Texts in two line

[Filip Vandueren]

Hello Arun,

I would use a textbox to automatically limit the horizontal length of the lines, and have a hidden textlayer that tries different fontsizes untill it finds thethreshold of where it becomes a three line text.

Like this:

– make a text-box that has the horizontal size that you want to wrap at, but make it plenty tall so it fits at least 3 lines.

– give the sourceText this expression:

maxFontSize=100;
fs = maxFontSize - timeToFrames(time);
style.setFontSize(fs);

Starting from 0, it will try all integer fontsize starting from your desired maximum/default fontsize.

– give this text-layer a slider control effect, I renamed it to “optimal FontSize” and give it this expression:

posterizeTime(0);
maxFontSize=100;
function estimateLines(l,t) {
	st = l.text.sourceText.getStyleAt(1,t);
	ld = st.autoLeading ?  st.fontSize*1.2 : st.leading;
	return Math.ceil(l.sourceRectAtTime(t).height/ld);
}
for (f=0; f<maxFontSize; f++) {
	t=framesToTime(f);
	if (estimateLines(thisLayer, t)<=2) break
}
text.sourceText.getStyleAt(1,t).fontSize;

(alternatively this could be done witha binary search algoritmh instead of a frame by frame scan)

The resulting fontSize is the first one fits in exactly 2 lines.

You can hide the current layer, and use the calculation in a second text-layer like this:

The second Textlayer should also be a textbox with the desired wrapping width and this expression for sourceText:

posterizeTime(0);
txt = thisComp.layer("input txt").text.sourceText;
st = thisComp.layer("input txt").text.sourceText.style;
st
	.setFontSize(thisComp.layer("input txt").effect("optimal FontSize")("Slider").value)
	.setAutoLeading(false)
	.setLeading(effect("leading")("Slider").value)
	.setText(txt);

as you see, it now references the contents of the original text, the optimal fontsize, and a new effects slider where you can dial in the desired leading

[Arun Longjam]

Hello Filip, I tried ur scripts some errors I found. I don’t have scripting knowledge. I will be grateful if you could help. Thanks.

[Filip Vandueren]

Hi Arun,

looks like your File -> Project Settings -> Expressions -> Engine is set to “Legacy Extendscript” (it needs to be Javascript)

or, if you don’t see that setting, you are in a version of After Effects that doesn’t support font styles via expressions.

[Arun Longjam]

Hi Filip, Your first script does shrinking text overtime and second script does manually slider control. I want my text shrink/fit automatically in a box in two lines from frame 0 and will export as a mogrt file. thanks

[Filip Vandueren]

Hi Arun,

That is correct, the only way I know to calculate the best fontsize for a wrapping textbox is to try all of them and then choose the first one that fits less than 3 lines.

So the first layer (shrinking) is necessary, but it should be hidden.

The 2nd layer is based on a slider, because if you set it up correctly, the 1st slider contains an expression that looks up the correct font size, and the second slider is what you asked: manual control of the leading.

The first (hidden, shrinking) textlayer’s sourceText should be added to your mogrt, it will give a warning that you are adding a property with an expression, but that is ok.

The second visible textlayer will copy the text and style of the 1st with the correct fontsize and leading.

[Arun Longjam]

Thanks Filip