{"id":567,"date":"2019-09-13T14:48:18","date_gmt":"2019-09-13T14:48:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/openlab.bmcc.cuny.edu\/mmp260-1301-f2019\/?page_id=567"},"modified":"2020-04-30T17:53:51","modified_gmt":"2020-04-30T17:53:51","slug":"week-11","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/openlab.bmcc.cuny.edu\/mmp260-pinkas-s2020\/week-11\/","title":{"rendered":"Week 11"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Importing an Animate project into After Effects<\/h1>\n

Adobe built Animate and After Effects so they could easily be combined. As we\u2019ve seen over the course of the semester the two software have a lot of similarities but also distinct strengths\/weaknesses. Importing our Animate character animation into After Effects will allow us to create more complex camera movements, title sequences and effects.<\/p>\n

While there is a camera feature in Animate, it isn\u2019t as sophisticated as the one in After Effects, as it is limited to simple zooms, pans and tilts. This might be more than enough for certain situations (and even your walk cycle assignment), but familiarizing yourself with After Effects\u2019 Camera tool early on will help you with more complex projects down the line.<\/p>\n

Importing the Animate file in After Effects<\/b><\/p>\n

For Adobe\u00a0Animate\u00a0Adobe Animate version 19.0 and beyond and After Effects version 16.0 and beyond (current version\u00a0offered with Adobe license).\u00a0<\/i><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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  1. Make sure all your Animate layers are well organized and labeled. Get rid of any layer you don\u2019t want to include in this version (create a copy of the file before deleting anything). Also be mindful that anything outside of the Stage will not be taken into account in After Effects.<\/li>\n
  2. Launch Adobe After Effects.<\/li>\n
  3. Create a new project and save it.<\/li>\n
  4. Go to\u00a0File > Import >\u00a0File\u00a0<\/i>and select your .fla file. Notice that a new composition as well as a folder containing individuals .swf files (one for each of your .fla layers) has been added to your library.<\/li>\n
  5. Also add any other file you might be using in the project (i.e: a the background layer you created in Illustrator. Please be aware that raster files (i.e: Photoshop, Procreate, JPG, PNG etc.) will get pixelated if zoomed in\u2026 thus the preferred vector format in this case).<\/li>\n
  6. In the Project panel, you will notice a new composition with the name of your fla file as well as a a folder containing the individuals swf files (one for each of your .fla layers). Double click on the composition to open it (and add any layer you\u2019d like)<\/li>\n
  7. In order to use the camera on your layers, you must convert them to 3D: Select all of them, right-click and select 3D Layer.<\/em><\/li>\n
  8. If you intend to use the camera to zoom onto certain part of your swf files, you will want After Effects to scale up the vector image without pixelization. In order to do so, you need to turn on the\u00a0Continuously Rasterize\u00a0<\/em>option checkbox\u00a0(the little sun-like icon) for all the .swf files you will be zooming into.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    For older versions of\u00a0Animate and After Effects (pre 2018)<\/i><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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    1. Create a folder to store all the assets you will create for this new version.<\/li>\n
    2. Make sure all your Animate layers are well organized and labeled. Get rid of any layer you don\u2019t want to include in this version (create a copy of the file before deleting anything).<\/li>\n
    3. Make sure the\u00a0Advanced Layers\u00a0<\/em>icon is turned off. If you leave it on, the SWF file won\u2019t play in After Effects.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
      \"\"
      Advanced layer icon. Should be turned to \u201cOff\u201d before exporting.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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      1. Next, we\u2019ll export each element that we know we\u2019ll want to control separately in After Effects into a separate SWF movie file.\n