Complete Guide to Keyframing in iMovie 2025

“It’s all about animating graphics in iMovie to add keyframes.”

One of the cool things about using keyframes in iMovie is that it’s a free application to use. You can apply iMovie keyframes in various kinds of animation graphics to pop out logos and icons. They will pop, move, or drop within the video after using such keyframes.

So, the iMovie keyframing can help you with the following things:

• Supplement effects
• To adjust audio
• To move clips around the frame
• Animate text
• To add custom transitions
• And so on…

Now, let us move on to learn all you need about the iMovie keyframing.

• Part 1: How to Add/Delete Keyframes in iMovie?
• Part 2: How to Edit Audios with keyframes in iMovie?
• Part 3: How to Create Simple Animations with Keyframing in iMovie?
• Bonus Part. How to Use Keyframing With Filmora?

Tips: iMovie is a free video editor for Mac and iOS devices. If you need a more professional and universal solution, consider trying Wondershare Filmora, a top-rated video editing software used by many influencers, such as @skiguyfr.

@skiguyfr Wondering how I have so much aura in my edits? umm... Filmora obvs. Click the link on my video and you will learn the ways🏂✨#skiguydancing #filmora ♬ GO DO IT #jerseyclub - Ziahfyah & sjmadeit

Filmora's keyframing supports both temporal and spatial interpolation, allowing you to create smooth animations with ease.

Part 1: How to Add/Delete Keyframes in iMovie?

Learn iMovie Keyframe Editor to know how you can add or delete keyframes over there. However, the steps are going to be pretty simple if you have understood the basics of keyframing.

Firstly, you need to admire this Edit keyframes tool, which is stated above the Parameters tool as shown below.

Adding iMovie Keyframes

Let’s discuss the process to add iMovie keyframes with respect to Animation menu and Animation curve in iMovie keyframe Editor.

• Add iMovie keyframes

Hit the Animation menu in the parameters list, which is present on the Keyframe Editor’s left side. You can select the Animation menu for any parameter you like and then hit the Add button to confirm.

It will add the keyframe at the position of the playhead.

• Add iMovie keyframes to the animation curve

To add a keyframe to the animation curve, you need to Option-click or double-click that curve in the graph area. It will immediately add a keyframe at the position of the pointer.

• Adjust iMovie Keyframe value

It would help if you had to Option-drag the curve segment within the Keyframe Editor tool in Motion. You can see the value when it will add the keyframe at the position of the pointer.

Deleting iMovie Keyframes

Given below are two ways by which you can delete a keyframe or delete all keyframes in the parameters list at a time.

• Delete iMovie keyframes

Hit the Delete button after selecting the particular keyframe in iMovie Keyframe Editor. It is the simplest way of deleting keyframe in the Motion.

• Delete all iMovie keyframes of a parameter

Select the Animation menu for a specific parameter and hit the Reset Parameter option to delete all its keyframes.

Part 2: How to Edit Audios with keyframes in iMovie?

Follow a series of steps to adjust volume with iMovie audio keyframes.

Step 1: Select videos

Put the video in a timeline with the audio that you want to adjust over time.

Step 2: Move the pointer

It would help if you moved the pointer to a volume control within the video clip's waveform portion. It's a horizontal line which you need to move where you want to add the keyframe.

Step 3: Add iMovie audio keyframe

Hold the Option-key and click the Volume Control to add a keyframe. It will then change the pointer's position to the Add keyframe pointer, where you can add as many keyframes as you wish so.

Add at least two keyframes to the video clip to adjust the audio. It is because you can make any volume adjustment between the two keyframes.

Part 3: How to Create Simple Animations with Keyframing in iMovie?

It’s time to learn iMovie keyframes with the following easy step-by-step tutorial. You must use the Keyframe Editor in iMovie to perform different tasks of adding or deleting keyframes.

So, let's begin Step 1 without further ado!

Step 1: Add videos

Open iMovie and select the video clip from My Media that you want to use. Drag this video clip to the timeline. Another thing you want to consider is to add a PNG file of what you want to animate over this video. In this case, it’s a football that is going to bounce within the video.

Make sure to drag the PNG in full over the entire video, as shown in the image below.

Step 2: Adjust the PNG

You need to adjust the PNG with the cropping tool's help as it looks zoomed over the video. Go to the Cropping tool and crop. Then, hit the Fit button to fit the full width and height of the video clip.

Then, you need to click the Video Overlay Settings tab given besides the Cropping tool. Now, you need to select the Picture-in-Picture to set the football over the video.

Step 3: Set keyframes

Here, you must set new keyframes according to the position of football you want to animate. First of all, drag the football box to the place where you want to start the Motion. Then, click the Video OverlaySettings and admire the keyframe button you need to use further to add keyframes.

Click the keyframe button to add your first keyframe. Press the Space bar to play the video clip for around three seconds, and then you can drag the football box to an upwards position for the bouncing effect.

Once you hit the keyframe button, you get the option to delete that keyframe as well.

You can drag the football box here and there is a couple of times using the 3-second or your desired duration of time. Let the video play longer so that the movement would be slower. It is because you decide to move your keyframe while moving from one place to another.

In this manner, you can add several keyframes as you wish.

Bonus Part. How to Use Keyframing With Filmora?

For video editors who are looking for ways to set up multiple smooth transitions in their content, Wondershare Filmora is the right tool. The platform offers the utility of iMovie keyframing on PC as well as from your smartphone. When it comes to creating professional-quality motion graphics and animations, keyframing in Filmora is more conclusive and extensive as compared to iMovie.

Using Wondershare Filmora Desktop for Keyframing

You can get control of each part of your visual content using the keyframe utility. Provided below is the step-by-step guide on how to use keyframes in the iMovie alternative on PC:

Step 1. Formulate a New Filmora Project

Launch Filmora on your desktop and use “New Project” to enter into the editing interface. Import your video for adding motion effects and add it into the timeline.

Step 2. Create a New Keyframe

After importing the video, lead into the “Video” panel and use the “Diamond” button for activating keyframes. Use sliders to change the video parameters across the particular frame you are at.

Step 3. Edit the Keyframe Manually

To modify the intensity of the applied effect on a certain point, right-click and press the “Show Keyframe Animation.” Move the pointer within to adjust the opacity and other attributes and review the changes.

Step 4. Delete a Created Keyframe

To remove an unwanted point, right-click on it and select the "Delete keyframe” option to eradicate the unwanted keyframe from the timeline.

Step 5. Add Animation to the Keyframe Points

After expanding the keyframe, head to the “Animation” panel and choose your required option. Upon adding, adjust and head to the “Export” button on top for saving the video across this iMovie keyframe alternative.

This is how the addition of keyframes in the video helps set up proper motion graphics or animations, giving a professional look to your content.

Using Keyframing on Your Smartphone

If you are looking for an instant solution to add different elements at different points in your video, use the Filmora App [iOS/Android] on your smartphone. Using this extensive application, you can select the part of the video from the timeline and add your desired settings to it.

Multiple keyframes are added within the visual content to give it a dynamic effect. Moreover, you can also create dynamism to the text added to the video by keyframing the text.

Step 1. Create a Project and Select the Video Area

Once you’ve imported your video in the Filmora App, drag the slider and use the “Keyframe” icon adjacent to the preview screen to insert one.

Step 2. Adjust the Video Position According to the Keyframe

After adding the keyframe, adjust the preview position with your fingers. This helps you create multiple keyframes at different points for inputting a dynamic flow.

Step 3. Delete Unwanted Keyframes From Video

To remove keyframes, tap the same “Keyframe” icon with the minus sign and press “Export” in the top right corner of the screen to save the video.

Final Words

Hence, now that we completed the discussion on the complete guide to the iMovie keyframe tutorial, it's time to state our final words for the post. We would like to reiterate that since iMovie is exceptional and a free software application for Mac users, you must also explore its features and applications more to learn every aspect of animation and video editing skills.