You can export your project for playback on an Apple device such as iPhone or iPad, or on a home theater system using Apple TV 4K. You can use the default export settings or customize the settings to suit your needs. For information about customizing settings, see Create and modify share destinations.

Share to Apple devices

In Motion, do one of the following:
- Choose File > Share > Apple Devices.
- On the right side of the toolbar, click Share, then choose Apple Devices.
In the Info pane of the Apple Devices window, view or modify project attributes, such as the title and description.
Click Settings at the top of the window, then choose your preferred export settings:
- Format: Leave this pop-up menu set to Apple Devices.
- Video Codec: Choose H.264 Multi-pass (Better) to maximize the quality of your export; choose H.264 Single-pass (Faster) to speed up your export. Additional options include HEVC 8-bit, HEVC 10-bit, and HEVC 10-bit (HLG with Dolby Vision 8.4).
  Note: Dolby Vision 8.4 is a format designed to optimize HDR content for Apple Devices. See the Apple Support article about editing HDR video and the Apple Support article about possible color shifts in video.
- Resolution: Choose a frame size (for example 1920 x 1080 for HD or 3840 x 2160 for 4K). The maximum available resolution depends on the size of your project. For example, if your project is 1920 x 1080, 3840 x 2160 does not appear in the Resolution pop-up menu.
- Color Space: Choose the range of color used in the exported movie. The default option (“Use canvas setting”) applies your project’s color space, but you can choose a different color space. See About color space.
- Color Channels: Choose whether to output color channels (RGB) only, an alpha channel (transparency), or color channels plus an alpha channel.
  Note: Not all codecs support an embedded alpha channel. For codecs that don’t support an alpha channel, no alpha channel is saved, regardless of the option you choose in this pop-up menu.
- Audio Format: The audio format is chosen by default based on the selected video codec. (To choose another audio format, you must choose Audio Only from the Format pop-up menu, which then only exports the project’s audio.)
- Duration: Select whether to export the entire project or a portion of the project (play range).
- Export selected layer only: Select this checkbox to export a single layer selected in the project. If no layer is selected, or if an object that does not render is selected (such as a rig, a light, or a camera), this option is dimmed.
- Action: Choose what you want to happen after the export is complete, such as adding the file to the Apple TV app or opening the file in QuickTime Player. See Export File destination.
  Before you set Action to Compressor, update to the latest version of each app and make sure that the apps are compatible. Both apps must be either part of Apple Creator Studio or one-time purchases.
  Note: If you change the destination’s settings, the changes are saved as the default settings for the destination. See Create and modify share destinations.
Click Render at the top of the window, then choose Motion-specific options, such as Motion Blur, Frame Blending, or Shadows.
See Render settings.
Click Share.
If this is your first time sharing to the Music app or to the Apple TV app, a permissions message appears. Click OK to allow Motion access to the apps.

You can monitor the progress of your export in the Background Task List, and you can continue to work in Motion while the file is rendered.

Download this guide: PDF

Helpful?

Motion User Guide

Export to Apple devices in Motion

Share to Apple devices