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mr3746448219o4
Known Participant
January 28, 2026
Open for Voting

Can't select object in Viewer when object below is selected

  • January 28, 2026
  • 3 Antworten
  • 48 Ansichten

Its not possible to select object that is above the one that is already selected below. To select the object I want I have to deselect object below first. Please fix this.

    3 Antworten

    nishu_kush
    Community Manager
    nishu_kushCommunity Manager
    Community Manager
    January 29, 2026

    Thanks for your input, John and thepixelsmith.

    I’ll change this post to a feature request.

     

    Thanks,

    Nishu

    JohnColombo17100380
    Community Manager
    JohnColombo17100380Community Manager
    Community Manager
    January 28, 2026

    Hi ​@mr3746448219o4,

    When you’re in the scenario you’ve described, AE will let you change the layer selection by right-clicking in the Composition and opening the Select menu (at the bottom of the context menu). This will allow you to directly select any layer under your mouse cursor.

     

    Cheers,

    - John, After Effects Engineering Team 

    M
    mr3746448219o4Autor
    Known Participant
    January 28, 2026

    Why do I have to make 3 steps to select the layer instead of just clicking on it?

    JohnColombo17100380
    Community Manager
    JohnColombo17100380Community Manager
    Community Manager
    January 29, 2026

    This is how the hit-checking and selection model currently work in AE, based on the bounding boxes. It certainly could be improved in the case you’ve mentioned, so I’d agree with ​@thepixelsmith that this would be considered a feature request to change how selecting layers is implemented, rather than a bug.

      nishu_kush
      Community Manager
      nishu_kushCommunity Manager
      Community Manager
      January 28, 2026

      Hi there,

       

      Thanks for reaching out. What version of After Effects are you using? Are you on Windows or Mac? Do you mind sharing a screen recording of the issue? That’ll help me replicate the issue on my end.

      Looking forward to your response. Moving this thread from Bugs to Questions for troubleshooting.

       

      Thanks,

      Nishu

      M
      mr3746448219o4Autor
      Known Participant
      January 28, 2026

      I’m using Windows 11 and AE version 25.6.4

      Steps to reproduce the issue

      1. Create a solid layer or add a background that fills entire composition
      2. Add text layer above it.
      3. Select solid in Viewer.
      4. Try to select text in Viewer - not possible when layer below is selected
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