# In and out animations

> How a clip can appear or leave in the Slicer editor — fade, zoom in, zoom out and slides in four directions, with a duration from 0.3 to 1.2 seconds.

Source: https://docs.slicer.media/en/guide/editor/animations/

An animation sets how a clip's frame appears at its start and leaves at its end: from black, with a zoom, sliding in from the side and so on. Unlike a [transition](https://docs.slicer.media/en/guide/editor/transitions/), an animation belongs to the clip itself, not to a cut — so you can add it to the reel's first clip and to the last one.

**Demo (Web):**

1. Click the first clip and press “Animations”
2. On the “In” tab pick “Zoom in” — the start of the clip plays
3. Pick the 0.8 s duration
4. Switch to “Out” and pick “Fade” — the end of the clip plays
5. Click ✓ “Done” — the clip shows an animation badge

## Adding an animation

### 1. Select a clip and open “Animations”

Click a clip on the video track, then **Animations**.

### 2. Pick a side

At the top of the panel are **In** (the clip's start) and **Out** (its end). Each side has its own animation; you can set both.

### 3. Pick an animation and a duration

Click a tile — the preview plays the start or end of the clip. Below is **Duration**: 0.3 s, 0.5 s (default), 0.8 s or 1.2 s. **None** removes the animation from the selected side.

### 4. Click ✓ “Done”

An animation badge appears on the clip.

## All animations

| Animation | **In** | **Out** |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Fade** | The frame fades in from black | The frame fades to black |
| **Zoom in** | The frame appears enlarged (×1.3) and settles smoothly to its normal size | The frame grows smoothly to ×1.3 |
| **Zoom out** | The frame appears small (×0.6) and grows to full size — the background shows around it at first | The frame shrinks to ×0.6, revealing the background around it |
| **Slide left** | The frame slides in from the right and settles | The frame slides away to the left |
| **Slide right** | The frame slides in from the left | The frame slides away to the right |
| **Slide up** | The frame slides in from below | The frame slides away upwards |
| **Slide down** | The frame slides in from above | The frame slides away downwards |

An in-animation slows down towards its end — the frame “lands” softly; an out-animation speeds up instead.

## The background around the frame

During **Zoom out** and the slides, space opens around the frame. That's where the clip's background shows: black by default, and you can pick a color in the **Background** panel ([Frame, mask and background](https://docs.slicer.media/en/guide/editor/frame/)).

## Ideas

-   **A soft start** — **Fade** as the in-animation of the first clip.
-   **A clean ending** — **Fade** as the out-animation of the last clip, especially with music.
-   **A lively cutaway** — **Slide left** or **Slide up** on a short b-roll clip or photo.
-   **Emphasis on the result** — **Zoom in** as the in-animation of the clip that shows the outcome.

## Good to know

-   An animation is never longer than the clip itself: on a short clip it shortens.
-   When you [split](https://docs.slicer.media/en/guide/editor/fragments/) a clip, both parts keep the animations: the in-animation at the start of each part, the out-animation at its end.
-   Animations combine with the effect, transition and [keyframes](https://docs.slicer.media/en/guide/editor/keyframes/).
-   The **Fade** animation and the transition of the same name look alike. A transition goes on the cut between two clips, an animation on a single clip — for example the last one, so the reel ends nicely.
-   Animations are free and show in the preview right away.

## What's next

-   [Frame, mask and background](https://docs.slicer.media/en/guide/editor/frame/)
-   [Transitions](https://docs.slicer.media/en/guide/editor/transitions/)
-   [Keyframes and By frame](https://docs.slicer.media/en/guide/editor/keyframes/)