Using Scene Builder to Package Scenes

Watch the Scene Builder Video

Total running time: 2:02

Setting Placeholders

Once your project is complete and approved, and you have taken the time to re-arrange the project to follow the structural guidelines, it is time to package your scenes. Before you can package your scenes you need to define where your placeholder layers are. This is done with Scene Builder by following these steps:

1. Make sure Scene Builder is open. If you're not sure how to do that, refer back to the article Installing Idomoo Scene Tools.
2. Select a layer you wish to turn into a placeholder and click Set Placeholder in Scene Builder.
   The layer you selected is now defined as a placeholder and its color changed to fuchsia to reflect that.
3. If you made a mistake and want to reverse the action, select the layer and click the button again. The button is now labeled Remove Placeholder to reflect that.
   Once you click, the layer is no longer defined as a placeholder and it's color is changed to green.

You should go ahead and set placeholders in all your comps, and double check that all your comps follow the guidelines before moving to the next stage of packaging your scene comps.

Packaging Scenes

Once your placeholders are defined you are ready to package your scenes. Each scene ends up as an IDM file.

1. Select the scene comp you want to package by clicking inside the comp's animation panel.
2. You can also choose several scene comps in the project panel. This will package several scenes at once.
3. Click Package in Scene Builder.
4. Scene Builder presents any errors you have in the scene, such as effects on placeholder layers and static layers not being held in static comps. Fix the errors and try again.
5. Once all errors have been resolved, you are asked to choose a location and name for the package. The extension of the file is IDM. If you are packaging several scene, you can only choose a location to save the IDM files.
6. All static comps are now being rendered. Once that's done, all placeholder layers, their nulls and cameras, are turned into code. The fonts and other media are also collected. Once the process is done, you are presented with a panel telling you so. Click OK to finish the process.

You do this for every scene until you have a complete library of scenes ready. Alternatively, you can do one, check it in Scene Viewer or Storybuilding Suite, fix it if needed, then move on to the next one.
Scene Viewer you say... What's that? Read the next article.