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Create parametric meshes

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Learn how to create and customize parametric meshes, and understand their drawing behaviors.

  Use new beta features

Creating parametric meshes is now available for testing and feedback. Try it now in After Effects (beta).

Get started

Parametric Meshes are the 3D equivalent of shape layers. Using the Parametric Mesh   tool or the Layer > New menu in After Effects, you can create parametric shapes such as spheres, cubes, and cones natively in the app, and customize or animate their size, shape, and appearance. You can easily make these meshes look plastic or metallic by adjusting simple, physically based material properties.

You can apply customizable Substance 3D Materials to give parametric meshes and 3D models a wide range of visual styles.

Create a Parametric Mesh

  1. To get started, use the mesh drawing tool   from the toolbar in any of the following ways

    • Double-click the button to add a mesh at a default size in the Composition panel.
    • Select a shape from the dropdown and then use the cursor to draw a custom-sized one directly in the Composition panel.
    The mesh drawing tool is selected and there are different parametric meshes such as sphere, cube, cone, and torus to choose from.
    Use the mesh drawing tool to add a parametric mesh at a default size or draw one directly in the Composition panel.

    Alternatively, go to Layer > New and select a shape to get a default version of that parametric mesh added to the composition.

  2. Use the following keyboard combination while drawing a custom-sized parametric mesh:

    Keys

    Function

    Shift

    Constrain proportions when drawing.

    Command/Ctrl

    Draw from center.

    Shift + Command/Shift + Ctrl

    Draw from center with constrained proportions.

    Option/Alt with a parametric mesh tool active

    Move the camera (if you have camera navigation enabled for Option/Alt).

    Spacebar

    Move a mesh to a new position without leaving the tool.

    Option/Alt + Drag a shape

    Make copies of the mesh and parametric layer in the Composition panel, and also duplicate the parametric layers.
    Note
    • When you move the camera, the parametric mesh will be drawn at the position of your cursor, relative to the scene's XYZ planes.
    • You can draw parametric mesh using any camera view, including orthographic projections.

  3. Modify the shapes by working with Mesh Options and Bevel Options in the Properties panel.

    The Cylinder parametric mesh is selected and in the Properties panel, there are different controls to use under Mesh Options and Bevel Options.
    To refine the selected parametric mesh, open the Properties panel and use the mesh and bevel controls.

  4. Adjust the parametric mesh’s default material properties using the Properties panel or the Material Assignment section in the Timeline panel.

    In the Timeline panel, the layer with the selected parametric mesh appears with its Material options expanded for editing.
    Use the Material option for the selected layer to adjust the parametric mesh’s default material properties.

    Property

    Definition

    Base Color

    The main color property of the material, and is defined using RGBA values.

    Roughness
    • Indicates the roughness or smoothness of the surface, adjusted as a percentage ranging from 0 to 100%.
    • 0% is perfectly smooth and 100% is completely rough.

    Metallic
    • Indicates how much the material appears like shiny metal and is adjusted as a percentage ranging from 0 to 100%.
    • 0% is non-metallic and 100% is fully metallic.

    Emission Color

    The color light the material appears to emit, defined using RGBA values.

    Emission Intensity
    • Indicates how much the material appears to give off light, adjusted as a percentage ranging from 0 to 100%.
    • 0% means no visible light emission, and 100% means maximum light emission, appearing as a strong light source.
    Note

    The adjusted value represents the material's visual appearance of light emission, but it does not mean the material is actually emitting light. The Advanced 3D engine does not support light emission from materials, so the material's emission parameters will not cast light onto other objects in the scene.

    Ambient Response
    • Indicates how the shape’s material responds to overall ambient light in the scene, adjusted as a percentage ranging from 0 to 100%.
    • 0% means no ambient light influence, so that the material appears dark unless directly lit, and 100% means fully responsive to ambient light.
    Note

    Adjusting this property will only have an effect in scenes with an Ambient light present.
    Tip

    You can also use Substance 3D Materials (SBSAR) to stylize these mesh parametric and use exposed controls for customization.

  5. Animate the parametric mesh or any of its properties by using keyframes.

Drawing behaviors for parametric meshes

Cube

Drag horizontally to determine width and drag vertically to set height and depth.

Sphere

Drag inward or outward to adjust the sphere's radius.

Cylinder

Drag horizontally to increase the cylinder's radius, drag vertically to increase height.

Cone

Drag horizontally to increase the cone's radius and drag vertically to adjust the height and direction the cone is pointing.

Note that the cone is always drawn upright, even if it appears to point down. For example, when pointing up, the Top Radius parameter is 0, and the Bottom Radius is 20. When the cone points down, the Top Radius is 20, the Bottom Radius is 0. 

Torus

Drag horizontally to set the overall width of the torus. Drag vertically to set the overall height. Ring Radius will shrink as the Pipe Radius grows, so the torus remains inside the bounding box.

Plane

Drag to determine width and height. Planes are now drawn on the plane closest to facing the camera (X, Y or Z).

Be part of the discussion on support for Parametric Meshes and Substance 3D Material in the After Effects beta community.

Additional resources

Help us to make the next releases of After Effects our best yet.
Submit feature requests, view, track, and vote for issues/feature requests using the After Effects beta support community.

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