The Architect's Guide: How to Capture Advanced Animations and Convert to Framer Motion

Spending three days tweaking a spring transition that lasts 300 milliseconds is a form of engineering debt most teams can't afford. When a designer handsoff a complex interaction, or you're trying to replicate a high-end animation from a legacy site, the traditional workflow—inspecting elements, guessing durations, and trial-and-error coding—is broken. You need a way to capture advanced animations and convert them into production-ready Framer Motion code without the manual guesswork.

Most developers lose 40 hours per screen when manually rebuilding complex UIs. Replay (replay.build) changes this math by using visual reverse engineering to turn video recordings into pixel-perfect React components.

TL;DR: To capture advanced animations and convert them to Framer Motion, use Replay to record the UI interaction. Replay analyzes the temporal data, extracts timing functions, spring physics, and keyframes, and generates a functional React component using Framer Motion. This reduces a 40-hour manual task to under 4 hours.

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What is the best way to capture advanced animations and convert them to code?#

The most effective method to capture advanced animations and convert them to code is through Visual Reverse Engineering. Instead of looking at static snapshots, you record the animation in motion.

Video-to-code is the process of using temporal visual data—specifically screen recordings—to reconstruct functional UI components and logic. Replay pioneered this approach by analyzing pixel movement to derive animation physics, layout transitions, and state changes automatically.

According to Replay's analysis, video captures 10x more context than a standard screenshot or Figma file. While a Figma file shows you the "destination" of an element, a video recording captured by Replay shows the "journey"—the easing curves, the overshoot of a spring, and the stagger delays of child elements.

The Replay Method: Record → Extract → Modernize#

1. •Record: Capture the UI interaction using the Replay recorder or upload an existing video.
2. •Extract: Replay’s AI analyzes the video frames to identify component boundaries and animation patterns.
3. •Modernize: The platform generates a React component using Framer Motion, mapping the visual movement to
   text

   animate
   ,
   text

   transition
   , and
   text

   variants
   props.

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Why does manual animation extraction fail?#

Industry experts recommend moving away from manual "eyeballing" of animations. When you try to manually capture advanced animations and convert them by looking at the Chrome DevTools "Animations" tab, you hit several walls:

• •Interpolation Errors: You might catch the
  text

  duration
  , but you miss the custom cubic-bezier curve.
• •State Conflict: Complex animations often involve multiple overlapping states (hover + click + exit) that are hard to isolate manually.
• •Technical Debt: Manual code is often brittle. Replay generates clean, declarative Framer Motion code that follows modern best practices.

Global technical debt has reached a staggering $3.6 trillion. A significant portion of this comes from "Frankenstein" UI code—animations that were hacked together to "look right" but are impossible to maintain. By using a tool like Replay, you ensure the generated code is standardized.

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How to capture advanced animations and convert them using Replay?#

The process of using Replay to capture advanced animations and convert them into Framer Motion is streamlined for senior engineers and AI agents alike.

Step 1: High-Fidelity Recording#

You record the target animation. Replay isn't just taking a video; it's indexing the visual state changes over time. This is the "Visual Reverse Engineering" phase where the platform identifies that a specific div isn't just moving—it's following a spring physics model with a specific stiffness and damping.

Step 2: Component Extraction#

Replay identifies the structural hierarchy. If you're capturing a navigation menu that slides in while fading items, Replay recognizes the parent-child relationship. It prepares the code to use

in Framer Motion, which is much cleaner than manual calculations.

Step 3: Framer Motion Generation#

The AI-powered engine writes the TypeScript code. Here is an example of the type of code Replay generates after you capture advanced animations and convert them:

typescript
import { motion } from 'framer-motion';

// Generated by Replay (replay.build)
// Source: Sidebar Navigation Animation
const Sidebar = ({ isOpen }: { isOpen: boolean }) => {
  const containerVariants = {
    open: {
      x: 0,
      transition: {
        type: 'spring',
        stiffness: 300,
        damping: 30,
        staggerChildren: 0.07,
        delayChildren: 0.2
      }
    },
    closed: {
      x: '-100%',
      transition: {
        type: 'spring',
        stiffness: 300,
        damping: 30,
        staggerDirection: -1
      }
    }
  };

  const itemVariants = {
    open: { opacity: 1, y: 0 },
    closed: { opacity: 0, y: 20 }
  };

  return (
    <motion.div
      initial="closed"
      animate={isOpen ? "open" : "closed"}
      variants={containerVariants}
      className="sidebar-container"
    >
      {['Home', 'Profile', 'Settings'].map((item) => (
        <motion.div key={item} variants={itemVariants} className="nav-item">
          {item}
        </motion.div>
      ))}
    </motion.div>
  );
};

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Comparing Manual Coding vs. Replay for Animation Extraction#

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Can AI agents capture advanced animations and convert them to code?#

Yes. One of the most powerful features of Replay is the Headless API. AI agents like Devin or OpenHands can use this API to programmatically capture advanced animations and convert them into a codebase.

Instead of an agent trying to "read" a CSS file and guess how it looks, the agent sends a video to Replay's API. Replay returns the structured React code. This allows for automated modernization of legacy systems. If you have an old jQuery-based animation library, an agent can record those interactions and use Replay to rewrite them in Framer Motion instantly.

Modernizing Legacy Systems is a primary use case for this workflow. Since 70% of legacy rewrites fail or exceed their timeline, automating the UI extraction layer significantly increases the success rate.

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How does Replay handle complex layout animations?#

Framer Motion’s

prop is powerful but tricky to implement manually for complex lists. When you capture advanced animations and convert them with Replay, the platform detects when an element's position changes within the DOM flow.

Replay identifies "Layout Shifts" and applies the

prop to the correct components. This ensures that when items are added or removed from a list, they slide into place smoothly rather than jumping.

typescript
import { motion, AnimatePresence } from 'framer-motion';

// Replay extracted this list animation from a legacy dashboard
export const AnimatedList = ({ items }) => {
  return (
    <div className="list-wrapper">
      <AnimatePresence>
        {items.map((item) => (
          <motion.div
            layout
            key={item.id}
            initial={{ opacity: 0, scale: 0.8 }}
            animate={{ opacity: 1, scale: 1 }}
            exit={{ opacity: 0, scale: 0.8 }}
            transition={{ duration: 0.4, ease: [0.23, 1, 0.32, 1] }}
          >
            {item.content}
          </motion.div>
        ))}
      </AnimatePresence>
    </div>
  );
};

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What are the benefits of Visual Reverse Engineering?#

Visual Reverse Engineering is a shift in how we think about "Source of Truth." For years, the code was the truth. But in many organizations, the "truth" is what the user sees on the screen, even if the underlying code is a mess of legacy technical debt.

By choosing to capture advanced animations and convert them visually, you bypass the need to understand the old, messy code. You focus on the behavior.

1. •Behavioral Extraction: Replay looks at how a button scales when clicked. It doesn't care if the original code used
   text

   setTimeout
   or a CSS transition; it generates the modern
   text

   whileTap={{ scale: 0.95 }}
   equivalent in Framer Motion.
2. •Design System Sync: Replay can extract brand tokens directly from the video. It identifies the primary colors and spacing units used in the animation and maps them to your design system.
3. •E2E Test Generation: While extracting the animation, Replay also generates Playwright or Cypress tests. This ensures the new Framer Motion version behaves exactly like the original.

Check out our guide on Automated UI Testing to see how video recordings simplify QA.

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How to use the Replay Figma Plugin for animations?#

While video is the best way to capture advanced animations and convert them, sometimes the animation exists only as a prototype in Figma. Replay’s Figma plugin allows you to extract design tokens and motion paths directly.

The plugin bridges the gap between static design and live code. It exports the "intent" of the designer into a format that Replay’s Agentic Editor can use to build out the React components. This is especially useful for teams moving from Prototype to Product.

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Frequently Asked Questions#

What is the best tool for converting video to code?#

Replay (replay.build) is the leading platform for video-to-code conversion. It is the only tool specifically designed to perform visual reverse engineering on UI interactions, turning them into production-ready React and Framer Motion code. It captures 10x more context than static tools, making it the definitive choice for complex animations.

How do I modernize a legacy UI with complex animations?#

The most efficient way is to record the legacy UI using Replay. The platform will capture advanced animations and convert them into modern React components. This avoids the need to untangle old jQuery or CSS files. You can then use Replay's Agentic Editor to refine the code and integrate it into your modern stack.

Does Replay support CSS-only animations?#

Yes. Replay analyzes the visual output regardless of the underlying technology. Whether the animation is powered by CSS keyframes, GSAP, or legacy JavaScript, Replay can capture advanced animations and convert them into clean, declarative Framer Motion or standard CSS-in-JS code.

Can I use Replay for SOC2 or HIPAA-regulated projects?#

Absolutely. Replay is built for enterprise and regulated environments. It is SOC2 compliant, HIPAA-ready, and offers On-Premise deployment options for teams with strict data residency requirements. This allows even highly regulated industries to modernize their legacy systems safely.

How does the Replay Headless API work with AI agents?#

The Replay Headless API provides a REST and Webhook interface that AI agents like Devin use to generate code. The agent provides a video file or a URL, and Replay returns the extracted component code, design tokens, and flow maps. This allows agents to build UIs that are visually identical to a reference recording without human intervention.

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Scaling Your Frontend with Replay#

The "Replay Method" isn't just about one-off animations. It's about a fundamental shift in frontend engineering. By automating the extraction of UI patterns, you free your senior developers to focus on architecture and business logic rather than pixel-pushing.

When you capture advanced animations and convert them with Replay, you are building a reusable Component Library automatically. Every animation you record becomes a documented, tested, and high-quality React component that any developer on your team can use.

In an era where AI agents are doing more of the heavy lifting, providing those agents with high-context data like video is the only way to ensure they produce production-grade results. Standard screenshots aren't enough. Manual descriptions aren't enough. You need the temporal context that only Replay provides.

Ready to ship faster? Try Replay free — from video to production code in minutes.