Understanding Tracks

The Timeline is divided horizontally into Tracks. Think of tracks as transparent layers stacked on top of one another.

Video Tracks (V1, V2, V3...)

Video tracks are located in the top half of the timeline. ORAPHIM processes video tracks from the top down.

• A clip on V2 will completely cover and hide a clip on V1 happening at the same time, assuming the V2 clip fills the entire frame.
• If the clip on V2 is scaled down (like a picture-in-picture effect), cropped, or is a text graphic with a transparent background, you will see the clip on V1 underneath it.
• Workflow Tip: It is common practice to keep your primary "A-Roll" (main narrative, dialogue, interviews) on track V1, and place your "B-Roll" (supplementary footage, cutaways) on V2. Graphics and titles usually go on V3 and above.

Audio Tracks (A1, A2, A3...)

Audio tracks are located in the bottom half of the timeline. Unlike video tracks, audio tracks do not obscure one another. All audio tracks playing at a specific point in time are mixed together and heard simultaneously.

• Workflow Tip: Keep your audio organized. For example, dedicate A1 and A2 solely to dialogue, A3 and A4 to sound effects (SFX), and A5 and A6 to background music. This makes mixing in the Audio Workspace significantly easier later on.

Track Controls

On the far left side of the timeline, each track has a header containing several important controls:

Video Track Controls

• Lock (Padlock Icon): Locks the track. Clips on a locked track cannot be moved, cut, trimmed, or deleted. Use this to protect your finished music bed or completed A-Roll while you experiment on other tracks.
• Enable/Disable (Eye Icon): Toggles the visibility of the track. If you disable a video track, all clips on that track will disappear from the Program Monitor.

Audio Track Controls

• Lock (Padlock Icon): Locks the track.
• Mute (M): Silences the track. You will not hear it during playback or on export.
• Solo (S): Mutes all other audio tracks except for the one(s) currently soloed. This is useful for listening closely to a specific voice or sound effect to check for background noise.

Adding and Deleting Tracks

ORAPHIM supports an infinite number of tracks.

• To add a new track, simply drag a clip from the Media Pool into the empty space above your highest video track (or below your lowest audio track). ORAPHIM will automatically create a new track for it.
• Alternatively, you can right-click the track header area and select Add Track.
• To delete an empty track, right-click its header and select Delete Track.

Use Tracks in a production project

1. Open Edit workspace and select the intended clip, edit point, track, or timeline range.
2. Establish the correct input state first—timing, media link, layer/node enable state, project settings, or source selection as relevant.
3. Apply or adjust Tracks with one clear goal. Change the smallest set of controls needed to reach that goal so the result remains understandable and reversible.
4. Review the complete affected range in context. Scrub difficult frames and also play at normal speed when motion or audio is involved.
5. Save a named milestone before moving into another major operation, especially after graph changes, tracking, AI processing, relinking, simulation, or delivery setup.

Practical guidance

Track targeting, lock, visibility/mute/solo, and ordering determine what an edit operation can affect. Confirm those states before batch operations.

A useful test is a short 5–10 second section containing both an easy case and a difficult case for this feature. Tune against the difficult moment without breaking the easy one. If two approaches are plausible, duplicate/version the project state and compare them rather than stacking both together blindly.

Verify the result

• Play through the edit at normal speed and check upstream/downstream timing.
• Toggle/bypass the operation where possible and make sure the change you intended is actually responsible for the result.
• Check selection, visibility/mute/solo state, node connections, track locks, range, and source identity when the result appears missing.
• Save and reopen before treating a complex setup as reusable.
• If this feature changes final pixels or audio, render a short review and inspect the file outside Oraphim.

Related guides

• Clips
• Editing Overview
• Markers
• Multicam