Physics & Effects

Overview

KinoViz includes a physics simulation engine and a rich library of visual effects. Use physics to create realistic motion — gravity, collisions, joints — or apply TextFX presets, layer blur, and backdrop blur to polish your animations.

For current plan availability, see the pricing page.

Physics Simulation Engine

The physics engine (Rapier 2D, loaded on demand) lets elements respond to real-world forces: gravity, collisions, friction, and restitution. When you enable physics on a layer, it participates in the simulation during animation playback.

Enabling Physics

1. Select one or more elements on the canvas.
2. Open the Physics panel in the right sidebar (or click the Physics icon in the toolbar).
3. Toggle Enable Physics on.

Body Types

Set the body type from the Physics → Body Type dropdown.

Physics Properties

Global Physics Settings

Click the Global Physics button in the Physics panel to set:

• Gravity (direction and magnitude — default: 9.8 m/s² downward)
• Simulation FPS — higher = more accurate (performance cost)
• Substeps — additional solver iterations per frame

Running the Simulation

1. Set up your elements with physics properties.
2. Press Play in the timeline controls.
3. The simulation runs in real time.

Click Bake Physics (Physics panel) to convert the simulation result into actual keyframes on the timeline, which you can then edit like any other animation.

Rigid Body Physics

Dynamic bodies respond to gravity and collide with static bodies and each other. Common use cases:

• Text letters falling and stacking on a surface
• Bouncing logo reveal
• Balls colliding in a product showcase
• Domino chain effects

Collision Shapes

Set the collision shape from Physics → Collision Shape.

Constraints and Joints

Joints link two physics bodies together with movement constraints.

Joint Types

Adding a Joint

1. Select two elements that both have physics enabled.
2. In the Physics panel, click Add Joint.
3. Choose the joint type and configure the anchor points by dragging the on-canvas handles.

TextFX — Text Animation Presets

TextFX provides 40+ pre-built text animations that apply complex multi-keyframe sequences in a single click.

Applying a TextFX Preset

1. Select a text element.
2. Open the TextFX section in the properties panel (or click TextFX in the toolbar).
3. Browse the preset thumbnails and click one to apply.

Preset Categories

Customizing TextFX

After applying a preset, you can adjust:

• Duration — How long the animation plays.
• Delay — Time before the animation starts.
• Per-character vs. per-word vs. per-line timing.
• Individual keyframe values (the preset keyframes are editable in the timeline).

Layer Blur

Layer Blur applies a Gaussian blur to an element itself.

1. Select any element.
2. In the Effects section of the Properties Panel, find Layer Blur.
3. Drag the slider from 0 (no blur) to the desired amount.

Layer Blur can be keyframed — useful for depth-of-field reveals, where an element starts blurred and comes into focus.

Backdrop Blur

Backdrop Blur blurs everything behind an element. It is visible only when the element has some transparency (opacity < 100% or a partially transparent fill) — the same condition as CSS backdrop-filter.

Use cases:

• Frosted glass UI cards
• Translucent HUD overlays
• Soft vignette effects

Configure from the same Effects section. Set both blur amount and opacity for the best frosted-glass look.

Backdrop Blur is a GPU-intensive effect. Avoid using more than 2–3 backdrop-blurred elements simultaneously for smooth preview performance.

Next Steps

• Animation & Timeline — Keyframe physics and effects over time
• Design Mode — Set up your element layout before adding physics
• 3D System — Combine physics with 3D scenes
• Export & Publishing — Render physics-driven animations