Remotion Interactivity

---
name: remotion-interactivity
description: Structure Remotion markup for interactivity
version: 4.0.520
---

By writing Remotion markup in a specific way, the Remotion Studio is able to recognize the structure of the code and makes it interactive:

- Allowing items to be selected by clicking on them
- Allowing drag+drop, resizing and rotation
- Editing the CSS styles
- Making keyframes and easing values editable

If the markup is too complex for the Studio to make it interactive, then the values become grayed out.

## Make an HTML element interactive using `Interactive`

Every HTML and SVG element (except `<Img>`, it already is interactive) such as `<div>` can be turned interactive using `Interactive`:

```tsx title="Interactive elements"
<Interactive.Div
  name="Greeting card"
  style={{fontSize: 80, padding: 24}}
>
  Hello
</Interactive.Div>
```

This allows styles and keyframes to be set in the Studio. Be sensible, if a component has many elements, the timeline might get messy.

## Prefer inline text

If text is fixed and only used once, write it directly inside the interactive element instead of extracting it into a constant.

```tsx title="Inline text"
// 👍 Fixed copy stays editable
<Interactive.Div name="Title">
  Remotion Best Practices
</Interactive.Div>
```

Use a prop or variable only when the text is dynamic or reused.

## Give interactive elements a descriptive name

Add a `name` prop to elements to make them easily identifyable.
Avoid computed names, hardcode them.

```tsx title="Interactive names"
<>
  <Interactive.Div name="Hero title" style={{fontSize: 80}}>
    Launch day
  </Interactive.Div>
  <Img name="Avatar" src="https://remotion.media/image.jpeg" />
  <Video name="Background" src="https://remotion.media/video.mp4" />
  <Sequence name="Title">
    Launch day
  </Sequence>
</>
```

## Keep all CSS styles inline

The best way is to just pass a plain object to `style` - no referring to constants, no object spreading, no math.

```tsx title="Interactive example"
<Interactive.Div
  style={{
    fontSize: 80,
    color: 'red',
  }}
>
  Hello World!
</Interactive.Div>
```

```tsx title="❌ Bad for interactivity"
const baseStyle = useMemo(() => {
  return {
    fontSize: 12 // ❌ Non-inline styles are not supported
  }
}, []);

<Interactive.Div
  style={{
    ...baseStyle, // ❌ Spreading is not supported
    color: RED, // ❌ Referring to constants is not supported
    scale: frame * 10 // ❌ Math is not supported
  }}
>
  Hello World!
</Interactive.Div>
```

## Animate using `interpolate()`

Write animations as inline `interpolate()` calls on the property that changes.  
The output range, easing, extrapolation and `output` property should use hardcoded values.

The input range may additionally use `durationInFrames`, `fps`, `width` and `height` destructured directly from `useVideoConfig()`. Bare identifiers such as `durationInFrames`, multiplication with a number such as `2 * fps` or `fps * 2`, and subtraction of a number such as `durationInFrames - 1` are supported.

```tsx title="Inline values"
const {fps, durationInFrames} = useVideoConfig();

// 👍 Inline values can be standardized and keyframed
<Interactive.Div
  name="Product card"
  style={{
    color: 'white',
    fontSize: 80,
    scale: interpolate(frame, [0, fps], [0, 1], {
      easing: Easing.spring({damping: 200}),
      output: 'perceptual-scale',
      extrapolateLeft: 'clamp',
      extrapolateRight: 'clamp'
    }),
    rotate: interpolate(frame, [0, 1 * fps], ['0deg', '20deg'], {
      easing: Easing.spring({damping: 200}),
      extrapolateLeft: 'clamp',
      extrapolateRight: 'clamp'
    }),
    translate: interpolate(
      frame,
      [durationInFrames - 30, durationInFrames],
      ['0px 0px', '0px 120px'],
      {
        easing: Easing.spring({damping: 200}),
        output: 'perceptual-scale',
        extrapolateLeft: 'clamp',
        extrapolateRight: 'clamp'
      }
    ),
  }}
/>
```

```tsx title="❌ Bad interactivity"
const translateY = interpolate(frame, [0, 30], [0, 120]); // ❌ Math should be directly in the markup

<Interactive.Div
  name="Product card"
  style={{
    translate: translateY, // ❌ Only inline interpolate() calls are supported,
    rotate: interpolate(frame, [start, start + 10], [0, Math.PI]), // ❌ Cannot use math with arbitrary variables, cannot use constants
    scale: interpolate(anyVariable, [0, 30], [0, 1]) // ❌ Can only interpret the `frame` variable.
  }}
/>
```

## Use `scale`, `translate`, `rotate` CSS properties

Avoid the `transform` CSS property.  
If possible, use `scale`, `rotate` and `translate` instead because only they are interactively editable.

## Keep composition metadata inline

When scaffolding a composition, keep `width`, `height`, `fps`, `durationInFrames` and `defaultProps` inline and make no type assertions.

The Props editor can save visual edits back to your code when `defaultProps` is an inline object literal on `<Composition>` or `<Still>`.

```tsx
// 👍 Static values are in <Composition>, dynamic values are in calculateMetadata()
const calculateMetadata = useMemo(async () => {
  const dimensions = await getDimensions(); // just an example
  return {width: dimensions.width, height: dimensions.height};
});

<Composition
  id="my-video"
  component={MyComponent}
  durationInFrames={150}
  fps={30}
  calculateMetadata={calculateMetadata}
  defaultProps={{title: 'Hello', color: '#0b84ff'}}
/>
```

```tsx title="Negative examples"
const defaultProps = {title: 'Hello', color: '#0b84ff'}; // ❌ Don't extract defaultProps, must be inline
const calculateMetadata = useMemo(() => {
  // ❌ Unnecessary because no calculation is being done,
  return {durationInFrames: 150, fps: 30, width: 1920, height: 1080};
});

<Composition
  id="my-video"
  component={MyComponent}
  calculateMetadata={calculateMetadata}
  defaultProps={{
    title: 'Hello',
  } as Props} // ❌ Don't have type assertions, instead type MyComponent correctly
/>
```

Use only `calculateMetadata()` for the part of the metadata that is dynamic.

## Effects should be inline too

The effects array should not be computed.  
The same rules for setting keyframes as `interpolate()` apply too here: All values should also be hardcoded: Input range, output range, easing, extrapolation, `output` property.

```tsx title="Effects"
// 👍 Parameters are inline and the array shape is stable
<CanvasImage
  src={src}
  width={1280}
  height={720}
  effects={[
    radialProgressiveBlur({
      center: [0.5, 0.5],
      width: 1.2,
      height: 0.8,
      start: 0.2,
      disabled: true,
      rotation: interpolate(frame, [0, 120], [0, 180]),
    }),
  ]}
/>

const center = [0.5, 0.5] as const;
const rotation = frame * 1.5;

<CanvasImage
  src={src}
  width={1280}
  height={720}
  // ❌ Conditional effect is not animateable
  effects={enabled ? [
    radialProgressiveBlur({
      // ❌ Not inline
      center,
      rotation,
    }),
  ] : []}
/>
```

Render separate elements if one version should have effects and another should not.

## Making your own component interactive

To make a custom userland component interactive, use:
[Make a component interactive](https://www.remotion.dev/docs/studio/make-component-interactive.md)

## Video editing

If a Remotion component mainly consists of video and audio clips, see Video editing for best practices on how to structure Remotion markup so the clips are interactively editable in the timeline.