Saving Animation Curves
Animation curves can be saved in a folder in the Library, such as the Favorites category.
Alternatively, you can create a folder in a category. After an animation curve is placed in
the Library, it can be added to an object in any project. Animation curves saved in the
Library appear with a custom icon.
Note: Items saved to the Library appear in the Finder with a .molo extension (“Motion
Library object”). These items cannot be opened from the Finder.
You can save multiple curves to the Library as one file or multiple files. For example, if
you create an animation that uses multiple curves and you want to save the cumulative
effect of the animation, you can save all curves as one item in the Library.
Although you can save animation curves into the Content category, it is generally
recommended that you save items that you use frequently in the Favorites
category—some Motion Library categories contain so many items that using the Favorites
or Favorites Menu categories can save you search time. In the Favorites category, you
can create additional folders to organize custom items.
You can also create folders in existing categories, including Favorites, Favorites Menu, or
Content. Folders created in the Content category appear in the Library sidebar. Folders
created in subcategories, such as Basic Motion, appear in the Library stack and not the
sidebar. For more information on creating folders in the Library, see
Saving and Sharing
Custom Behaviors
.
605
Chapter 12
Keyframes and Curves
Animation curves saved to the Favorites Menu category can be applied to objects using
the Favorites menu.
To save an animation curve to the Library
1
Open the Library and select the Favorites or Favorites Menu category.
2
Drag the name of the parameter animation curve to save from the parameter list in the
Keyframe Editor into the stack at the bottom of the Library.
When you save an animation curve, it’s placed in the /Users/username/Library/Application
Support/Motion/Library/Favorites/ or /Favorites Menu/ folder.
Note: If you drag an animation curve to another subcategory, such as the Glow (Filters)
subcategory, the curve is placed in the Content category, which becomes active.
To save multiple animation curves to the Library
1
Open the Library and select the Content, Favorites, or Favorites Menu category.
2
In the parameter list of the Keyframe Editor, select the animation curves you want to save
and drag them to the stack, holding the mouse button down.
3
When the drop menu appears, choose “All in one file” or “Multiple files.”
“All in one file” saves the animation curves together, listed as one item in the Library.
“Multiple files” saves the curves as individual items in the Library.
4
To name the file, do one of the following:
• Control-click its icon in the Library stack, choose Rename from the shortcut menu, then
enter a descriptive name.
• Select the icon, click its name, then enter a descriptive name.
Note: When you Control-click an animation curve icon in the Library stack, the Edit
Description shortcut menu item becomes available. This is a handy tool that allows you
to enter custom notes about an item saved in the Library. After you choose Edit
Description, enter your notes in the text field, then click OK.