Creating Your First Video
From signing in to a finished MP4, step by step, using Basics.
Open the Studio
Sign in (or create a free account). You land in the Studio at ballengine.app/studio, on Basics. The first time, a short guided tutorial walks you through the same steps as this article; you can follow it or press Skip.
Step 1: Pick a Mode and Press Play
- 1In Basics, under Simulation type, click a mode. 2D modes come first, 3D modes after them.
- 2Press Play at the bottom of the recording area (or Space).
- 3Press Restart to start the run again from the beginning.
Step 2: Randomize
Randomize changes the settings, the music and the sounds of the current mode at once. Every click is a different video, and the arrows next to it step back to a roll you liked. To change just one part, such as the music or the ball colour, use the Shuffle one part tiles under the recording area. Ctrl + Z undoes any roll.
Step 3: Change One Thing at a Time
Under the Sound section of Basics, switch between Mode settings (the few controls of the current mode) and Common (look and physics shared by every mode). Arena size and Gravity are two of the settings that change a video the most. Make one change, watch it, then make the next. Every control has a small ⓘ that explains it.
When you want more, every other item on the rail opens the full settings for that part of the video. See Navigating the Studio.
Step 4: Choose the Sound
The Sound section of Basics shows the active song and what each bounce plays: the next note of the song, or a sound effect. The sound is recorded into your video, so check your volume while you preview. Audio & Music covers songs, uploads and sound effects.
Step 5: Set Up the Export and Record
The Export section of Basics (on a wide screen, the Export and Frame side panels) holds everything about the finished file. On the free plan you can export 5 videos a month at 720p, with a small ballengine.app watermark. Creator raises that to 30 a month at 1080p without a watermark, and Pro to 60 with 2K and 4K. A free account also gets 1 free cloud render (up to 30 seconds at 720p). What you have left is shown right on each option.
- 1Choose Render on: This device or Cloud.
- 2Pick a Quality and an Aspect ratio (9:16 for vertical platforms).
- 3Pick the clip length in the top bar.
- 4Press Record. Keep the tab open and visible while a This device render runs.
- 5On This device, the MP4 downloads by itself. On Cloud, the finished video appears under Render on with its own Save button.
| Control | What it does | Options |
|---|---|---|
| Render on | Where the video is made. This device renders it in your browser and downloads it when it finishes. Cloud renders it on our servers, so you can close the tab. | This device, Cloud. Cloud uses cloud render credits. |
| Quality | How sharp and smooth the video is. | 720p · 30 fps, 1080p · 60 fps. 2K, 4K and other frame rates are in the Video section. |
| Aspect ratio | The shape of the video. | 9:16 for Shorts, TikTok and Reels (every plan). 16:9, 1:1 and 4:3 from Creator. Custom Region from Pro, in the Video section. |
| Clip length (top bar) | How long the video is. Recording stops by itself at exactly that length. | 15s, 30s, 59s, or Custom. |
| Record (top bar) | Makes the video. | While it runs you see the progress and can cancel. A cancelled video does not use an export. |
Tip
- If a cloud render fails, its credits go back to your balance automatically.
Step 6: Save Your Setup
Your current settings are remembered in this browser between visits. To keep a setup you can reload later, or open on another device, save it in the Cloud section of the rail. Cloud saves sync to your account. Storage is 250 MB on the free plan, 25 GB on Creator, 100 GB on Pro, 200 GB on Elite and 500 GB on Agency. See Saving and Managing Your Projects.
Step 7: Publish It (Optional)
You can post the downloaded file yourself, or let BallEngine post it for you with an automation plan. Connect your social accounts once in the Automation workspace (ballengine.app/automation), then use Publish on the rail to send a video out now or schedule it. See the Publishing & Distribution guides.
More from BallEngine
Guides, plans and answers for making your videos.