After effects Advanced title help

[nbrumfield_18]

Hi

I've been fiddling around with this title I want to do that comes from the film documentary "The Fourth Phase." It's a write on text effect. However, I can't seem to get the text to write on as smooth as theirs does in the video. I've attached a screen recording from the movie of the text reveal I'm looking to achieve. I already use the pen tool in After Effects CC 2018, I draw the masks over my text but don't connect the last point to the first point. After I have it over all the letters, I apply the stroke effect. I set the start value to 0% and keyframe 1-2 seconds later to 100%. It draws on but I can't get it as smooth as in the video I've attached. I also don't know how they continue to expand parts of the letters. Watch the video below and let me know how I can achieve this.

If you need to know any other details let me know!

Thanks!

Movie Clip:

https://vimeo.com/248427652/477fc9f200

[Mylenium · Accepted solution]

I also don't know how they continue to expand parts of the letters.

Just another stroke or animating the text outline after having converted it to a maks or shape layer path. The rest is unclear since "not as smooth" is too vague a term without actualyl seeing your work. Perhaps you simply need to use longer durations, perhaps just enable motion blur, perhaps employ different tricks. Impossible to know.

Mylenium

[Roland Kahlenberg]

For smooth motion, look into using ease in/out Temporal Keyframes. To extend the shape, convert the text to either a Mask or Shape Layer - you can do this via the Layer Menu. Select the Text Layer and then choose one of these two options -

1) Create Shapes from Text

2) Create Masks from Text

Both options will provide you with paths for the text. Extend these paths to suit your needs.

[BartonGarrett256]

Look into third party titling plug-ins, there are many.  They are generally simple, elegant and very easy to use. If you do a lot of titles they save a lot of time and make updating or changing easy to do globally.