19. Can I insert or add a video or import a video into Doodly or Can I make a doodle with a transparent background?
Inserting a video into Doodly
The quick answer to this question is not at this time but this question has a couple of answers based on the situation.
- Convert to GIF: While a .mp4 or .webm file with sound cannot be directly inserted into Doodly, if you don’t need sound and don’t care about the quality of the video, you can convert that .mp4 or .webm file to a .gif which is compatible with Doodly and insert that into Doodly but keep in mind that will reduce the quality of the video severely from millions of colors to a maximum of 256 colors and you will lose sound.
- Use a video editing software: A better question might be; can I insert a video into a doodle? The answer to this is absolutely but not using Doodly. Doodly is not a video editing software suite so you will need a video editing software package. Leave a section and enough delay time for the next asset or enough time at the end of the scene in order to allow for the video to fully complete. Here are some free video editing software packages.
- Apple iMovie (Mac Only. This software has very low ratings and Apple is not known for its excellence on free software. Use at your own risk.)
- Davinci Resolve (Advanced Video Editor. Requires extensive self training but this is an excellent)
- VSDC (I’ve never used this one)
- Shotcut
- Natron (Warning: Lots of github projects have been compromised by hackers pretending to assist and help with programming and really installing methods of getting into your computer when you install the software. While Natron is one of the most trusted projects on github, this warning still applies. There is no way to tell if this project has been compromised and the last update was from 2022. Their website was updated June 15th, 2025. Install at your own risk.)
Using a Transparent Background
Doodly does not natively support alpha channels also known as transparency at this time. This next statement is an advanced technique and requires use of additional software and knowledge of alpha channels support for different file types like .webm as .mp4 does not support alpha channels. Using a green screen effect with either a Chromakey or Ultrakey (Adobe Premier), you can remove the background from your Doodly video and create your own alpha channels.
Green Screen and Masking
You can see an example of this here: Green Screen Effect Advanced Tutorial
Read our Insert a Video into a Doodle written tutorial.
