Common Workflows

Use these patterns when you want quick wins without rebuilding muscle memory in the After Effects UI.

Clean up fast

• Rename and reorder

  Rename every shape layer to Shape_[index in this comp] and move layers starting with CTRL_ to the top

• Mark what’s final

  Add "[FINAL] " in front of each locked layer name in this comp

Animate in moments

• Cascade a reveal

  Animate opacity for Box 1 through Box 5 from 0% to 100% over 12 frames, offsetting each layer by 4 frames

• Add polish instantly

  Apply easy ease to all position keyframes on the selected layers and report if any were missing keyframes

Wire up controls

• Single slider, many layers

  Create a null called Master Controller with a slider named Intensity and link every layer starting with BG_ to that slider for opacity

• Time-based glow

  Make the Glow effect on layer Star grow its Radius from 0 to 100 over the composition duration

Work with text

• Find the right font

  Find a bold geometric sans-serif for this title card

• Match a reference Attach an image and ask:

  Match the font in this screenshot

• Restyle text layers

  Change all text layers in this comp to use Montserrat Bold, size 48

Atom reads per-character style overrides from text animators, so it understands what’s already on the timeline before making changes. Set your go-to typefaces in Settings > Fonts > Preferred fonts so Atom reaches for them first.

Batch property tweaks

• Unified blur

  Set Gaussian Blur Blurriness to 15 on every layer in this comp that already has the effect

• Reset the basics

  Reset scale to 100% and rotation to 0° on all shape layers in this comp