Easily Create Glitch Animation in Adobe After Effects

Step-by-Step Guide to Creating Glitch Animation:

Step 1: Setting Up the Composition

1. Open Adobe After Effects.
2. Go to the Composition menu and create a new composition. Rename it to “Glitch Effect” or choose a name you prefer.
3. Set the resolution to 1920×1080 Pixels, frame rate to 30 frames per second, and duration to 15 seconds.

Step 2: Adding Text

1. Select the Type tool from the Toolbar and add your desired text.
2. Align the text to the center.

Step 3: Pre-Composing the Text

1. Right-click on the text layer and choose Pre-Compose.
2. Rename the pre-composition to “Text” or “Logo.”

Step 4: Importing Glitch Footage

1. Go to the File menu, then Import, and select the glitch footage.

Step 5: Creating Glitch Footage Composition

1. Drag the glitch footage above the Text layer.
2. Right-click on the footage layer and choose Pre-Compose.
3. Rename the pre-composition and check the option to move all attributes into the new composition.

Step 6: Preparing for Glitch Effect

1. Hide the glitch footage composition to reveal the text layer.
2. Create a new adjustment layer (Layer > New > Adjustment Layer).

Step 7: Applying the Displacement Effect

1. Go to Effects and Presets and search for the “Displacement Map” effect.
2. Drag and drop the Displacement effect onto the Adjustment layer.

Step 8: Configuring Displacement Map

1. Select the Adjustment Layer, and go to Settings.
2. Choose “Screen Glitch-free Footage” as the Displacement Map Layer.

Step 9: Adjusting Displacement Values

1. Change the Max Horizontal Displacement value to 30.
2. Change the Max Vertical Displacement value to 25.

Step 10: Controlling Glitch Timing

1. Double-click the “Screen Glitch Footage” composition.
2. Create a new solid layer (white color) from Layer > New > Solid.
3. Trim the solid layer to 1 second to hide the glitch footage at the beginning.
4. Duplicate the solid layer 5 to 6 times and place them at different timings.

Step 11: Previewing the Animation

1. Return to the main composition.
2. Click RAM Preview to preview the glitch animation.

Making the Animation More Professional

Step 12: Adding RGB Channels Shift

1. Select the Text Composition.
2. Go to Effects and Presets and search for the “Shift Channels” effect.
3. Drag and drop the effect onto the Text composition.

Step 13: Duplicating and Colorizing Text Layers

1. Duplicate the text composition two times.
2. Rename the duplicate layers: “R” for red, “G” for green, and “B” for blue.
3. Solo the “R” layer and turn off the green and blue channels. The text will appear red.

Step 14: Adjusting Color Channels

1. Solo the “G” layer and turn off the red and blue channels.
2. Solo the “B” layer and turn off the red and green channels.

Step 15: Blending RGB Layers

1. Select all RGB layers.
2. Change the Blending Mode from normal to the screen.
3. Slightly move the RGB layers to create a glitchy effect.

Step 16: Applying the Final Glitch Effect

1. Go to Effects and Presets and search for the “Bad TV 1 – Warp” effect.
2. Drag and drop the effect onto the Adjustment Layer.

Step 17: Completion

Congratulations! You’ve successfully created a professional glitch animation in Adobe After Effects.