Questions

When trying to run a RAM preview, I'm either getting an error that AE needs at least 2 frames for a preview OR I'm getting a few seconds of preview that just keep looping even without the loop setting on or BOTH... Hellleow? Anyone else running into this? 

Screen recording attached.  Once switching to fast draft, 3D layers do not render or update in the composition viewer, although wireframe outlines and gizmos continue to work. Composition window flashes to black when layers are selected, only showing colour image when mouse button is released.IE. It's like the composition window only displays the same old frame over and over, while the layers have been moved. Using the keyboard shortcuts to zoom in / zoom out causes a hang. Changing out of Fast Draft to Adaptive Resolution or Off (Final Quality) causes a hang.  

Steps to reproduce:- create new project- create a comp- add a shape layer- try to change color of fill or stroke After Effects 17.6.0 (Build 17)Running on OSX 10.14.6iMac Pro (2017) 2.5 GHz Intel Zeon W64GB RAM 2666 MHz DDR4Radeon Pro Vega 64 16GB

I just updated to the latest beta version, 17.6.0 (build 12) and all of my footage and effects come up as black as black.I've tried loading .mp4 and .mxf and adding text and a couple of simulation and color effect. All black.Steps to reproduce:    1. ... Started AAE. Opened existing project or new project Result: ... Previews are all blackExpected: ... Not to be black? System info    Application: After Effects (Beta) v17.6.0.12    OS: Windows v10.0.19041, RAM: 31.90 GB, CPUs (logical): 8  - Ryzen 5GPU - NVIDIA RTX2060 

In After Effects Beta 17.6.0, it appears that blending modes do not have any effect on footage layers. I opened a project that was made in an earlier version of AE and this comp has footage useing the Screen blending mode. In beta this mode does nothing and the composite is displaying incorrectly.  I tried a few other blending modes and they all appead to do nothing as well.

The file that Adobe provides to test out Media Replacement in Premiere Pro does not work because the feature is no longer working in After Effects Beta: 

Hello - I need to take a 4k video and convert to fish eye for a dome projection.I follow this process in AE (vr convertor - input equirectangular and output fisheye (full dome).This does not work in a 4k file but seems to work ok when using a 1080p file,any feedback is appreciated,thanksJames

Thank You, Thank you for adressing the ability to add graphics and videos to the essential graphics pannel as this is a HUGE part of the power of this dynamic system approach. A couple of small things I noticed when I implemented these updated in a project.  • Image preview in EG panel defaults to black. This works in most instances except when the graphic is black as in the case with this vector logo. May be more helpful if the background is transparent or there is in invert option. • When I added a Illustrator layer to the EG panel I lost the ability to constantly rasterize that layer which is the main reason I use illustrator graphics in AE. I was able to work around this by making the Illustrator layer a comp but the necessity of this extra step seems like a bug not a feature.  • While workable the Edit Value workflow to edit source text is not intuitive and clunky in practice when taking advantage of EG instancing in AE. It would be better if we could get

 weird behavior when switching to 3d, I used crop composition to region of interest 

Working on a straightforward graphics project in AE Beta, trying to save before a render and the program just won't save. Like the menu options are all available and it when I click on 'save' or 'save as' there's a response, but it just won't create a save file. It's a new project and I suspect that some permissions may have been messed up and my AE beta can't write a new save file, but I am unsure how to fix that. I also have imported a separate .ae file into this project, that may be a compounding factor but not sure.

Not a big deal just more of a curious thing. Will the AE Beta icon get the rounded corners look that Media Encoder and Premiere have currently or are you waiting for 17.6 to do that?

Dear AE team,in April I posted a report about this issue on uservoice. The issue is still persistent in the current Beta Buld 17.6.0 (Build 6)https://adobe-video.uservoice.com/forums/911311-after-effects/suggestions/40160407-misplaced-nulls-after-using-nulls-follow-pointsIs there a solution to this problem? Thank you for your efforts! 

Error message:Unable to execute script at line 20. Function theComp.layer().masterProperty is undefined. That very same script runs on AE 2020 without any issues.The code adds a premade comp to a timeline and then uses a csv to bring in some text to a placeholder. The that master property is created by another script, which runs without errors. It uses addToMotionGraphicsTempAs to create a master property for the text. -Mika

Steps to reproduce:    1. Enable Fast Previews > Fast Draft    2. Using Hand Tool ('H' or Spacebar) pan the composition viewer Result: Composition visiblity clears revealing background color.  Composition reappears after a separate user interaction.Expected: Composition remains visible, just repositioned in the viewer. System info    Application: After Effects (Beta) v17.6.0.5    OS: Windows v10.0.19041, RAM: 31.95 GB, CPUs (logical): 8

After enabling the new Fast Draft, I can't seem to make it workWorking with a decent GPU RTX 2080

Steps to reproduce:Create non-square-pixel-aspect ratio compositionCreate a 3D LayerTurn on Fast Draft Result: Representation of the layer in 3D space looks wrongExpected: No change in spatial representsation System info    Application: After Effects (Beta) v17.5.1.34    OS: macOS v10.15.7, RAM: 32.00 GB, CPUs (logical): 12 

I'm new to AE and rotobrush but im trying to render out something a roto with rotobrush 2.0 with transparency. When I place the clip overtop a different background but it shows blackish outline when I view it. Any tips on how to fix this? I thought I could render out a feather but it seems that feather has a black outline? thanks! ed.it.son

After testing the new fast draft with reference grid viewport I noticed the position of the grid is at a seameangly random location. On my test, in a 1920x1080 comp the gri is positioned at aproximately 1780 in the Y axis. I think this grid should be placed at the center of the comp or alternatively at the bottom of the comp. This positioning is confusing for the user.

It would be great if users could change the behavior to create shapes or masks with the Pen or Shape Tools selected on the fly with a keyboard shortcut instead of moving the cursor up to the tool bar. Maybe with the ALT/OPT key as a modifier. In case of the Pen Tool the ALT key is problematic – so maybe SHIFT or CMD/CTRL?  Thank you!I also posted this on Uservoice: https://adobe-video.uservoice.com/forums/911311-after-effects/suggestions/41366542-public-beta-mask-and-shape-cursor-indicators-plea 

When the 3D-rotation tool is active there are some confusing annotations visible additional to the axis notations. In my example the annotation for the x-axis is as expected, but for the y- and z- axis there are additional lines in green and blue.What is the meaning of the black circle? Thank you!

Steps to reproduceTrack the position and rotation of some footage item using the Tracker panelSet a Null Layer as the target, hit Apply, choose 'Apply Dimensions: X and Y'Upon applying, add a 'smooth()' expression to the transform.position propertyRe-track and re-applyAfter Effects (Beta) error: internal verification failure, sorry! {can't evaluate expr on a parentless stream!.} (26 ::353) The error is also thrown when the Null Target Layer's position property has any expression applied prior to applying the tracking data. OS: Windows 10 v.2004 Build 19041.508AE: v.17.5.1 Build 31

I've been wanting this enhanced 3D workflow for a long time. To have AE control the same way as a 3D program. A great addition to make this a complete 3D workflow is to have FBX and Alembic support for cameras, lights, and nulls. It would be great to export my animated cameras, lights, nulls and any 3D layers easily and intuitivly into any 3D application, ie. Maya, 3Ds Max, Blender, Houdini, Unreal. Same goes for the reverse, I would like to easily export cameras, lights, locators (Maya Nulls), Empty Plain Axis (Blender's Null) as FBX or Alembic and import them into After Effects. I know AE has great integration when it comes to C4D but this addition can bridge the gap between many different pipelines. In my day to day I work across multiple 3D programs and each requiring different workflows to integrate AE. Ease of use 3d-2d integration would be a welcoming addition to the Animation industry.   

When editing paths with the Pen Tool enabled, the ALT modifier key doesn't switch to the Convert Vertex Tool anymore, but triggers the Camera Tool instead, making it impossible to convert vertices.

Steps to reproduce:    1. I shortened the Roto Brush & Refine Edge Span in the Layer Viewer Result: Error Message, but nothing else happened System info    Application: After Effects (Beta) v17.5.0.33    OS: macOS v10.15.7, RAM: 32.00 GB, CPUs (logical): 12

Has anyone tried this feature yet? The explanation sounds cool but I'm not sure what it means in practice.