How To Use ScrollMagic with GSAP and Webpack

Question

In order to use ScrollMagic with GSAP, you need to load the animation.gsap.js plugin. With Webpack you would do something like this to accomplish that (assuming you use the CommonJS syntax and installed everything with npm):

var TweenMax = require('gsap');
var ScrollMagic = require('scrollmagic');
require('ScrollMagicGSAP');

To make sure that this actually works, you have to add an alias to your Webpack configuration, so that Webpack knows where the plugin lives.

resolve: {
  alias: {
    'ScrollMagicGSAP': 'scrollmagic/scrollmagic/uncompressed/plugins/animation.gsap'
  }
}

Unfortunately, ScrollMagic keeps throwing an error, when you are using this configuration and the CommonJS syntax like above.

(ScrollMagic.Scene) -> ERROR calling setTween() due to missing Plugin 'animation.gsap'. Please make sure to include plugins/animation.gsap.js

Answer 1

The Solution

You have to tell Webpack to stop using the AMD syntax by adding the following loader that deactivates the define() method.

module: {
  loaders: [
    { test: /\.js$/, loader: 'imports-loader?define=>false'}

    // Use this instead, if you’re running Webpack v1
    // { test: /\.js$/, loader: 'imports?define=>false'}
  ]
}

Don’t forget to install the loader with npm install imports-loader --save-dev .

Why?

The problem lies in the fact that Webpack supports the AMD (define) and CommonJS (require) syntax. That is why the following factory script within plugins/animation.gsap.js jumps into the first if statement and fails silently. That is why setTween() etc. are never added to the ScrollMagic Constructor.

By telling Webpack not to support the AMD syntax (using the loader mentioned above), the plugin jumps into the second if statement correctly, embracing the CommonJS syntax.

if (typeof define === 'function' && define.amd) {
    // AMD. Register as an anonymous module.
    define(['ScrollMagic', 'TweenMax', 'TimelineMax'], factory);
} else if (typeof exports === 'object') {
    // CommonJS
    // Loads whole gsap package onto global scope.
    require('gsap');
    factory(require('scrollmagic'), TweenMax, TimelineMax);
} else {
    // Browser globals
    factory(root.ScrollMagic || (root.jQuery && root.jQuery.ScrollMagic), root.TweenMax || root.TweenLite, root.TimelineMax || root.TimelineLite);
}

I hope this prevents other people from spending a whole evening trying to figure out what is going on.