This guide explains how to share your screen or media directly from the Media Tray. Note: Screen and media sharing from the stage can only be done via the Media Tray - not from the Studio.
For information on sharing media from the Studio, see the separate guide for hosts and co-hosts.
The Media Tray is located to the left of the AV controls, below the gallery.
Speakers, crew, and moderators do not have access to the Studio’s media section
Instead, they (along with hosts and co-hosts) can upload and share media directly from the Media Tray
If a host or co-host shares media from the Studio, anyone on stage with permission can take control of that media
There is also a setting that allows anyone on stage, including attendees, to share media via the Media Tray.
🖥️ Share Your Screen
To share your screen from the Media Tray:
Click Screen
If there is already media saved in the media tray, you'll need to select add, and then screen
Choose what you want to share:
Your entire screen
A specific application window
A browser tab
Adjusting Layout (Focus Mode)
You can change how the screen share is displayed using Focus Mode. Available options include:
Split
Large
Fill
Solo
To adjust the layout hover over the screen share on stage and select a layout option.
🔊 Sharing Audio (Important)
To include audio (such as music or video sound):
Select Chrome Tab (or from another Chromium-based browser)
Toggle the box for “Also share tab audio”
Select Share
🔁 Infinite Mirror Effect (Expected Behavior)
If you share your entire screen while viewing your event, you may notice a repeating “infinite mirror” effect.
This is normal behavior, not a bug
Your audience will only see the intended shared content, not the mirror effect
For V2 users → follow this section ⤵️
The information below is different from using the Studio to share media. Anyone on stage can follow the steps below in order to share something on the stage. Hosts and co-hosts, on the other hand, additionally have access to the Studio where you can upload slides or video URLs. Learn more about the Studio here.
To share your screen or share media directly to the stage, click the screen share icon from the AV module below the stage. It’s the icon that looks like a rectangle with an arrow pointing upward.
Three options will appear when you click the screen share icon. You can share a video, screen, or slides.
Selecting Video allows you to share a video URL from Youtube, Vimeo, Wistia directly onto the stage. You have the option to mute everyone on stage, so any audio on their end won’t be heard over the shared video.
Selecting Screen allows you to set up a traditional screen share. This pop-up will appear where you can select to share your entire screen, a window, or a specific browser tab.
If you want to share your screen with audio/music, you need to select the Chrome Tab option (or the equivalent on any Chromium-based browser) and check the Share tab audio box. Watch a video on how to share a video with audio from a Chrome tab.
When you're sharing your entire screen and your event screen is visible within that screen share, it's like two mirrors reflecting each other. It creates an infinite reflection effect that looks like this:
This happens with any software that lets you see the screen share as you are screensharing. Don't worry – It's not a bug and nothing is broken! When you move away from Crowdcast, your audience will see your presentation or the webpage you're sharing.
If you share a window, you can share the view of another application. Here’s an example where Crowdcast shares the view of our Instagram page.
If you select Slides, you can upload .pdf, .doc, .ppt, or image files directly to the stage. You will be able to advance the slides or pages by using the arrow keys at the bottom of your presentation or the arrow keys on your keyboard.
Anyone assigned the in-event role of Speaker will additionally be able to access Studio-uploaded slides and image files from this option.
If you want to adjust how the screen share is displayed, you can use any of the available stage layout options. Learn more about the available stage layouts.
Important Notes
One way to share audio and be able to talk over is to share a Youtube, Vimeo or Wistia video with music in the gallery AND simultaneously share a slide presentation. Another option is to use Music Mode.
Before hosting an event, be sure your browser of choice is set up for screen sharing. Learn more about this here.
When sharing a screen or media, only one person can share a selection option at a time. For example, two people cannot share slides at the same time. However, one person could share slides while another shares a video.
The person who shares a presentation is the only one who can control the advancement of the slides.
When uploading a file to the studio's slides and docs, or through the Slides option within the AV module, any animations, special fonts, and videos won't work. The temporary solution is to share your screen if you have animations/videos in your PPT. The same is also a solution if you're experiencing a distortion or text images due to how the file is rendered. Or you might decide to upload videos directly into the studio that you can share during your presentation.
The maximum recommended file size is 250 MB.
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