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doctorsney
Inspiring
October 29, 2020
Answered

InDesign to After Effects, Copy Paste Paths. Can this be done?

  • October 29, 2020
  • 2 replies
  • 3992 views

So I get print campaigns built in InDesign and need to build spots (tv web) from them and need to copy paste shapes from the InDesign files and want to just paste in AE and create masks/shapes etc

 

Can this be done? Am I confusing it with Illustrator's copy/paste paths?

 

Does it need to be said years later that this is a thing that would make life easier? Can't we just make every path object transferable between these apps seamlessly?

This topic has been closed for replies.
Correct answer Ronny236845289feg

I just tried this, copy pasting from ID to AI and then to AE. Didn't work. Can you help?


just save the AI file and import it into AE, then you wanna rightclick on the layer -> create -> create shapes from vector layer

2 replies

Mylenium
Mylenium
Legend
November 4, 2020

"Seamlessly" is technically impossible, but I agree, it would be nice to get at least some consistent support for basic paths across all Adobe programs. The rest has already been said - AI is your intermediary here. You might also want to talk to the people who create the print stuff on how they can help you facilitate the process by e.g. relying more on linked AI and PS assets where possible, so the whole thing gets more reusable from the start (within the limitations imposed by print-centric workflows in teh first place, of course).

 

Mylenium

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    doctorsneyAuthor
    Inspiring
    November 4, 2020

    yes I think I wound up copy pasting from ID to AI, and then copy/pasting from AI to AE - which works - if you want to use AI as a bridge, which seems excessive, but when you're on deadline who cares as long as it gets done.

    Thanks for your reply!

    C
    colinm88669257
    Participant
    July 15, 2022

    I just tried this, copy pasting from ID to AI and then to AE. Didn't work. Can you help?

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    David Arbor
    Inspiring
    November 4, 2020

    InDesign to After Effects is not a common workflow, which is why there's not support for it (it would certainly be nice, but nothing comes for free, each of these workflows has to be built and tested). You're best off saving out a .AI or PDF and going from AI to AE. If you're not familiar with the tool Overlord from www.battleaxe.co, it's incredibly useful and can send art directly from AI to AE.

     

    If you want to request this, you can do so from the AE UserVoice site. I just took a look and there's already one requesting support for layered ID files to import into AE, so you can vote on that.

     

    UserVoice: https://adobe-video.uservoice.com/forums/911311-after-effects

    ID to AE workflow: https://adobe-video.uservoice.com/forums/911311-after-effects/suggestions/37560445-importing-indesign-file-into-ae 

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      doctorsneyAuthor
      Inspiring
      November 4, 2020

      Overlord looks AMAZEBALLS.

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        David Arbor
        Inspiring
        November 4, 2020

        Yeah, it's pretty amazing, and worth every penny. It's only gotten better over time with things like gradient support being added. 

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