake filter
- Fisheye filter
- Flop filter
- Fun House filter
- Glass Block filter
- Glass Distortion
- Insect Eye filter
- Mirror filter
- Page Curl filter
- Poke filter
- Polar filter
- Refraction filter
- Ring Lens filter
- Ripple filter
- Scrape filter
- Sliced Scale filter
- Use the Sliced Scale filter
- Sphere filter
- Starburst filter
- Stripes filter
- Target filter
- Tiny Planet filter
- Twirl filter
- Underwater filter
- Wave filter
-
- Intro to Stylize filters
- Add Noise filter
- Bad Film filter
- Bad TV filter
- Circle Screen filter
- Circles filter
- Color Emboss filter
- Comic filter
- Crystallize filter
- Edges filter
- Extrude filter
- Fill filter
- Halftone filter
- Hatched Screen filter
- Highpass filter
- Indent filter
- Line Art filter
- Line Screen filter
- MinMax filter
- Noise Dissolve filter
- Pixellate filter
- Posterize filter
- Relief filter
- Slit Scan filter
- Slit Tunnel filter
- Texture Screen filter
- Vignette filter
- Wavy Screen filter
- About filters and color processing
- Publish filter controls to Final Cut Pro
- Using filters on alpha channels
- Filter performance
- Save custom filters
-
- Intro to 3D objects
- Add a 3D object
- Move and rotate a 3D object
- Reposition a 3D object’s anchor point
- Exchange a 3D object file
- 3D object intersection and layer order
- Using cameras and lights with 3D objects
- Save custom 3D objects
- Guidelines for working with 3D objects
- Working with imported 3D objects
-
- Intro to 360-degree video
- 360-degree projects
- Create 360-degree projects
- Add 360-degree video to a project
- Create a tiny planet effect
- Reorient 360-degree media
- Creating 360-degree templates for Final Cut Pro
- 360-degree-aware filters and generators
- Export and share 360-degree projects
- Guidelines for better 360-degree projects
-
- Intro to settings and shortcuts
-
- Intro to Keyboard shortcuts
- Use function keys
- General keyboard shortcuts
- Audio list keyboard shortcuts
-
- Tools keyboard shortcuts
- Transform tool keyboard shortcuts
- Select/Transform tool keyboard shortcuts
- Crop tool keyboard shortcuts
- Edit Points tool keyboard shortcuts
- Edit shape tools keyboard shortcuts
- Pan and Zoom tools keyboard shortcuts
- Shape tools keyboard shortcuts
- Bezier tool keyboard shortcuts
- B-Spline tool keyboard shortcuts
- Paint Stroke tool keyboard shortcuts
- Text tool keyboard shortcuts
- Shape mask tools keyboard shortcuts
- Bezier Mask tool keyboard shortcuts
- B-Spline Mask tool keyboard shortcuts
- Transport control keyboard shortcuts
- View option keyboard shortcuts
- HUD keyboard shortcuts
- Inspector keyboard shortcuts
- Keyframe Editor keyboard shortcuts
- Layers keyboard shortcuts
- Library keyboard shortcuts
- Media list keyboard shortcuts
- Timeline keyboard shortcuts
- Keyframing keyboard shortcuts
- Shape and Mask keyboard shortcuts
- 3D keyboard shortcuts
- Miscellaneous keyboard shortcuts
- Touch Bar shortcuts
- Move assets to another computer
- Work with GPUs
- Glossary
- Copyright
![](https://help.apple.com/assets/6578ED9D202EA54F7003FAAA/6578ED9EBDA3B130FF0B4ED0/en_US/61af24e141c4e4e33a9f3252ac43ed64.png)
File menu in Motion
The File menu contains functions and commands for managing Motion files.
New: Opens either the Project Browser or a new default Motion project (if you’ve already set a default project). (Command-N)
New from Project Browser: Opens the Project Browser. (Option-Command-N)
Open: Opens a dialog to select a Motion project to open. (Command-O)
Open Recent: Opens a submenu that lists the most recently opened files.
Close: Closes the current project. If the project has not been saved, Motion asks you to save the project before closing the window. (Command-W)
Save: Stores the current state of the project to disk. (Command-S)
Save As: Saves the current state of the project with a new name. (Shift-Command-S)
Publish Template: Available when the current project is a standard Motion project, saves the current project as a Motion template or a Final Cut Generator template (for use in Final Cut Pro). See Intro to using templates and Create a generator template.
Revert to Saved: Restores the selected project to the last saved state. Changes made after the last save are lost. Use caution; you cannot undo this operation.
Restore from Autosave: Displays a dialog where you can choose a project previously saved to the Autosave Vault. See Cache settings.
Import: Opens a dialog to select a file to import into your project. (Command-I)
Import As: Opens a submenu of options for importing:
Project: Opens a dialog to select a file to import as the basis of a new project using the file’s dimensions and duration. If multiple items are selected, they’re all placed in the same project. Additional options are available if an image sequence is selected. See Open an existing project. (Shift-Command-I)
Unused Media: Opens a dialog to select a file to import into the Media list. The imported media file isn’t added to your composition; instead, it’s stored in the Media list for future use in your project.
Audio: Opens a dialog to select an audio file to import into your project. If you select a video clip that has audio, only the audio component is imported.
Share: Opens a submenu of options for sharing your project:
Export Movie: Exports your project as a QuickTime movie to a Finder folder to use in other projects and applications or to distribute manually. See Export a QuickTime movie.
Export Selection to Movie: Exports the current selection as a QuickTime movie to a Finder folder. See Export a QuickTime movie.
Export Audio: Exports only the audio portion your project as an audio file to a Finder folder. See Export a QuickTime movie.
Save Current Frame: Saves the frame currently visible in the canvas as a still image file to a Finder folder. See Export a still image.
Export Image Sequence: Exports your project as an image sequence to a Finder folder. See Export a QuickTime movie.
Apple Devices: Exports your project using presets that allow you to watch it on Apple TV, or download it to iPad, iPhone, or iPod. See Export to Apple devices.
Email: Opens the Mail application and attaches your project as a rendered movie file. See Export to email.
[Custom Compressor Setting]: If you’ve created a custom Compressor setting (in the Compressor app), exports your project using that predefined export setting. See Export from Motion using Compressor.
Add Destination: Opens the Destinations pane of Motion Settings. See Create and modify share destinations.
Send to Compressor: Renders your project through the Compressor app (if installed), allowing you to further customize your export settings and output a single movie file to a Finder folder. See Export from Motion using Compressor.
Convert Project To: Opens a submenu of options for converting a standard Motion project to a Final Cut Effect, Final Cut Generator, Final Cut Title, or Final Cut Transition template, converting a Final Cut template to a different template type, or converting any template to a standard Motion project. See Convert a Motion project to a Final Cut Pro for Mac template or Convert a template to another type.
Reconnect Media: Reestablishes a link to a file on disk when a layer in your project has been moved or modified.
Remove Unused Media: Removes a media item from your project when the item is stored in the Media list but not used in the project.
Remove Optical Flow Retiming: Resets the retiming information file when a media item has been processed for retiming. See Intro to retiming media in the Motion Timeline.
Page Setup: Displays the standard macOS Page Setup dialog, where you can set paper size and orientation for printing. (Shift-Command-P)
Print: Displays the standard macOS Print dialog, where you can print the contents of the canvas. (Command-P)
Download this guide: PDF