Nested Symbols: The Russian Doll Technique

If Symbols are powerful, Nested Symbols are extraordinary. A nested symbol is simply a symbol that lives inside another symbol. This forms a hierarchy — like Russian dolls — that mirrors how real-world objects are structured.

Example hierarchy:

Character (symbol)
├── Head (symbol)
│   ├── Eye_Left (symbol)
│   ├── Eye_Right (symbol)
│   └── Mouth (symbol)
├── Torso (symbol)
├── Arm_Left (symbol)
└── Arm_Right (symbol)

Change Eye_Left → Head updates → Character updates → every instance of Character in all your scenes updates. That’s the power.

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🔽 Entering a Symbol (Edit Selected Symbol)

To edit a symbol (or enter a nested one), you always use Edit Selected Symbol in the Inspector:

1. Select a Character instance on the canvas.
2. Inspector → SYMBOL EDIT → Edit Selected Symbol.
3. You’re now inside Character. The scene dims; only the character’s parts are editable.
4. Click on the Head instance (a symbol inside Character).
5. Edit Selected Symbol again → you’re now inside Head.
6. Click on Eye_Left → Edit Selected Symbol → you’re inside the eye.

You can go as deep as your hierarchy needs.

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🧭 The Breadcrumb (Knowing Where You Are)

When editing nested symbols, the Inspector displays a breadcrumb path:

Character > Head > Eye_Left

This shows:

• Which symbol you’re currently editing.
• How deep in the hierarchy you are.
• What parent symbols contain this one.

Never lose track of where you are — the breadcrumb is your GPS inside the symbol hierarchy.

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✅ Finishing an Edit (Finish Symbol Edit)

When you’ve made your changes inside a nested symbol and want to go up one level:

• Click “Finish Symbol Edit” in the Inspector.
• You step up one level (from Eye_Left back to Head, for example).
• Your changes are saved and reflected in the parent symbol immediately.

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🚪 Exiting All the Way (Exit Symbol Edit)

If you’re deep in a Character > Head > Eye_Left hierarchy and want to jump all the way back to the scene in one click:

• Click “Exit Symbol Edit” in the Inspector.
• This closes ALL symbol editing levels simultaneously.
• You land back in the main scene, with all your edits applied.

Use Finish to go step by step. Use Exit for a direct return to scene.

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🎬 Recommended Workflow for Nested Characters

1. Start with the smallest parts (eyes, fingers, accessories).
2. Create symbols for each small part first.
3. Open a larger symbol (e.g., Head) and insert instances of the small parts inside it.
4. Position and arrange them to build the larger assembly.
5. Repeat: open Character, insert instances of Head, Torso, Arms.
6. In your scene, insert Character instances and animate each body part through its own timeline layer.

This bottom-up approach ensures every piece is reusable at every level.

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⚠️ Things to Keep in Mind

• Keyframes animate instances, not the symbol master itself. You animate the placement of an eye instance inside the head, not the eye’s internal structure.
• To animate an eye blinking (internal change), you keyframe the contents inside the Eye_Left symbol’s own timeline track.
• Combining nested symbol editing with Instance Overrides gives you the most flexible character system in Brinimate.

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💡 Pro Tip — Build a “Rig Test” Scene: Before starting your actual animation, create a test scene with one character instance. Enter each nested level and make sure the hierarchy is clean. Verify that editing Eye_Left updates correctly up to Character. Catching structural mistakes in the rig test (5 minutes) is infinitely faster than fixing them mid-production (5 hours).