| Adobe After Effects | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Adobe After Effects 2025 running onWindows 10 | |
| Original author | Company of Science and Art |
| Developers |
|
| Initial release | January 1993; 32 years ago (1993-01) |
| Stable release | |
| Written in | C/C++[2] |
| Operating system |
|
| Type | Visual effects,Motion graphics,Compositing,Computer animation |
| License | Trialware,Proprietary, term |
| Website | adobe.com/aftereffects |
Adobe After Effects is a digitaleffects,motion graphics, andcompositingapplication developed byAdobe Inc.; it is used foranimation and in thepost-production process offilm making,video games andtelevision production. Among other things, After Effects can be used forkeying,tracking, compositing, andanimation. It also functions as a very basicnon-linear editor, audio editor, and mediatranscoder. In 2019, the program won anAcademy Award for scientific and technical achievement.[3]
After Effects was originally created by David Herbstman, David Simons, Daniel Wilk, David M. Cotter, and Russell Belfer[4] at theCompany of Science and Art inProvidence, Rhode Island. The first two versions of the software, 1.0 (January 1993)[5] and 1.1, were released there by the company. CoSA with After Effects was acquired byAldus Corporation in July 1993, which in turn was acquired by Adobe in 1994. Adobe acquiredPageMaker as well. Adobe's first new release of After Effects was version 3.0.
After Effects functionality can be extended through a variety of third-party integrations. The most common integrations are:plug-ins,scripts, andextensions.[6]
Plug-ins are predominantly written in C or C++[7] and extend the functionality of After Effects, allowing for more advanced features such asparticle systems,physics engines, 3D effects, and the ability to bridge the gap between After Effects and another.
After Effects Scripts are a series of commands written in both JavaScript and theExtendScript language.
After Effects Scripts, unlike plug-ins, can only access the core functionality of After Effects.Scripts are often developed to automate repetitive tasks, to simplify complex After Effects features, or to perform complex calculations that would otherwise take a long time to complete.[8]
Scripts can also use some functionality not directly exposed through the graphical user interface.[9]
After Effects Extensions offer the ability to extend After Effects functionality through modern web development technologies like HTML5, and Node.js, without the need for C++.[10]
After Effects Extensions make use of Adobe's Common Extensibility Platform or CEP Panels, which means they can be built to interact with other Adobe CC apps.[11]
While not dedicated to compositing, the open source softwareBlender contains a limited node-based compositing feature which, among other things is capable of basic keying and blurring effects.[12][13][14]
