Several colleagues have asked me about how to create the wiggly text effect in my videos. It’s not that hard, really. I use the effect so often that I could probably mime the mouse and key commands in my sleep.
It's not this intimidating, I promise!
It brings motion to some otherwise very still scenes. There aren’t any hard rules when it comes to this effect, but I like to use it in more light-hearted videos.
So how is it done?
So how is it done?
Let's get to wigglin'.
The first thing that you’ll need to do is create a new composition and name it “Displacement Map.” Click on “Composition” in the top menu bar and then click “New Composition…” It’ll bring up this menu that will allow you to change the composition’s name, width, height, duration and a number of other things. Once you’re done, click “OK.”
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You will then want to use the “Fractal Noise” effect on the solid. Search for the effect in the “Effects & Presets” panel to the right of your window, and it should come up. Double click the effect while you have your solid selected or drag it onto the layer.
You will then have to do a little coding but, trust me, it’s just a few keystrokes. Highlight the solid and look at the “Effect Controls” panel to the left of the window. Click on the arrow next to “Evolution Options.”
Hold the Alt key and click on the stopwatch icon next to “Random Seed.” It’ll bring up an entry in your layers window, which you can see in the image below. Delete its contents and type in “time * 10” and then click anywhere outside the entry box. If you play the composition now, the fractal image will move.
Hold the Alt key and click on the stopwatch icon next to “Random Seed.” It’ll bring up an entry in your layers window, which you can see in the image below. Delete its contents and type in “time * 10” and then click anywhere outside the entry box. If you play the composition now, the fractal image will move.
Great, now it’s time to create another composition where you’ll have your text. Follow the instructions above to create a new composition and then use the “Text” tool — that’s the T icon in the upper-left corner of the window — and click anywhere on the composition to start writing your text.
Then drag your “Displacement Map” composition from your project window into the layer window. You can click on the eye icon to the left of the “Displacement Map” layer because we don’t really need it to be visible.
Then drag your “Displacement Map” composition from your project window into the layer window. You can click on the eye icon to the left of the “Displacement Map” layer because we don’t really need it to be visible.
You will then need to search for the “Displacement Map” effect in the “Effects & Presets” panel. Use that effect on your text layer, which is labelled “Wiggle” in my project.
In the “Effects Control” panel for the text layer, click on the drop down menu beside “Displacement Map Layer” and select “Displacement Map.” When you play your composition, the text will wiggle.
If you want maximum wiggles, increase the values in both “Max Horizontal Displacement” and “Max Vertical Displacement.”
Oh, here's another thing to keep in mind. There have been times where I’ve mistakenly made the “Displacement Map” layer too small and only part of the text would wiggle. To fix this, click the dropdown menu next to “Displacement Map Behavior” and select “Stretch Map to Fit.” That should fix it.
So what does it look like when it all comes together? A whole lot of wigglin’.
In the “Effects Control” panel for the text layer, click on the drop down menu beside “Displacement Map Layer” and select “Displacement Map.” When you play your composition, the text will wiggle.
If you want maximum wiggles, increase the values in both “Max Horizontal Displacement” and “Max Vertical Displacement.”
Oh, here's another thing to keep in mind. There have been times where I’ve mistakenly made the “Displacement Map” layer too small and only part of the text would wiggle. To fix this, click the dropdown menu next to “Displacement Map Behavior” and select “Stretch Map to Fit.” That should fix it.
So what does it look like when it all comes together? A whole lot of wigglin’.
Thanks for reading this tip! I'll be back next week with another post on how to make your videos and interactives pop.