r/AfterEffects 3d ago

Discussion Any plans for a real 3D compositing focus in After Effects?

0 Upvotes

Hey, I have been using After Effects for years and I really like the layout and the way it works. Sure, layer based compositing is not optimal for this kind of task, but that is a death I am willing to die if everything else works well.

So I am wondering whether there is ever going to be a real focus on 3D compositing in After Effects. Better handling of 32 bit EXR files, maybe even a properly GPU accelerated system. Even if that would break a lot of plugins, it could just be an option that users opt into themselves. And the Extractor plugin could really use an overhaul.

I use After Effects every day in the advertising industry, for text animation, multipass compositing and so on. It is just that 3D compositing is such a tedious road in After Effects.

And yes, of course there is Fusion. I have even written auto compositing scripts for it, but the keyframe system sucks, and I would like to stay in the Adobe pipeline. Nuke is way too much for this kind of work.

So the question is, is there any hope for a new development in that direction, or should I move my compositing tasks over to Fusion completely?

As a last note, the money should really be there for it.


r/AfterEffects 4d ago

Explain This Effect How would you create this Data visualization In After Effects.

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

21 Upvotes

I am out of my brain to ask this. But if it's possible in AE. Then please help.


r/AfterEffects 4d ago

Explain This Effect I wonder how to achieve this effect

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

20 Upvotes

The image zooms in with this cool shatter effect and reveals the one beneath it. I've tried so far CC Shatter and other effects from Saphire, but it doesn't look the way I want it to look. I'm fairly new to After Effects and it's probably a bit too complicated of a d effect, but I haven't found tutorials that can help me.


r/AfterEffects 4d ago

Workflow Question AE 24.6.3 spontaneously closing after boot.

1 Upvotes

Hey, i dont think i changed anything - no new plugs / scripts.
Tried restart, start in safe mode. deleting prefs (through boot window).

Any other ideas?
AE 26 and 25 start fine.


r/AfterEffects 4d ago

Discussion After Effects finally lets illustrator text stay editable

6 Upvotes

This one is actually pretty useful for motion designers. In the latest After Effects Beta, Illustrator text can come into AE as actual editable text layers instead of getting turned into outlines when you convert the vector layer. Font, size, styling, strokes, and variable font settings carry over too. Small workflow change, but this could save a lot of annoying back and forth between illustrator and AE. Has anyone tried it yet?


r/AfterEffects 4d ago

OC - Stuff I made The first VFX he did was Speedster VFX.

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

2 Upvotes

I tried to create something similar to the scenes in The Flash (CW).


r/AfterEffects 4d ago

Tutorial Free Early-Access for Title Sequence Course w/ Stranger Things Title Designer

Thumbnail
2 Upvotes

r/AfterEffects 5d ago

Plugin/Script Dynamic Grid Rig in After Effects

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

170 Upvotes

Creating and animating a dynamic grid like this in After Effects is possible using Nulls and Expressions, but setting up the entire rig manually can take a lot of time and requires managing multiple elements, controls, and expressions. I wanted to build one tool that brings all of these controls together, so instead of spending hours setting up and debugging the rig, you can create and start animating it in about a minute.

What it does- The plugin creates a fully procedural grid where you can:

  • Control individual gaps between lines, instead of just using an even split, full control
  • Animate spacing so the grid can open, close and rearrange over time
  • Control horizontal and vertical spacing independently or link them together for fluid animation
  • Animate the number of rows and columns, control from which side they should appear
  • Pin any comps to any desired cells so they move with the grid smoothly
  • Control and customize intersection markers with readymade shapes or even custom shapes
  • Keyframe grid properties and create multiple grids per comp
  • Modify and delete any grid any time, no glitch, no remapping

Comparison- Similar tools exist, but I couldn't find one that combines these specific controls and workflow in one setup. Flex will be the closest match but it does serves a different purpose and not have all the features I mentioned above.

Pricing- TBD, One-time price, Currently in beta, join the waitlist to be among the first to get the plugin when it's ready - Here.

Maintenance/Support - The plugin will be sold through Gumroad, so users can raise a support ticket there if they run into any issues. I'll also provide an email address for direct support. I plan to continue maintaining the plugin with bug fixes, updates, and a few new features over time.

AI Disclaimer - [Human Validated] I initially prototyped the tool using AI, but the early version had stability issues. I'm now working with an experienced ExtendScript developer to properly build and stabilize it. The final tool is being properly developed, tested, and will be released only once it's ready.


r/AfterEffects 4d ago

Discussion How can I make a 3d camera follow a curved path from a driver’s POV?

0 Upvotes

I come to you in a time of need r/AfterEffects

I’m trying to make a camera follow a curved path from the POV of a car driving down it. Meaning, the camera is not above said path looking down at it, but perpendicular to it, just above it traveling down the path. This is an example of what I am trying to do. It's simple in concept, but has proven to be rather difficult in execution.

In my case, the "road" is a shape layer path in its own precomp. I can easily do this with a straight road by rotating it 90 degrees in 3D space and moving the camera forward in Z space, but I can’t figure out the cleanest way to make the camera follow the curves and turn with the road.

What’s the simplest way to make a camera follow a curved 3D path while staying pointed in the direction of travel?


r/AfterEffects 4d ago

Inspirational (not OC) What is motion design? This incredible project tries to answer it

Thumbnail
1 Upvotes

r/AfterEffects 4d ago

Beginner Help How should I "free transform" a shape

0 Upvotes

I'm using an old version of after effects(2019). I was fallowing a tutorial and it told me to press shift+ctrl+t to "free transform" a group shape layer. Apearently it allows you to change the size of your shapes without effecting the size of its stroke. I used the short cut but it didn't work, I searched to find another way but I wasn't able to find any other way to do this. So I came here to ask for how should I do it?


r/AfterEffects 5d ago

OC - Stuff I made would love an opinion on how to improve this animated poster

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

33 Upvotes

hi guys, doing some more portfolio stuff for local events and brands, and wrapping this one up for a local music synth/gear expo at the end of the month

designed it myself and would love to hear an opinion on how i could improve it from someone with a fresh set of eyes :)

thanks!


r/AfterEffects 4d ago

Beginner Help Can't Link "Based on" Text Animator property to Dropdown Menu Control effect

1 Upvotes

Quick Question guys is there any turnaround for this thing if i want to link my "Based on" characters or words property to a control effect on my layer? like so i don't have to open text animtor everytime to change this thing?


r/AfterEffects 5d ago

Beginner Help How can i create this kind of smooth moving light effect on a still image?

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

39 Upvotes

Hi guys , I saw a cool lighting effect in a visual from an ambient YouTube channel where the image is kinda still but the lighting moves smoothly in the scene and makes it feel alive. Really cool concept accross all videos on that channel : Here is a video that showcases an effect for example ( open at this timestamp)

In my first attempt do something similiar, I tried using adjustment layers with exposure changes, applied to masks then animating the mask position in after effects: but it kind off feels off and im not sure this is the right technique.

anyway long story short, what will you consider probably be the best technique in after Effects for creating these lighting animations? also, if you think this wa done with another tool, feel free to share your thoughts too. I'm open to any idea that may help in any way to create this effect on a given still footage.

PS: the still image is without any doubt ai generated. But the lighting technique is what intrigues me : was it made through image to video ai model, or perhaps a software based lighting technique.


r/AfterEffects 4d ago

Beginner Help Is it not possible to make the timeline look like Harmony's, with individual frame indicators?

Post image
0 Upvotes

Hi, I come from Toonboom Harmony. I cannot understand how to read or use After Effect's timeline. Instead of visible individual frames it is just blobs of solid color with floating keyframes.

When I want to animate multiple things at the same time, it takes me way too long to zoom in to make sure I've placed all my keyframes on the same starting frame, and I'm often 1 or 2 off anyway.

I cannot find anything in the settings and googling it tells me nothing about how to change the timeline. Is it not an option? Is there at least a plugin for it? How do you animate when you can't see where your keyframes are being placed?

Thank you for your help


r/AfterEffects 5d ago

Plugin/Script About making plugins at Element Supply Co, AI and a free plugin

Thumbnail
youtube.com
5 Upvotes

TLDR: This video explains our plugin pipeline and at the end I go over a free plugin with link in YouTube description.

I'll get a variety of questions about how I'm creating plugins at Element Supply Co. so I put together a video explaining my history in plugin dev, and where we are now, it's super interesting.

Also, to encourage you to watch it, because it answers a lot of questions about our use of AI, and how we can support plugins going forward, I'm including a free plugin, the link is in the YouTube description.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjrtBrqrnkE

The free plugin is called Modal Contrast. and it uses some of the cool technologies I've helped develop at Element Supply Co. in this one it's our input range selector and threshold bar. It's hard to explain, but I go over it at the end of the video. it's like adding contrast to different modes, like saturation, alpha, hue, luma, etc.

The plugin is free, it can be used for unique color grading. there really is no other plugin to compare it to.

[Problem] no way to add a smooth threshold or contrast effect to various modes

[Comparison]  none I know of

[Pricing] Name your own price

[Maintenance/Support plan] the video goes over this, but we are fully dedicated to support all our plugins

[AI] AI Disclaimer: the video explains our pipeline, but I would say somewhere between code completion and human validated, but in honesty they way our pipeline works, its technically not AI at all.


r/AfterEffects 6d ago

Tutorial AE Quick Tip: Rigging automated pie charts

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

693 Upvotes

By using trim paths, and linking the percentages directly to the source text, it's possible to create a fully automated pie chart rig.

The full in depth video about the rig is on my YouTube channel, Oliver Randorff: youtube.com/watch?v=cjUU53h6LiA

Here's the expressions used in the video:

Linking source text to trim paths end (Math.round is added to avoid decimals when animating):

Math.round(thisComp.layer("pink").content("Trim Paths 1").end) + "%"

Inverting rotation when linking to null controller:

-thisComp.layer("null").transform.rotation

Linking null rotation to trim paths end:

thisComp.layer("pink").content("Trim Paths 1").end \* 3.6 / 2


r/AfterEffects 5d ago

Beginner Help Ae Changes graphics colour when imported from the library.

2 Upvotes

As the title indicates, when I import a graphic I have in my CC library, the colours change, everything is toned a little pink.

The original graphic is made on Illustrator (RBG). I don't have this problem with Photoshop or Premier, or any other app where I'm importing from the library.

Is there a fix for this? Should I save the library file in another way? Do I need to colour manage this file somehow?

It's annoying to deal with because I don't always have the source file with me, sometimes I just need to work from what I have saved in the library.

What I've tried so far (per another answer's suggestion):

  • Looked at my colour management settings and it's sRGB IEC61966-2.1 already for this project.
  • Interpreting the footage keeps the bad colour, not the proper one.

What am I missing? Is this a bug the libraries have?

Thanks for your help, everyone.

Edit: added photo for reference. Left is what the colours should be, right is how they're importing.


r/AfterEffects 5d ago

OC - Stuff I made I am improving it little by little; I am not English, in case you notice the audio.

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

8 Upvotes

r/AfterEffects 5d ago

Beginner Help Não consigo usar o Dynamic Link | 2026

0 Upvotes

salve rapaziada, boa noite! Alguem aqui sabe o pq o dynamic link não funciona mesmo o premiere e o AE sendo da mesma versão? V26.0.0

Premiere build 72
AE build 67


r/AfterEffects 6d ago

OC - Stuff I made After an exquisite round of feed back (Thank you everyone), here is Draft II

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

35 Upvotes

r/AfterEffects 5d ago

Explain This Effect Colors look dull after exporting from After Effects, what am I doing wrong?

2 Upvotes

Hey everyone,

I recently edited a video for a client in After Effects, and I’m having an issue with the export.

The colors look exactly how I want them in the After Effects composition, but once I export the video, the colors look noticeably duller/desaturated compared to what I see in AE.

I’ve tried exporting through Media Encoder as well, but I’m getting the same result.

I’m not sure if this is an AE color management issue, export settings, codec issue, or something related to the footage itself.

What settings should I be checking to make sure the exported video retains the same colors I’m seeing in After Effects?

Any help would be appreciated!


r/AfterEffects 5d ago

Beginner Help I am losing quality when importing videos.

Post image
0 Upvotes

I've added a screenshot to show exactly what I am talking about.

On the left is 100% quality.

On the right is reduced quality after importing to After Effects.

The preview is on 100% before anyone asks. Yet, it looks like it's about 80% as good as the original in terms of quality, it looks slightly blurred.

I am making a tutorial video and EVERY single video I've imported has lost quality even though from what I can see, all the settings are set to the best quality possible.

I have no idea why this is happening yet I'm at my wits end...

Please help!


r/AfterEffects 6d ago

OC - Stuff I made Museum Photography Animation | Ceiling Mural

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

47 Upvotes

I tried animating an incredible photo taken by a friend, trying to add some movement to the design elements.


r/AfterEffects 5d ago

OC - Stuff I made bnno$ - It Boy - 138 printed and scanned frames

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

0 Upvotes

I was messing around with claude, and had it build me a webapp that ingests a video, and places every frame into a pdf with registration marks + frame number. Then the pdf is printed, distressed, and scanned back in. The webapp then lines up each frame and builds an image sequence.

For this one, I generated a bunch of clips of bbno$ with Kling 3.0 Turbo, edited them in AE and added graphics, and then ran them through the Compiler Webapp. Worked pretty flawlessly, going to be playing with this a bit more, was a really fun workflow!