Stop guessing pixel values

The canvas gizmo lets you pose a layer by dragging, instead of typing values in the inspector.

Use this to:

  • Place a layer by eye
  • Rotate or scale at a chosen time
  • Match the same keys you’d get from the property rows

Move, rotate, and scale

  1. Select the layer.
  2. Scrub the playhead to the time you want.
  3. Drag the layer to move it, the rotate handle to turn it, or the scale handles to resize. Skew has its own handles.
  4. A key appears at the playhead.

Origin stays on the layer. On a composition layer, the gizmo moves the wrapper, not the layers inside.

Tip: Scrub first. The pose you drag is stored at the current time.

When you can’t drag

  • If a transform is linked, the gizmo turns off. Unlink that channel, or leave the source in charge.
  • If a repeater is driving position, dragging to move may do nothing. Rotate, scale, and skew can still work. Edit the original span, not a generated copy.
  • If Auto-Orient is on, rotation follows the path. Turn the face off when you want a local angle.

Script console and WebMCP

The same poses run in Edit → Scripting and through WebMCP. Agents run a script with pureanim_run_script or window.pureanim.run().

WebMCP tools:

  • pureanim_get_state
  • pureanim_list_commands
  • pureanim_run_script
  • pureanim_set_time
api.applyTranslate({ layer, dx, dy, at });
api.applyScale({ layer, factor: 1.2, at });
api.applyRotate({ layer, degrees: 15, at });
api.applySkew({ layer, x: 5, y: 0, at });

These add to the pose at at. Scale multiplies; the others add. There is no setGizmo command.

Full command reference: scripting.md. Agent loop: agents.md.