Exporting from Flash to Illustrator

[dateacher]

I upgraded from Flash CS3 to CS5. I am surprised to find I cannot export Flash graphics to a ".ai"  format.

Does anyone know of a way in CS5 to get Flash vectors to Illustrator?

Thanks,

Chuck

[Colin Holgate]

Does the crash happen for you with any SVG you export? If so, can you do a nonproprietary squiggle, and upload that?

[Picnic44]

Hi, I don't have any personal FLA's as I never really used Flash. I followed a tutorial to export the SVGs. I successfully exported one layer and opened in AI. but when I exported layer 2, it did not work. I also try to open it with Inkscape and it did open the file AI crashed on. I re-saved the file from Inkscape and AI finally opened it but made it look horrible pixelated like it's not even vector. I know it probably does not even make sense without the screen shots but I can't do that

Thanks for trying to help though.

[Lasergod]

I have no understanding why the Macromedia flash export features are consequently destroyed by Adobe.

It was possible to export AI files, even in "export movie" as an AI sequence.

That is the most needed function from my side inside flash.

Destroyed by Adobe.

Same with clipboard.

It was possible to copy vectors from one app to another.

Adobe destroyed this function and only poor pixel data is copied.

After this fxg mess, selling svg export (single pic only for sure) as a new feature is hilarious.

What is the result?

I worked recently in a 150million $ production, and had to start my old Macromedia flash mx 2004 right before the client to get my work done.

What a shame!!!

Bravo Adobe.

You continously destroying the best vector animation program on the market without even having a clue what you are doing.

All new features are useless without a decent vector and vector sequence export.

Reading about all the trouble users have just to swap work inside adobe app is a never ending story because they will never get right.

Please, wake up guys!

[Colin Holgate]

Copy and paste seems to work, but does give you a bitmap. Export to SVG and Place brings in the vectors ok.

[Lasergod]

Thank you but that's what I already said.

Copy & paste vectors is not possible anymore.

Destroyed somewhere between Macromedia Flash 8 and Adobe Flash CS4.

Same with AI Export and decent vector sequence Export with somehow same destruction date.

New export "features" are still a poor and complecate step back against what was already possible 11 years ago.

Everytime I update, as I did today ( after CC couldn't update and crash, doing some workaround to get things done as always), I am really hoping.that finally there is an understanding.

[rezun8]

I've used this in the past to export my math experiments and then bring them into Illustrator. Granted its been a while since I did this but its worth mentioning:

install a PDF printer driver like this one http://www.pdf995.com/ (it's free with a few annoying ads)

Export your FLA > SWF

Open SWF and right click on the SWF window > Print

Choose the PDF printer driver and print to file

Open the resulting PDF in Illustrator CC

Vectors are preserved!

[Lasergod]

Thank you!

Well that is an ambitious effort! I remember me going this way too once.

Is this working with a sequence too?

I guess it's best to open a new thread to clarify me needs in exporting AI sequences from Flash.

Thanks anyway for the answers. I really appreciate this.

[UDESCO]

@Joerg,

Do you face any problems with exporting SVGs from Flash and then importing to Illustrator?

It preserves all the vector information and gives better results than fxg used to be. (let us know if you face any issues with it.)

There's also a plugin for exporting SVG Image sequence for the entire timeline, if that's what you're looking for:

Export SVG Sequence from Flash Professional | Nipun Asthana

-Nipun

[tianz88]

Hi Nipun Asthana,

The SVG exporter is a very poor implementation of preserving vector files between Flash and Illustrator. Complex objects with Masking basically just crashes Illustrator 100% of the time. If all SVG exporter is capable of it exporting simple flat geometric shapes, i would have just done it in Illustrator natively.

Thank you, and please get our FLEX exporter back and improve on it.

[UDESCO]

Hi,

Why don't you share some of your test-files that cause Illustrator to crash. We can take a look at what's going wrong.

For any feature requests, use this link please: Feature Request/Bug Report Form

Thanks!

[tianz88]

Hi,

I'll just give you my working file here. I have been trying to use SVG exporter to export my poster into Illustrator but to no success. Please kindly update me if you are successful in doing so.

Thanks!

[Colin Holgate]

I'm giving it a try. Illustrator is using 100% CPU, and has been for over 20 minutes. I can leave it for a while, to see if it does eventually open the file later today.

Would it be ok if I gave the image to the Illustrator team, for them to use as a test file?

[Colin Holgate]

Incidentally, Finder's quick view shows the image in a couple of seconds, so hopefully the export from Flash is good.

[tianz88]

Sure, go ahead and use my work to test. There's a lot of people out there who loves the unique art style that can only be produced using flash. It saddens me that this art style cannot be used else where such as A1 poster prints due to various limitations.

Hope the team can come up with better solutions in the future so we can continue to crate art work using Adobe products.

Thank you.

[Colin Holgate]

Thanks. I gave up after 3 hours. Interestingly, if I go to open the file I get the image preview, and that appears immediately. Does SVG include a preview bitmap?

[Lasergod]

‌Hi guys,

please place a feature request as suggested above. All these function were implemented in Flash MX 2004 and later. The mess started with CS 3 I guess.

Even export movie as AI was possible.

Or just copy paste via clipboard from flash to Illustrator!

We need this compatibility back which dissapeared for no understandable reasons!

[notVeryPleasedAtAll]

To confirm is Flash 2004 the last version to support .AI export? - and also has anyone found a workaround to get AI sequences out of flash? 

[Tolouse]

I just started a Creative Cloud Flash trial, and it's horrible!  I can't export to *.ai, or *.dxf!!!  The SVG export is total crap.  I can't open the SVGs in any of my other art software, not inkscape, not 123D Design, nothing.
I used the feature in my old CS2. which I still have installed , but I can't save my flash file to my old version -- did i just lose hours of arranging geometry??   THIS IS STUPID.

[Siwax]

By now you can only export to SVG with Flash CC 2015.

But, now with Flash CC 2015 I can't export to SVG anymore.

Javascript error :

SyntaxError: missing ) after argument list

pffff.......

[Ned_Thompson]

I had that problem too. I thought it was due to a specific file or linked files not allowing it to export as SVG for some reason. I found that by reinstalling Flash Pro CC 2015, the error will go away.

[dexterk23745095]

All the while I have no issue exporting to Flash CC 2015 to SVG files.

Suddenly out of nowhere, today this message "A JavaScript error occured. SyntaxError: missing ) after argument list" starts to appear and preventing me to complete the export process.

What is happening here?

Is there an auto update that causes this error?

What have you done again this time Adobe????

[UDESCO]

Hi Dexter,

Can you please share your test file which shows this error. We'll check it out and see what's going wrong.

Thanks!

[Siwax]

I took the same file and today it works.

I can't remember if I made an update or if it is related to the fact of being connected to Adobe CC.

[RobM-PBS]

dexterk23745095‌ The same issue is blocking me from completing a project. Were you able to resolve the issue?

Has anyone else seen the JavaScript syntax error when trying to export an SVG file from Flash CC 2014? Anyone have a solution?

[Siwax]

I've contacted Adobe Support.

They made me change a lot of things on my computer.

And today I can say that it works.

But, I can't confirm that it always works as I already had a random success of SVG export.