coloring multiple frames in Flash Professional CC

Question

I'm brand new to Flash Professional and wanted to make a short 10 second clip. Instead of looking into using tweens and symbols (I wish I did) I used Flash Professional as a flip book, illustrating sketches for each keyframe.

I'm now in the colouring process and want to know if there is a way to colour an object (I've drawn with the brush tool) throughout multiple frames. is this even possible?

I understand there are some short cuts to repetitive tasks using ActionScript. But, once again I am brand new to Flash Professional and haven't tried anything in the ActionScript. I do however have a very basic knowledge of HTML coding and some javaScript if it helps at all…

If there is an alternate solution like exporting the file to another Adobe program that has a "colouring multiple frames" feature, that would be great too.

Answer 1

Sorry to say, to do that, you WILL have to work with symbols. However, this is an easy fix.

Select the object you want to color, click Modify--> Convert to Symbol. Give it a good name, and set it to MovieClip. Click OK.

Now, in the Library panel, double-click the icon next to your symbol name. Color as you wish.

There are multiple ways to put this on your timeline. You could replace each instance of that drawing with the symbol. Or, better, you could create a new layer with only one keyframe (and regular frames after that to the end of your animation. Place your object on that layer, and then remove all the old versions of that drawing.

NOTE: You will need to be mindful of where in the stack you put layers, as that sets the z-index of everything on that layer.