Start, advance, and end a presentation.
You present right from the editor, with no separate file to make. Scenes fill the screen, and each click or arrow key press moves on to what comes next.
From start to finish
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Start the presentation
Click the triangle-shaped Present from this scene button in the button row at the top right. The scene that’s open now fills the screen, and the presentation starts. To start from the first scene, press F5. The “Click to advance” hint at the bottom disappears at your first input or after 5 seconds.
Clicking the triangle button makes the open scene fill the screen. Video: Clicking the triangle button at the top right makes the open second scene fill the screen on a black background, with the hint “Click to advance · Arrow keys to navigate” at the bottom center. -
Move to the next scene
Click the screen. The next scene appears. In a scene with animation, a click first moves the animation forward (Scenes with transitions and animation). →, Space, and the next button on a presentation clicker do the same. On a touch screen, tap or swipe left. Where the pointer turns into a hand, a click doesn’t advance. A video plays or pauses there, and an object with an interaction does what it’s set to do.
A click moves to the second scene, and pressing → moves to the third. Video: Clicking the presentation screen moves to the second scene, and pressing the Right arrow key moves to the third. -
Go back to the previous scene
Press ← or right-click the screen. The previous scene comes back. It doesn’t replay its animation and appears fully shown. If the current scene has animation, ← first takes that scene back to the previous stop or to how it looked before the animation. When there’s nothing left to take back, it goes to the previous scene.
Pressing ← goes back to the second scene, and a right-click goes back to the first. Video: On the third scene, pressing the Left arrow key goes back to the second scene, and right-clicking the screen goes back to the first. No browser menu appears. -
Advance to the end
Advance once more from the last scene, and the “End of show” card appears. It shows the project name and “End of show” on a black screen. Click once more to end the presentation and return to the editing screen.
A click on the last scene shows the “End of show” card, and one more click brings back the editing screen. Video: Clicking on the last scene shows a black card with the project name and “End of show”, and one more click returns to the editing screen. -
Exit before the end
Press esc. Full screen ends, and you return to the editing screen. The scene where you stopped is open in the Scenes list. In the tablet app, tap the screen with two fingers. On Android, the back button works too.
Pressing esc returns to the editing screen, with the second scene of the presentation still open. Video: Pressing Esc while presenting the second scene returns to the editing screen, with the second scene open in the Scenes list.
Any key on the “End of show” card ends the presentation
Even pressing ← on the card doesn’t go back to the last scene, and the editing screen opens in front of your audience. To keep the last scene up while you take questions, don’t advance past it.
Scenes with transitions and animation
Motion between scenes shows only when you turn on a transition for the scene you’re leaving or for objects in it. A scene without one switches straight to the next scene. Your first transition shows how to turn one on.
If a scene has timeline animation, advancing first moves that animation forward. Each advance plays to the next stop, and when there’s nothing more to show, the next scene comes in. If you advance while an animation is running, it jumps to the next stop without waiting. If you advance while a transition is moving, the transition finishes quickly.
The scene you start the presentation on waits in its starting look for the first click. A scene you arrive at from another scene plays right away, without a click. Stops and the work area shows how to place stops.
Going back first returns to the current scene’s previous stop or its start, and the previous scene comes in as it looks when its animation is done. So a scene whose objects disappear at the end of its animation looks empty when you go back to it.
Blanking the screen, hidden scenes, Mac keyboards
To blank the screen for a moment. Press B to cover the screen in black, or W to cover it in white. Press the same key again or click the screen, and that scene shows again without advancing.
If there’s a scene you won’t show. Hide that scene in the Scenes list. The presentation skips it, and you don’t have to delete it. Work with scenes shows how.
If F5 doesn’t start it on a Mac. Depending on your keyboard settings, F5 may do something else, such as brightness or dictation. Press it together with the fn key, or use the triangle button.
Shortcuts on this page
| Play from the Beginning | F5 |
|---|---|
| Play from This Scene | ⇧F5 |
| Next scene or stop | →orClick the screen |
| Previous | ←orRight-click |
| Black out the screen | B |
| End the presentation | esc |
Updated 10/14/2026 · The videos on this page were recorded in the current editor.