---
name: split-tilt-cards
description: Two cards side-by-side with opposing Y-rotation creating a symmetric 3D split-screen layout for comparisons or feature pairs.
metadata:
  tags: 3d, cards, split, tilt, comparison, symmetric, layout
---

# Split Tilt Cards

Two cards side-by-side with opposing `rotateY` (left `+TILT`, right `−TILT`) — a symmetric "book-open" 3D split for comparisons, before/after, feature pairs. Each card slides in from its own side (reinforcing "they came from their own worlds and met here"), then the pair idles in counter-phase.

## How It Works

`perspective` on the scene root (REQUIRED — without it `rotateY` flattens to a 2D layout) and `transform-style: preserve-3d` on the stage and both cards. Entry starts each card off-axis with `TILT + TILT_OVERSHOOT`, settling to `TILT` — a pivot-into-place. Idle is a gentle counter-phase y-bob (the two yoyo tweens run in opposite directions); copy fades up during the cards' settle, not after.

## Recipe

```html
<!-- inside a standard scene clip (hyperframes-core) -->
<div class="split-stage">
  <div class="card card-left">
    <div class="card-eyebrow">{leftEyebrow}</div>
    <div class="card-headline">{leftHeadline}</div>
    <div class="card-body">{leftBody}</div>
  </div>
  <div class="card card-right">…</div>
</div>
```

```css
.scene-root {
  display: grid;
  place-items: center;
  perspective: SCENE_PERSPECTIVE; /* REQUIRED */
}
.split-stage {
  display: flex;
  gap: STAGE_GAP;
  transform-style: preserve-3d;
}
.card {
  width: CARD_WIDTH;
  transform-style: preserve-3d;
  will-change: transform;
}
/* Shadow falls WITH the facing direction: left card faces right → shadow right. */
.card-left {
  box-shadow: -CARD_SHADOW_OFFSET CARD_SHADOW_DROP CARD_SHADOW_BLUR {shadowColor};
}
.card-right {
  box-shadow: CARD_SHADOW_OFFSET CARD_SHADOW_DROP CARD_SHADOW_BLUR {shadowColor};
}
```

```js
// Entry — from outside, opposing tilts settle with a small pivot
tl.fromTo(
  ".card-left",
  { x: -ENTRY_SLIDE_DIST, rotateY: TILT + TILT_OVERSHOOT, opacity: 0 },
  { x: 0, rotateY: TILT, opacity: 1, duration: ENTRY_DUR, ease: "power3.out" },
  LEFT_AT,
);
tl.fromTo(
  ".card-right",
  { x: ENTRY_SLIDE_DIST, rotateY: -TILT - TILT_OVERSHOOT, opacity: 0 },
  { x: 0, rotateY: -TILT, opacity: 1, duration: ENTRY_DUR, ease: "power3.out" },
  RIGHT_AT,
);

// Counter-phase idle bob — opposite signs = alive; synchronized = conveyor belt
tl.to(
  ".card-left",
  { y: -FLOAT_AMP, duration: FLOAT_DURATION / 2, ease: "sine.inOut", yoyo: true, repeat: 1 },
  IDLE_START,
);
tl.to(
  ".card-right",
  { y: FLOAT_AMP, duration: FLOAT_DURATION / 2, ease: "sine.inOut", yoyo: true, repeat: 1 },
  IDLE_START,
);

// Copy fades up during the settle
tl.from(
  ".card-eyebrow, .card-headline, .card-body",
  { opacity: 0, y: COPY_RISE, stagger: COPY_STAGGER, duration: COPY_DUR, ease: "power2.out" },
  COPY_REVEAL_AT,
);
```

## Variations

- **Badges / floating labels**: position them on the PARENT, never inside a card — inside they inherit the `rotateY` and tilt off-axis.
- **3+ cards**: center card stays flat (`rotateY: 0`), outer two tilt inward — "old way / nothing / our way."
- **Zoom-through**: a separate camera tween scaling `.split-stage` reads as the viewer crossing the gap between the tilted pair.

## Values

| token             | range                            | notes                                                   |
| ----------------- | -------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------- |
| SCENE_PERSPECTIVE | 1000–2400px                      | lower exaggerates the tilt; higher reads near-isometric |
| TILT              | 10–18°                           | < 10 reads almost flat; > 18 folds shut and copy blurs  |
| TILT_OVERSHOOT    | 4–12°                            | the pivot-into-place feel                               |
| STAGE_GAP         | 40–120px (~0.06–0.15×CARD_WIDTH) | small = fused pair; large = compared-but-separate       |
| CARD_WIDTH        | 480–820px @1920                  | `2×CARD_WIDTH + STAGE_GAP ≤ 0.95×stage` at full tilt    |
| ENTRY_SLIDE_DIST  | 200–500px (~0.3–0.6×CARD_WIDTH)  |                                                         |
| ENTRY_DUR         | 0.6–1.2s                         |                                                         |
| RIGHT_AT          | LEFT_AT + 0–0.3s                 | zero feels mechanical; large fragments the pair         |
| FLOAT_AMP         | 3–8px                            | subtle is the point                                     |
| FLOAT_DURATION    | 1.6–3.2s round trip              | breathing cadence; IDLE_START ≥ entry end               |
| COPY_REVEAL_AT    | during the entry tail            | copy popping in after cards are idle reads disconnected |

## Critical Constraints

- **`perspective` on the scene root is REQUIRED**; `preserve-3d` on the stage AND each card.
- **Shadow direction matches tilt** — left card faces right → shadow falls right (and mirrored). Wrong sign reads as broken 3D.
- **Counter-phase idle** — the two bobs run with opposite signs at the same position.
- **Badges outside the card divs** (they'd inherit the rotation).
- **Body copy ≤ 2 lines per card** — tilted long paragraphs collapse into perspective blur.
- **Symmetric weight** — same width, same vertical center, similar line counts; asymmetry breaks the comparison metaphor.

## See also

`card-morph-anchor` (the pair can morph into one unified shape afterward) · `counting-dynamic-scale` (numbers as each side's headline) · `sine-wave-loop` (the idle form).