Animated Handwriting in After Effects
Corey Barker demonstrates a technique for animating text using the stroke effect in After Effects.
This video requires Adobe Flash Player.
Visitor Comments »
Comment by Steve W | November 21, 2008 @ 5:00 pm
can this effect be achieved using photoshop?
Thx ^_^
Comment by CandyMan | November 22, 2008 @ 11:15 am
[...] Corey Barker – Animating Text in After Effects [...]
Pingback by Back From West Coast | Corey in After Effects | Contest Time | Layers Magazine | November 24, 2008 @ 3:48 am
Thanks for the quick lesson on text “write on”. Wow, it’s amazing to see how to do these effects once demystified. It still looks intimidating but I now know how.
Will gain confidence as I practice more each day.U are a blessing.
Kirk
Comment by kirk Brown | December 1, 2008 @ 3:09 am
That is really awesome
![]()
Comment by Hassan Jukhadar | December 2, 2008 @ 3:13 am
gooood ref’n
Comment by bharat gole | December 4, 2008 @ 5:46 am
great tutorial !! takes a long time in adobe ppro
thanx
Comment by ramesh singh | December 8, 2008 @ 9:38 am
Well, I think this is really amazing. Am gonna visit this site much more often. Big it up to the Crew!!!
Comment by Dona Doni | December 10, 2008 @ 12:33 pm
A tutorial done by Andrew Kramer a long time ago … (May 20, 2007)
http://www.videocopilot.net/tutorials/graffiti_writing/
Comment by Djah | December 12, 2008 @ 7:29 pm
cool!
Can you just draw paths to create an Illustration to be animated right in front of you?
Comment by Dan | January 4, 2009 @ 5:22 pm
i like tutorial
Comment by tunwin | January 11, 2009 @ 5:13 am
Right now. I take adobe after effects class!
you are a very good expert should teach a class!
Comment by rod lewis 2009 | January 15, 2009 @ 9:11 pm
When I try this, the Stoke effect panel doesn’t seem to recognize the selected path as the one to animate. It says Path: None so maybe that’s why. I’ve tried a few ways. What step am I missing? Thanks.
Comment by lizzielou | January 26, 2009 @ 12:45 pm
how did you get the paper what the heck?
Comment by bryntnii | January 27, 2009 @ 3:50 pm
thank you so much!
Comment by HJ | January 28, 2009 @ 6:43 am
hey gr8 tut, how does it work wen u want to write on an image instead of text???
Comment by BS | February 4, 2009 @ 8:15 am
Very well explained. Thank you so much. Great site!
Comment by Andrew | February 11, 2009 @ 5:02 pm
Can you render type in illustrator and bring it in or does it have to originate in AE?
Comment by MS | February 24, 2009 @ 7:28 pm
I’m having trouble when it comes to the key frames. When and where do I post which key frames…. it just isn’t working for me.
Comment by APWJon | February 28, 2009 @ 1:30 am
Thanks for the lesson on text.you have any more about text lessons.
Comment by chandra shekar | March 3, 2009 @ 1:42 am
Very well explained! Thanx!
Comment by Daluz | April 7, 2009 @ 1:58 pm
thank you very Much.God Bless You.
Comment by Sil | April 9, 2009 @ 5:27 pm
[...] Launch tutorial Share and Enjoy: [...]
Pingback by LAYERS Animating Hand Written Text Free After Effects Tutorials | Forging Fire Studio | April 13, 2009 @ 9:31 am
Great tutorial. Good for handwriting text which is very thin and equal stroke width. I tried it with a caligraphic style text and because of the the thin/thick strokes- I get that visual problem that is refered in the tutorial. Great tutorial! I wonder if you can alter the stroke thickness on different paths?
Comment by John | April 20, 2009 @ 7:44 pm
One of the easiest tuts to follow, saw it, did it. Well done. Any more for us thickheads?
Comment by Marko Solo | April 23, 2009 @ 11:39 am
Edited portion done for last year’s New Year’s celebration. The motion path was drawn in Illustrator:
Comment by LES | April 28, 2009 @ 8:36 pm
This is useless!
Comment by Mary | April 29, 2009 @ 1:57 pm
Great tutorial, I like this method better than the write on or gradiant wipe methods. One thing I cannot seem to figure out or if it can be easily done using the mask/stroke is to have a particle emitter (or any item for that mater) track the stroke?
Comment by Wondering | May 2, 2009 @ 10:53 am
hi, great tutorial i have seen but here is much better explain
![]()
Greetings from Romania
Comment by djandrew | June 27, 2009 @ 10:21 am
It’s more than amazing!
Comment by Najla | July 10, 2009 @ 10:27 am
Thanks.
Can you recommend a software/link for converting a long text to animated handwriting. So I feed the program a *.txt file and it produces handwritten effect.
Comment by maesumi | July 10, 2009 @ 5:54 pm
Wow, wouldn’t have thought it was so simple!! Thankyou so much for your detailed tutorial, I won’t get lost =D
Comment by Aamir raza | July 22, 2009 @ 12:25 am
Thanks , it’s too easier than other hand-writing tutorials.
Comment by iPAS | August 1, 2009 @ 12:49 am
dude,
very much appreciated!!!
cheers
Comment by yeah, me | October 5, 2009 @ 4:34 pm
Hello- I am doing everything as it is in the tutorial, and when i scroll through the text will reveal [ going from 100 down as in the tutorial ] – but once i add the keyframes, the text just “pops up ” all at once, or gets a chunky fade in- i have tried adding interpolating keyframes to help- did not work- i have tried numerous configurations- i am even using the same font – what is going on??!!?
could someone please help- it seems such an easy tutorial- like so many i have done before- but i have spent so much time, and cannot seem to find the resolution- please help !!!
Comment by freedomjunky | November 3, 2009 @ 8:25 pm
Thanks!
simple and great!
muchas gracias Corey Barker
Desde Chile!![]()
Comment by Claudio Valdés | November 7, 2009 @ 2:14 am
Leave us a comment

- Dragging an Object Between Documents
- TV Scanline Effect
- Trick to the Glossy Effect
- 3D Text
- Changing Type on a Path





Photoshop
Illustrator
Indesign
Dreamweaver
Fireworks
Premiere
Flash
After Effects
Lightroom
Acrobat














