Motion Canvas in Rust

example

A high-performance vector animation engine inspired by Motion Canvas, built on Vello and Typst.

[!IMPORTANT] Prototype Status: This project is a functional prototype and proof-of-concept. It is not a 1:1 implementation of the original Motion Canvas API or features.

Installation

Add the library to your Cargo.toml. To enable all features (math, code blocks, images, export), use the full flag:

# Enable everything
cargo add motion-canvas-rs --features full

# Or pick only what you need (e.g., just math and images)
cargo add motion-canvas-rs --features math,image

Features

Feature	Description	Enables
`math`	Typst-powered LaTeX math rendering.	`MathNode`
`code`	Syntax-highlighted code blocks via Syntect.	`CodeNode`
`image`	Bitmap image support (PNG, JPEG, etc.).	`ImageNode`
`svg`	Vector graphics support using `resvg`.	`SvgNode`
`export`	Headless frame rendering and video generation.	`project.export()`
`full`	Meta-feature that enables all of the above.	Everything

Key Capabilities

High-performance: GPU-accelerated vector rendering via Vello.
Arc-length Sampling: Accurate path animations and offsets.
Easing Library: 30+ standardized easing functions.
FFmpeg Integration: Direct streaming of animation frames to video.
Clean API: Streamlined prelude for high-speed prototyping.

Project Structure

The engine is organized into a modular structure:

src/lib.rs: Library entry point with clean module re-exports.
src/engine/nodes/: Individual node implementations.
src/engine/animation/: Core animation traits and flow controls.
src/engine/easings.rs: Comprehensive easing function library.
examples/: Ready-to-run demonstration scripts.

Quick Start

use motion_canvas_rs::prelude::*;
use std::time::Duration;

fn main() {
    let mut project = Project::new(800, 600);

    let circle = Circle::new(Vec2::new(400.0, 300.0), 50.0, Color::RED);
    let text = TextNode::new(Vec2::new(400.0, 450.0), "Hello Rust", 40.0, Color::WHITE);

    project.scene.add(Box::new(circle.clone()));
    project.scene.add(Box::new(text.clone()));

    project.scene.timeline.add(all![
        circle.radius.to(100.0, Duration::from_secs(1)),
        text.position.to(Vec2::new(400.0, 500.0), Duration::from_secs(1)),
    ]);

    project.show().expect("Failed to render");
}

Running Examples

The project includes several formal examples covering different features. You can run them using cargo run --example <name>.

cargo run --example getting_started

https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/7590c3da-8917-4ac4-8832-425211fab67b

cargo run --example shapes

cargo run --example math_code

https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/97050ee4-0a67-4c4c-ba5d-737d7d0c101d

cargo run --example images

https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/25248e66-ccc7-4422-9f2f-7b9ef361d8d9

cargo run --example advanced_flow

https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/d283b03a-ae50-4011-9fab-77ced70a2632

cargo run --example easing_scope

https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/097e5b01-cdf4-4c9d-90a5-4cc4fc12e3ea

cargo run --example math_animation

https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/f3d8e774-31f4-4e96-b7b7-9e6bda0ec16f

cargo run --example color_interpolation

https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/cd002797-84ec-4bcb-af1f-0ab6e7c20433

cargo run --example export

https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/c01897a9-e744-43af-bfee-045f44549ba9

Requirements

Rust 1.75+
FFmpeg (optional, for direct video streaming)
System fonts (Inter, Fira Code, etc. for specific examples)

Credits

This project is heavily inspired by the original Motion Canvas by aarthificial. It aims to be a proof of concept of the same declarative animation feel in Rust.

motion-canvas-rs 0.1.1