Open Pivot and Stick Nodes files
Open your old Pivot Animator and Stick Nodes animations and figures, read the import notes, and check timing afterwards.
- Drag a .piv, .stk or Stick Nodes file onto the editor, or use File → Open project… (Ctrl+O).
- Animations (.piv, .stknds) open as projects. Figures and movieclips (.stk, .nodes, .nodemc) are added to the one you have open.
- If something came in slightly differently, an import notes window tells you exactly what.
Coming from Pivot Animator or Stick Nodes? You can keep your old work. StykAnimate opens Pivot animations and figures and Stick Nodes projects, figures and movieclips, so you can carry on where you left off. This guide shows which files open how, and what to check afterwards.
Open an old animation
- Save what you have open (Ctrl+S). Opening an animation replaces it; StykAnimate asks first if there are unsaved changes.
- Choose File → Open project… (Ctrl+O) and pick your .piv or .stknds file. Or simply drag the file onto the editor.
- Read the import notes if they appear. They list anything that came across differently, like a missing picture.
- Check the frame rate and play it with Space. Compare with how it looked in the old app.
- Save it as a .styk project before you change it, and keep the original file.
Add an old figure to your animation
- Choose File → Import → Import figures… and pick a .stk, .nodes or .nodemc file. Or drag it onto the editor.
- The figure (or movieclip) is added to the animation you have open, on the current frame. Ctrl+Z takes it out again.
- A Stick Nodes .zip pack can hold several assets. StykAnimate asks Choose a Stick Nodes asset: click the one you want.
Downloads Drag a file onto the editor, or click it
Untitled animationSaved- Open a Pivot animation: drag Old fight.piv onto the editor.
- Add a Pivot figure: drop Ninja.stk on it.
- Try a Stick Nodes file: .stknds, .nodes or .nodemc.
- Pick from a .zip pack.
- Use the File menu: File → Import figures… (or Open project…), then click a file.
Drag Old fight.piv onto the editor to start.
Every file you can open
| File | From | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| .styk | StykAnimate | Opens the project. |
| .stkz · .stykmov | StykAnimate | Adds the figure or movieclip to your animation. |
| .piv | Pivot Animator (versions 2 to 5) | Opens the animation as a project. |
| .stk | Pivot Animator | Adds the figure to your animation. |
| .stknds | Stick Nodes | Opens the whole project. |
| .nodes | Stick Nodes | Adds the figure. |
| .nodemc | Stick Nodes | Adds a movieclip. |
| .zip | Stick Nodes | Asks which asset inside it you want. |
| Pictures | Anywhere | Adds an image: File → Import → Import sprite image… for one you can move, or Import background image… for the scene’s background. See Text and images. |
Pivot files
StykAnimate reads Pivot animations and figures faithfully: the same poses, the same timing, the same figures. If anything couldn’t come across exactly, the Pivot import notes window lists it. The most common one: a picture saved without its image data comes in transparent, with its figure and animation kept, so you can put the picture back.
Open a .piv and export it straight back without editing, and you get the very same file. After editing, choose Export → Project → Pivot animation (or Pivot figure). Things Pivot doesn’t have, like effects, sound or some shapes, can’t go into a .piv, so keep your .styk as the original.
Stick Nodes files
Figures, movieclips and whole projects come in with their poses, frames and timing. The Stick Nodes import notes window explains anything that differs, most often:
- Sound: sounds stored outside the project aren’t carried over. Add them again on the audio tracks.
- Text stays editable but uses a built-in font, so it can look slightly different.
- Some effects, Stick Nodes’ own joint solvers and camera wobble behave a little differently; their settings are kept with the file.
Check it after opening
| Check | Why |
|---|---|
| Frame rate (fps) in the timeline header | The same frames at another frame rate play faster or slower. Match the old app before you change timing. |
| Snappy or smooth motion | Imported frames hold each pose, like Pivot. That’s on purpose; easing makes them glide if you want. |
| Pictures and background | A missing picture comes in transparent. Read the notes and put the original image back. |
| Sound and text | Re-add sounds that lived outside the file, and check text looks right. |
| Joined props and movieclips | Move a parent figure to check its props follow, and play movieclips through. |
Common questions
Nothing happens when I drop a file.
Check its extension is in the table above. In the browser editor, the first Pivot file takes a moment while the Pivot reader loads.
My Pivot animation plays too fast or too slow.
Check the frame rate in the timeline header and set it to what you used in Pivot.
My Pivot animation looks choppy after I edit it.
New frames hold their pose (Constant easing), just like Pivot’s frames. See Easing to make them glide.
Can I open a .styk file in Pivot?
No. Export a Pivot animation (.piv) from the Export window instead.
Keep going
Still stuck?
Ask the community, or tell us what’s missing from the docs.