After Effects CC 2022: How To Create Paper Cut-Out Look
Solids Folder Basics
Description:
This tutorial will show you how to create a Paper Cut-Out look in Adobe After Effects CC 2022 to give your animations a ‘Hand-drawn, Stop-Motion’ look and feel.
Note: This tutorial focuses on creating the hand-drawn paper cut-out look and not so much on how to animate. However, I do provide the animation steps I used in this tutorial below.
Sample Paper Texture (Unsplash):
https://unsplash.com/photos/HZm2XR0whdw
Keyboard Shortcuts:
|Create a New Solid Color Layer: Cmd or Ctrl + Y
Pen Tool: G
Reveal All Masks: M
Expression Used:
loopOut()
Software Used:
Adobe After Effects CC 2022 (Click To Try or Buy)
How To Create the ‘Paper Cut-Out Look’ in Adobe After Effects CC 2022:
- Create a new composition at 1920 x 1080, 30 fps is fine
- Drag a logo or graphic onto the Composition that you want to use for the ‘cut-out’ effect
- Drag a texture layer or create a new solid color layer (cmd/ctrl + Y) and drag this layer below the logo or graphic layer
- Select the Paper Texture or Solid Color Layer
- Select the Pen Tool (keyboard shortcut is ‘G’)
- Click around the logo using the Pen Tool. The last click should be on the point you started with.
- Click on the points to adjust
- When finished with the Pen Tool, you should have the ‘paper cut-out’ (graphic with a paper or solid color jagged edge)
- To Reveal Mask, select layer and click on ‘M’. The Mask should be set to ‘Add’
How To Parent Logo/Graphic Layer to Paper Texture (or Solid Layer):
- Select Logo/Graphic Layer
- Look for ‘Parent Column’ and look for Spiral icon called the Pickwhip (looks a little like @ symbol)
- Drag Pickwhip (@) onto the Paper Texture or Solid Color Layer
- Now when you scale or animate the Texture layer, the logo/graphic layer will follow
How To Animate the Paper Cut-Out Graphic
- Drag Playhead to the beginning of the Timeline
- Select Paper Texture Layer
- Click on the Pan Behind tool in the top toolbar
- Drag the Anchor Point to the bottom of paper texture/solid color
- Select Paper Layer
- Tap ‘R’ for Rotation
- Click on the Stopwatch to add a keyframe
- Drag playhead out to the 1-second mark and change the rotation by a few degrees
- Move the playhead forward by 3 frames and change the rotation back to the starting point (you can also just copy/paste the first keyframe)
- Press the Option or Alt Key and click on the stopwatch for Rotation
- Enter the expression loopOut()
- Press Spacebar to preview
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