• Adobe After Effects

  Scripting question about shape layers

  Posted by Nick Hill on September 22, 2022 at 12:27 pm

  I’m trying to make a script that creates a shape layer, then a group, then a (freeform) path, stroke and fill within that. This is what I’ve got – the createPath function doesn’t work, and causes AE to white-out and crash. Any ideas why?

  The script works fine if I comment that line out.

  var shp = createShape(comp);

  shp.name = ("Curve");

  var curvgrp = createShapeGroup(shp);

  curvgrp.name = ("CurveGrp");

  // var curv = createPath(curvgrp);  // COMMENTED BECAUSE IT KILLS AE
  

  var curvstrk = createStroke(curvgrp);

  var curvfll = createFill(curvgrp);

  function createShape(targetComp) {

          return targetComp.layers.addShape();

      }

      function createShapeGroup(shape) {

          return shape.property("Contents").addProperty("ADBE Vector Group");

      }

      function createPath(group) {

          return group.property("Contents").addProperty("ADBE Vector Shape");

      }

      function createStroke(group) {

          return group.property("Contents").addProperty("ADBE Vector Graphic - Stroke");

      }

      function createFill(group) {

          return group.property("Contents").addProperty("ADBE Vector Graphic - Fill");

      }

  Nick Hill replied 3 years, 7 months ago 2 Members · 5 Replies
• 5 Replies

• 

  Filip Vandueren

  September 22, 2022 at 12:38 pm

  You’d need to add a (“ADBE Vector Shape – Group”) to (“Contents”) before you can add the (“ADBE Vector Shape”) to that new Group
• 

  Nick Hill

  September 22, 2022 at 12:53 pm

  Thanks Filip. So that’s an extra step after adding the ADBE Vector Group?

  Would this work for the createPath function:

  group.property(“Contents”).addProperty(“ADBE Vector Shape – Group”);

  return group.property(“Contents”).addProperty(“ADBE Vector Shape”);

  …or does the ADBE Vector Shape have to sit within the ADBE Vector Shape – Group?
• 

  Nick Hill

  September 22, 2022 at 1:11 pm

  If I change createPath to this, it works. So what’s the difference between a parametric path and a freeform one, in terms of how AE references them?

  function createPath(group) {

  return group.property(“Contents”).addProperty(“ADBE Vector Shape – Star”);

  }
• 

  Filip Vandueren

  September 22, 2022 at 3:56 pm

  Hi Nick,

  I’m not sure why. I don’t have a scripting setup available at the moment to test, sorry.
• 

  Nick Hill

  September 22, 2022 at 4:04 pm

  don’t worry, this works:

  function createPath(group) {

  return group.property(“Contents”).addProperty(“ADBE Vector Shape – Group”);

  }

  thanks for your help!

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