How To Rotate In Adobe After Effects

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Adobe After Effects is a highly-regarded software among creative professionals for its wide range of visual effects. It is a robust program that provides numerous options for customization. Among its many features, After Effects allows for rotation. Whether you need to rotate a video, layer, or create an animated rotation, this easy guide will demonstrate how to do so.

Rotating a Layer

To rotate a layer in Adobe After Effects, follow the steps below:

  1. Select the layer you want to rotate.
  2. Press the ‘R’ key on your keyboard to open the Rotation property of that layer.
  3. Click on the stopwatch to create a new keyframe.
  4. Enter the rotation degree into the rotation property. A positive number rotates the layer counterclockwise, while a negative number rotates it clockwise.

Your source code should look something like this:

                    myLayer.rotation = 90;

Where myLayer is your layer name and 90 is the degree of rotation.

Animating a Rotation

To animate a rotation in Adobe After Effects, follow the steps below:

  1. Select the layer you want to animate.
  2. Press the ‘R’ key on your keyboard to open the Rotation property.
  3. Click on the stopwatch to create a new keyframe.
  4. Move the Current Time Indicator to another point in time.
  5. Enter a new rotation degree to create a second keyframe.

Here is a sample source code:

                    myLayer.rotation = 0;
                    app.project.activeItem.time = 2;
                    myLayer.rotation = 90;

This code rotates myLayer 90 degrees over a span of 2 seconds.

Rotating a Video

To rotate a video in Adobe After Effects, you’ll essentially be rotating a layer, as a video imported into After Effects is treated as a layer. So, you can follow the steps above to rotate your video.

Rotating your video, layer, or creating an animation may seem complicated at first, but Adobe After Effects makes it quite simple and straightforward. With this guide, you should now be able to rotate and animate to your heart’s content!