Learn how to use Adobe Media Encoder to create MPEG-2 and WMV videos from After Effects.
After Effects does not include exporters for creating MPEG-2, and WMV videos directly from the render queue. To create videos in these formats, you should use Adobe Media Encoder.
You can still import videos in these formats into After Effects.
How do you create MPEG-2 and WMV videos using Adobe Media Encoder with After Effects?
You have two primary options for using Adobe Media Encoder with After Effects to create videos in MPEG-2 and WMV formats.
Solution 1: Render and export a losslessly encoded master file out of After Effects to a watch folder monitored by Adobe Media Encoder
The fastest way to create videos in these formats using Adobe Media Encoder with After Effects is to use the After Effects render queue to export a losslessly encoded master file (For example, using the PNG video codec in a QuickTime .mov container file) to a watch folder that Adobe Media Encoder monitors. You can assign encoding presets to a watch folder in Adobe Media Encoder, allowing it to automatically encode using the specified settings.
One advantage of using this method is that it uses After Effects performance features for rendering (such as GPU acceleration and multiprocessing where applicable) and Adobe Media Encoder performance features for encoding, such as parallel encoding. The disadvantage of using this method is that it occupies the main After Effects application for the entire rendering operation, during which time you can’t use After Effects for anything else.
Solution 2: Send the composition directly to Adobe Media Encoder from After Effects
Another method to create videos in these formats using Adobe Media Encoder with After Effects is to directly add the composition from After Effects to the Adobe Media Encoder queue. You can use Composition > Add to Adobe Media Encoder Queue.
This method has the advantage of allowing you to continue working in After Effects while the rendering and encoding take place, since a background instance of After Effects performs the rendering. The rendering phase may be slower in some cases, compared with using the After Effects render queue, because the headless version of After Effects rendering in the background does not have access to GPU acceleration and multiprocessing features.
Why were these exporters removed from the After Effects render queue?
The reason the MPEG-2 and WMV exporters were removed from the After Effects render queue is simple: Maintaining these exporters in After Effects took quite a lot of work, and fixing several significant bugs in these exporters would take even more work. Work would have subtracted from other resources.
Since Adobe Media Encoder already had superior MPEG-2 and WMV exporting capabilities, it was more prudent to rely on Adobe Media Encoder for export of these formats, allowing the After Effects team to focus efforts on animation, motion graphics, compositing, and digital imaging features, which are core areas for After Effects.
One thing that makes Adobe Media Encoder significantly better than After Effects for creating files in final delivery formats is its Preset Browser and intuitive system for creating, saving, sharing, and applying encoding presets. Another is the assortment of features in the Effects tab, which allows you to automatically add watermarks, timecode overlays, and more.
What if I still need to create these kinds of videos from the After Effects render queue?
If you still need to be able to create videos in these formats from the After Effects render queue for some reason, you can still do so by leaving the existing version of After Effects installed and using the previous version for these specific output tasks.
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