I need some assistance, please. I have created some motion titles in AE 6.0 where a graphic slides in from the left, and the name slides in from the right. That part was easy and I exported as AVI.

However, when I lay the title in another video track, the background is solid white (though it shows up "checkerboard" on AE. Nothing in AE's help file will tell me how to make a background transparent - at least not in the first three or four levels that I read through!

Does anyone know how I can make an AE title background transparent so that I can lay it over my existing video?

Thanks for the help.

hi Mark:
The problem is you need to export the graphics with an additional channel that tells it what is transparent and what isn't. So, you're exporting the RGB channels plus an "Alpha channel" which controls transparencies of the clip.
So, to do this, when you add to render que in after effects, select your video encoder and click options. If you select the "Animation" codec, and select the color depth at "millions+" (the plus being alpha channel), that should solve all your problems. Then, when you render the file and import into your NLE, just make sure the NLE is set up to handle alphas properly.

Joren, thanks for the answer, I'm a complete newbie dealing with AE, so though your answer seems simple, it may as well be brain surgery for me!

Basically what I have done is:

1. Created the title, graphic and movement;
2. Saved the AE project;
3. Then exported the file as an AVI.

I'm not sure how to do the steps you just mentioned, nor where to place them in the above list!

Sorry, but I need a crayon and coloring book explanation!

Thanks for the time!

okay, I'm on a mac, so it may be slightly different:

1. Go Composition>Add to render que (shift-control-/) The render que is the best way to export files and you should get in the habit of using it.
2. Next to "output module", see if there's a preset called "Lossless with Alpha" when you click the downward triangle button thingie. If it does have that setting, all you have to do is click render. Otherwise:
3. Select Lossless output module, then click on the words "lossless".
4. Under video output, click format options.
5. Select animation codec from the first dropdown menu and millions of colors+ from the second.
6. Click "OK" twice and then render (and name your file if you like)

Now, when you import the file into your NLE, it should interpret the alpha channel automatically. If it doesn't you'll have to check with your settings. And of course, you will need to render with your the composited footage..

Why are you exporting it as an .avi? It might be that .avi files can't read transparency, so it turns the clear channel to white.

Thanks again for the time, Joren. I'm on my way to work now, but I tried your steps and I must be leaving something out.

My only "animation" option on the format was ANIMATED GIF and that didn't work (or it wouldn't open in either PINNACLE or PREMIER).

Perhaps either I'm leaving something out or RFranco (who asks why I'm exporting it as an AVI) has an alternative suggestion!

Thanks for the help.

I thought .avi is like .mov. It is a file format that can be any number of codecs--some which can have alphas and some that can't.

Maybe Jeff can work you through it. The pc version must be different enough that you're having trouble converting from my mac perspective. It really shouldn't be that difficult--you just gotta find that "lossless with alpha" preset in the render que window. --well, hopefully it won't be that difficult.

for format choose quicktime.

then for codec choose animation.

Thanks guys. I friend of mine stopped by office today (who is very good in AE) and suggested that I not build the titles in AE (like using the Space Shuttle to drive to the mall). He said the same thing about QT and animation, but suggested I could build the same title in Premier Pro much easier, so I'll use that instead.

Besides, I saved the 15 titles at the wrong size anyway (using the default of 360x240), so they were useless anyway!

I told you I was inexperienced!

Thanks again.

The reason I was asking why you're saving them as .avi files is because as far as the people I know, everyone always exports the files as Quicktime movies. So I was wondering why you needed them in .avi specifically.

RF - I didn't have a specific reason, I just assumed that AVI would be a better quality (my inexperience!).

Thanks anyway.