Motion Path Animation

Apr 01, 2014

I cant seem to find this feature within animation in Storyline. Is there another way to animate this way?

14 Replies
Ashley Terwilliger-Pollard

Hi Krittika and welcome to Heroes! 

Storyline doesn't currently support motion paths. However, we’re building very powerful animation capabilities for a future release. Be sure to subscribe to the Articulate Word of Mouth Blog to receive notifications when new updates and features are released.

Note: When you import a PowerPoint presentation with motion paths into Storyline, the motion paths will be removed during the import process.

In the meantime, you may be able to simulate motion paths, using either of the following options:

  • Create several duplicate copies of the object that you want to move along a path, and place them at various points along that path. Then use animations to fade each object in and out, one after the other, to create the impression of movement.
  • If you have PowerPoint 2010 or later, create your motion path in PowerPoint the way you want it to appear. Then save the presentation as a video, and insert the resulting video into Storyline. (In PowerPoint 2010, go toFile > Save & Send > Create a Video. In PowerPoint 2013, go to File > Export > Create a Video.)
Rebecca Fleisch Cordeiro

Hi Krittika,

In case you were looking for a couple examples, I've shared this sample on the forums before. The first slide uses a rectangle to "mask" the screen and hide the character, so she appears to be popping up into the picture frame.

The second slide show several arrows placed along the timeline to give the illusion of one arrow moving right to left.

And the 3rd slide shows what a PPT slide with motion paths saved as a video looks like when inserted into Storyline (Ashley's second bullet point).

Please shout out with any questions.

Ashley Terwilliger-Pollard

Thanks Becky for sharing those here and I'm glad they helped you Krittika!

Hi Imran and welcome to Heroes! 

I'm not entirely clear on what you're looking to set up? Could you offer a bit more explanation and if it's not something available in Storyline (like motion paths) possibly someone in the community will be able to assist in sharing a workaround. 

Leslie Steele

I've attached a slide that I'm having trouble with.  I've set pictures two and four to move when the timeline reaches three seconds, and then fade out when the timeline reaches six seconds.  Everything seems to look correct to me in the Trigger panel, but the pictures are not moving.  Can you please tell me what I'm doing wrong?

Michael Hinze
Leslie Jones

I've attached a slide that I'm having trouble with.  I've set pictures two and four to move when the timeline reaches three seconds, and then fade out when the timeline reaches six seconds.  Everything seems to look correct to me in the Trigger panel, but the pictures are not moving.  Can you please tell me what I'm doing wrong?

Hm, I tried your file and in Preview the two pics move for me. Not sure what the problem could be on your end.

This discussion is closed. You can start a new discussion or contact Articulate Support.