# Timeline & Export (https://docs.fuser.studio/docs/compositor/timeline-and-export)

A Compositor scene can hold static layers and time-varying ones (video, animated parameters). When time matters, you get a timeline; when it's time to ship, you get an export.

## Timeline [#timeline]

The timeline lives along the bottom of the canvas. It only renders when the scene has either a video layer or a non-zero `Duration` set in [Canvas properties](https://docs.fuser.studio/docs/compositor/properties.md#canvas).

**Controls:**

*  **Play** /  **Pause** — toggle playback.
* **Playhead** — drag along the timeline to scrub. All video layers and any animated properties seek together.
* **Time readout** — `MM:SS` for the current position, paired with the scene's total duration.
*  **Volume** /  **Mute** — global toggle for all video layers.

**Multi-video sync.** Multiple  Video layers share the same clock. Scrubbing seeks all of them together. The longest video sets the effective scene length unless you override it in **Duration**.

**Per-layer loop.** Each Video layer has its own `Loop` toggle. Looping is independent of the scene timeline — a 4-second video on a 12-second scene plays through three times if `Loop` is on, freezes on its last frame if off.

> [!NOTE] Static scenes have no timeline
>
> If your scene is just images, shapes, and text — no video, no duration — the timeline stays hidden. Set a `Duration` (in seconds) in [Canvas properties](https://docs.fuser.studio/docs/compositor/properties.md#canvas) to surface the playback controls and enable video export.

## Exporting [#exporting]

Export produces a downloadable file from your composition. Open the export dialog from the toolbar — the title bar reads **Save Asset**.

     Captures the current frame as a PNG at the canvas dimensions.

    * **Progress** — a brief `Exporting…` state, then the asset uploads.
    * **Use it for** — single-frame stills, social posts, deck-ready images.

     Renders the scene from `0:00` to its `Duration` as an MP4.

    * **Progress** — a percent indicator and progress bar; cancel anytime.
    * **Use it for** — animations, looping clips, social-ready video.

    > [!WARNING] Video export takes time
>
> Long or complex scenes take a while to render. The progress bar gives you a live percentage, and cancelling doesn't leave anything stuck — partial output is discarded cleanly.

When the export finishes, the asset uploads to your project's media library and the dialog hands you the downloadable URL.

## Downstream output is not export [#downstream-output-is-not-export]

Exporting writes a file to your storage. **Connecting the Compositor's output socket to another node is something else entirely.**

Downstream Image, Video, and Compositor nodes consume the scene the Compositor emits. They render it independently — with their own play/pause/seek, their own previews — without producing a file. You don't need to export to feed inference, swap into another Compositor, or preview in a Video node.

Use **Export** when you want a file out of Fuser (a PNG to drop in a deck, an MP4 to share). Use the **output socket** for everything that stays inside the flow.

## What's Next? [#whats-next]

  - [Concepts](https://docs.fuser.studio/docs/compositor/concepts.md): Hybrid downstream rendering — why the output socket and Export do different things.

  - [Sharing](https://docs.fuser.studio/docs/teams/sharing.md): Workspace-gated sharing for a project that contains a Compositor.