Giphy Integration

Add animated GIFs from Giphy to make your presentations more engaging.

Overview

The Giphy integration provides access to millions of GIFs and stickers. Search for animations, preview them, and add them to your slides to enhance your message with motion.

Setup

Get an API Key

Go to Giphy Developers
Create an account or sign in
Create a new app
Select API (not SDK)
Copy your API Key

Configure Deckyard

Add to your .env file:

GIPHY_API_KEY=your-api-key-here

Restart Deckyard to apply the changes.

Image library picker with categories, search, upload, and media grid

Using Giphy

Access the GIF Library

Open a slide in the editor
Click on an image field or the Add Image button
Select the GIFs tab in the image picker

Search for GIFs

Type your search query (e.g., “celebration”)
Browse the animated results
Hover to preview the animation
Click to add it to your slide

When you open the GIF tab without searching, you’ll see currently trending GIFs.

GIF Formats

Giphy provides multiple formats:

Format	Use Case
Preview	Low-res for picker
Original	Full quality GIF
Still	Static thumbnail
MP4	Video format (smaller file)

Deckyard uses:

Preview for the picker interface
Original for slides in edit mode
Still for export thumbnails

Content Rating

Available Ratings

Control the type of content shown:

Rating	Description
G	General audience
PG	Parental guidance suggested
PG-13	Parents strongly cautioned
R	Restricted

Default Setting

Deckyard defaults to G rating for family-friendly content.

Changing the Rating

Administrators can configure the default rating in settings (if exposed in your instance).

Attribution

Powered by GIPHY

Per Giphy’s terms, the GIF picker displays the “Powered by GIPHY” badge. This is required for all API integrations.

Viewing Source

Each GIF includes a link to its original Giphy page where you can see:

Creator information
Related GIFs
Sharing options

Rate Limits

API Limits

Beta keys: 42 searches per hour, 1,000 searches per day
Production keys: Higher limits (apply for access)

Upgrade to Production

Go to your Giphy dashboard
Request production access
Describe your use case
Wait for approval

Troubleshooting

”Giphy API is not configured”

The API key is missing or invalid:

Check GIPHY_API_KEY in .env
Verify the key is correct
Restart Deckyard

GIFs Not Playing

Check browser supports GIF playback
Large GIFs may take time to load
Try a different GIF

Search Returns No Results

Check your search terms
Try more common keywords
Some terms may be filtered by content rating

Rate Limit Errors

Wait for limits to reset
Apply for production access
Consider caching popular GIFs

Best Practices

When to Use GIFs

GIFs work best for:

Reactions and emotions
Quick demonstrations
Adding humor
Celebrating achievements
Breaking up dense content

When to Avoid GIFs

Consider alternatives when:

Presenting formally
File size is critical
Audience has slow connections
Content needs to be accessible

Accessibility

GIFs can be distracting for some users
Consider providing a static alternative
Don’t rely solely on GIFs to convey information

Performance

GIFs can be large files
Limit the number per presentation
Consider using MP4 format if supported

API Details

Search Request

GET https://api.giphy.com/v1/gifs/search
  ?api_key=YOUR_KEY
  &q=celebration
  &limit=20
  &offset=0
  &rating=g
  &lang=en

GET https://api.giphy.com/v1/gifs/trending
  ?api_key=YOUR_KEY
  &limit=20
  &rating=g

Response Format

Each GIF includes:

{
  "id": "abc123",
  "title": "Celebration GIF",
  "slug": "celebration-abc123",
  "rating": "g",
  "url": "https://giphy.com/gifs/...",
  "images": {
    "original": {
      "url": "...",
      "width": "480",
      "height": "360",
      "size": "1234567",
      "mp4": "..."
    },
    "preview_gif": {
      "url": "..."
    },
    "original_still": {
      "url": "..."
    }
  }
}