Scenes - Complete Guide

Learn how to organize your whiteboard animation into multiple scenes in Scribe Animator. This guide covers scene creation, management, transitions, and best practices for effective storytelling.

Current visual orientation

The scene manager, canvas, and timeline share one project state. Selecting a scene changes the active editing context; it does not create a separate tutorial canvas.

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Two 15-second scenes produce a 30-second project; the second scene begins at global time 0:15.

Screenshot callouts

1. 1
   Scene count

   The manager reports the number of ordered scenes in the current project.
2. 2
   New Scene

   Creates a scene after the active scene, selects it, and seeks to its global start.
3. 3
   Scene card

   Shows order, name, duration, object count, play action, and the more-actions menu.
4. 4
   Incoming transition

   The transition control between cards configures the transition into the later scene.
5. 5
   Active Scene 2

   The blue outline identifies the scene that receives new objects and edits.
6. 6
   Global playhead at 0:15

   Scene-local 0:00 in Scene 2 maps to project-global 0:15.

Product UI and source verification

This capture and the marked controls were checked against the running Desktop editor with browser-based UI review on July 26, 2026. The header has no separate Share button, scene commands are exposed through cards rather than the unverified shortcut table that older docs showed, and transitions belong to the incoming scene. For exact create, rename, duplicate, reorder, duration, transition, template, reset, and Mobile Lite steps, follow Build with scenes and templates.

Application Layout Overview

Use the authentic annotated capture above as the layout reference.

Area	Scene responsibility
Scene Manager	Creates, selects, orders, duplicates, renames, resets, and deletes scenes
Canvas	Shows and edits only the active scene's objects
Timeline	Maps scene-local edits into project-global playback time
Transition control	Configures the transition into the later scene
Playback	Previews the ordered scenes and their transitions as one project

Scene Management Access:

• Left Sidebar → 🎬 Scenes — Open Scene Manager panel
• Timeline → Scene Track — View and select scenes
• Timeline → Scene Gaps — Add/edit transitions between scenes

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What Are Scenes?

Scenes are the building blocks of your animation project. Each scene contains:

• Objects — Text, images, SVGs, shapes on the canvas

• Duration — How long the scene plays

• Transition — How it transitions from the previous scene

• Background — Individual scene background settings

• A project owns the ordered scene list and project-wide settings.

• Each scene owns its duration, objects, scene-level background override, camera state, and local timing.

• A transition is stored as the incoming transition of the later scene.

• Project-global time is calculated from the durations and transitions before the active scene.

tip

Think of scenes like slides in a presentation — each scene tells part of your story, and transitions create smooth connections between them.

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Quick Start: Creating Scenes

Create Your First Scene

1. Open Scenes in the left rail.
2. Select New Scene.
3. Confirm the new card is active and the playhead has moved to its global start.
4. Add content to the canvas. New objects now belong to that scene.

Scene Manager Panel

The real panel in the annotated capture exposes:

• the current scene count;
• New Scene;
• an ordered card for each scene;
• play, name, duration, object-count, and more-actions controls on each card;
• an incoming-transition control between adjacent cards;
• active-scene styling that identifies where edits will be applied.

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Scene Card Anatomy

Each scene in the manager shows key information at a glance.

Card element	Purpose
Play	Starts preview from that scene's global start
Scene name	Identifies the section in the story
Duration	Sets how long the scene remains active
Thumbnail	Provides a compact preview of the scene
Object count	Helps detect unexpectedly empty or overloaded scenes
More actions	Opens rename, duplicate, duration, reset, template, and delete actions available in the current build

Card Information

Element	Description
Play Button	Start playback from this scene
Title	Editable scene name
Thumbnail	Visual preview (auto-generated)
Object Count	Number of objects in scene
Duration	Scene length in seconds
Menu	Additional actions (rename, duplicate, delete)

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Scene Operations

Creating Scenes

Method	How To
New Scene button	Click [+ New Scene] in Scene Manager
Duplicate	Menu (⋮) → Duplicate Scene
Keyboard	Ctrl/⌘ + Shift + N

Selecting Scenes

Select a scene either from its Scene Manager card or from its scene region on the timeline. The selected scene becomes active, the canvas shows its content, and the global playhead seeks into its time range.

Reordering Scenes

1. Drag a scene card toward its new position.
2. Use the insertion feedback to confirm the intended order.
3. Release the card.
4. Verify the card order, global scene ranges, transition ownership, and preview sequence.

Reordering changes project-global timing. Review audio, camera, and other time-sensitive content afterward.

Scene Menu Actions

The more-actions menu is build-dependent. In the current editor it can expose actions such as:

• play from the scene;
• rename or duplicate;
• change duration;
• create a scene template;
• reset scene content;
• delete the scene.

Use the visible menu as the source of truth. Do not assume an older Thumbnail Color action is still available.

Action	Description
Play Scene	Start playback from this scene
Rename	Change scene title
Duplicate	Create a copy with all objects
Set Duration	Change how long scene plays
Thumbnail Color	Set custom thumbnail background
Delete Scene	Remove scene from project

warning

Deleting a scene permanently removes all objects in that scene. This action cannot be undone.

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Scene Duration

Control how long each scene plays in your animation.

Setting Duration

1. Open the scene card's more-actions menu.
2. Choose the duration action exposed by the current build.
3. Enter a valid duration and confirm.
4. Verify the card, timeline range, total project duration, and global playhead mapping.

Duration Guidelines

Content Type	Recommended Duration
Title slide	3-5 seconds
Simple drawing	5-10 seconds
Complex illustration	10-20 seconds
Text-heavy content	Calculate by reading speed
Voiceover sync	Match audio length

Duration Validation

Rule	Limit	Error
Desktop minimum	1 second	The scene-manager control rejects shorter values
Desktop maximum	30 seconds	Use multiple scenes for a longer Desktop beat
Shared/Mobile Lite maximum	60 seconds	Mobile Lite exposes the shared 1–60 second range
Default new scene	15 seconds	Adjust it to narration and content

tip

For voiceover sync, set scene duration slightly longer than the audio to avoid cutoffs.

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Scene Transitions

Add professional transitions between scenes for smooth storytelling.

Transition Types

Type	Icon	Effect Description
None (Cut)	✂️	Instant switch, no animation
Fade to Black	🌑	Fade out to black, fade in
Crossfade	🔀	Dissolve/blend between scenes
Wipe Left	◀️	New scene wipes from right
Wipe Right	▶️	New scene wipes from left
Wipe Up	🔼	New scene wipes from bottom
Wipe Down	🔽	New scene wipes from top
Slide Left	⬅️	New scene slides from right
Slide Right	➡️	New scene slides from left
Slide Up	⬆️	New scene slides from bottom
Slide Down	⬇️	New scene slides from top
Zoom In	🔍	Zoom into new scene
Zoom Out	🔎	Zoom out to new scene
Iris Open	⭕	Reveal the incoming scene through an expanding iris
Iris Close	🔴	Close toward the incoming scene
Iris Open	⭕	Circular opening reveal
Iris Close	🔴	Circular closing reveal

Adding Transitions

1. Select the transition control immediately before the later scene.
2. Choose one of the transition types offered by the current picker.
3. Set its duration when that control is available.
4. Preview across the boundary and confirm that the transition belongs to the incoming scene.

Transition Duration

Use the picker’s visible duration control rather than relying on an old fixed range. Very short values can look like a cut; long values consume more of the adjoining scene content. Preview the boundary after every change.

Setting	Range	Default
Desktop duration	0.2–2.0 seconds, 0.1-second step	0.5 seconds
Stored easing	ease-in-out for a newly selected transition	The current scene-manager picker does not expose a separate easing selector

note

Transitions happen at the start of a scene (transitioning INTO that scene from the previous one). Scene 1 cannot have an incoming transition since there's no scene before it.

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Timeline Scene View

Scenes are displayed on the timeline for visual editing.

Timeline Scene Track

The timeline places scenes in project order and converts each scene's local time to a global range. In the authentic capture, Scene 2 starts at 0:15 because Scene 1 lasts 15 seconds. Transition regions sit at scene boundaries and affect the resulting total-time mapping.

Visual Indicators

Indicator	Meaning
Blue highlight	Active/selected scene
Playhead over scene	Currently playing
T marker	Transition between scenes
Gray bar	Transition duration

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Scene Playback

Play Controls

Control	Action
▶ Play	Play entire project from current position
Scene ▶	Play from specific scene start
⏸ Pause	Pause playback
⏹ Stop	Stop and return to start
← →	Navigate between scenes

Playing from a Scene

Select the card's play action to seek to that scene's global start and begin preview. Confirm the playhead time before evaluating audio, camera, or transition synchronization.

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Scene Thumbnails

Visual previews help identify scenes quickly.

Auto-Generated Thumbnails

The manager derives a compact thumbnail from scene content. Treat it as navigation assistance, not a pixel-accurate export preview; small text and edge content may be reduced or cropped.

Custom Thumbnail Colors

Older builds exposed a custom thumbnail-color action. It is not shown in the verified current Scene Manager capture, so do not depend on it. Use meaningful scene names and visible scene content for reliable navigation.

tip

Use color coding to organize scenes by type — e.g., blue for intro scenes, green for content, red for calls-to-action.

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Performance Modes

The Scene Manager adapts to system performance automatically.

Adaptive UI Modes

Mode	Icon	When Active	UI Behavior
Rich	—	Normal operation	Full animations, smooth transitions
Compact	⚡	High scene count	Reduced animations
Minimal	⚡⚡	Performance stress	Instant transitions, minimal UI

The Scene Manager can simplify rendering as projects grow. The exact compact or adaptive indicator is build-dependent; the visible scene count and current manager behavior are authoritative. Simplification must not change project data or export output.

Performance Guidelines

Scene Count	Recommended Actions
1-10	No action needed
11-25	Monitor performance
26-50	Consider splitting into multiple projects
50+	Split project, reduce complexity

tip

There is no documented 50-scene compatibility cutoff. Split a project when navigation, preview, narration, or export becomes difficult to reason about—not because of an invented fixed threshold.

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Keyboard behavior

Scene operations are intentionally discoverable from + New Scene, the scene card, and its ⋯ menu. When renaming or editing duration, press Enter to commit and Escape to cancel. Do not rely on older, unverified global shortcuts for creating, deleting, duplicating, or renaming scenes.

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Common Workflows

Workflow 1: Create Multi-Scene Project

1. Open Scene Manager.
2. Create the required scenes.
3. Name them by story purpose.
4. Add and verify content in each active scene.
5. Add only the transitions the story needs.
6. Preview the full project from the beginning.

Workflow 2: Storyboard First

1. Plan the story beats outside the editor.
2. Create and name placeholder scenes in the intended order.
3. Set approximate durations.
4. Fill each scene with content and refine timing.

Workflow 3: Reorganize Existing Content

1. Review the existing scene and identify natural story boundaries.
2. Create shorter scenes and move or recreate the required content deliberately.
3. Reorder the resulting cards.
4. Recheck global audio, camera, and timing.
5. Add transitions only after the new order is stable.

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Troubleshooting

Scene Not Visible

Issue	Cause	Solution
Objects missing	Wrong scene selected	Click correct scene in manager
Canvas blank	Scene has no content	Add objects to the scene
Scene not in list	Accidentally deleted	Undo (Ctrl/⌘ + Z) if recent

Transition Problems

Issue	Cause	Solution
No transition playing	Type set to "None"	Change transition type
Transition too fast	Duration too short	Increase duration
Choppy transition	Performance issue	Use simpler transition type

Performance Issues

Issue	Cause	Solution
Slow scene switching	Too many scenes	Split into multiple projects
UI lag	Many objects	Reduce object count per scene
Thumbnail not updating	Render delay	Refresh or wait a moment

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Best Practices

Scene Organization

1. Name scenes descriptively — Use names like "Intro", "Problem", "Solution"
2. Keep scenes focused — One main concept per scene
3. Consistent timing — Similar scene types should have similar durations
4. Use transitions purposefully — Don't overuse; simpler is often better

Duration Guidelines

1. Match content complexity — More content = more time
2. Consider reading speed — ~150 words per minute for narration
3. Build rhythm — Vary durations to create pacing
4. Leave breathing room — Add 0.5-1s buffer at scene ends

Transition Tips

1. Use crossfade for related content — Smooth topic continuation
2. Use cuts for dramatic changes — Hard breaks between sections
3. Match transition to mood — Fast for energy, slow for calm
4. Keep durations consistent — Usually 0.3-0.8 seconds

tip

Pro tip: Use "Fade to Black" transitions to create chapter breaks in longer animations.

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Summary

Feature	Location	Purpose
Scene Manager	Left Sidebar → 🎬 Scenes	Create and manage scenes
Scene Cards	Scene Manager Panel	Visual scene overview
Transitions	Between scene cards	Add effects between scenes
Timeline View	Bottom Timeline	See scene timing
Duration Control	Scene Menu → Set Duration	Control scene length

Scenes are the foundation of organized whiteboard animations. Use them to structure your story, control timing, and create professional transitions between ideas.

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Related Documentation:

• Typography Text Guide — For adding text to scenes
• Images & Vectors Guide — For visual content
• Audio & Sound Guide — For scene-synced audio
• Background & Canvas Settings — For scene backgrounds