# Newbie question: mc on separate timeline?

**URL:** <https://forum.kirupa.com/t/newbie-question-mc-on-separate-timeline/82155>\
**Category:** flash\
**Created:** [March 8, 2005, 2:12am UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/newbie-question-mc-on-separate-timeline/82155 "2005-03-08T02:12:20Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![graefika](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex011/user_avatar/forum.kirupa.com/graefika/32/1109_2.png) [@graefika](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/graefika)\
**Post date:** [March 8, 2005, 2:12am UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/newbie-question-mc-on-separate-timeline/82155/1 "2005-03-08T02:12:20Z")

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I have a mc with a tweend animation that’s 18 frames long. This mc is placed into the main timeline on a keyframe, but the same mc won’t play thru unless I have it existing in the main timeline for the number of frames (18) that is required to play the mc animation. I thought that you just place a mc on the main timeline and it’ll play it’s own timeline entirely without being ‘tied’ to the main timeline? Am I missing something here?! This is simple but it’s not working somehow!

thanks