Create a Pulsar in After Effects

Recreate the look of a spinning, neutron star.

In this tutorial, I share two different ways to create spinning, 3D, volumetric lights in After Effects. The first method uses @BorisFXco Stage Light plugin which can automatically simulate volumetric light from a comp light. But not everyone has access to BCC Stage Light, so I also show how to use the included Cinema4D Lite to get a similar look.

Along the way, I take a break from being scientifically accurate and use an expression I wrote to restrict the beam when it is behind the central core of the star.

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