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After Effects Background Presets Preview Gallery

All the animated backgrounds that come with After Effects, playing: the Backgrounds folder, Synthetics and the shape-layer backgrounds.

1. Watch the preset 2. Click it — the name is copied 3. Paste in Effects & Presets in After Effects

Backgrounds 24 presets

Animation Presets › Backgrounds

Synthetics 11 presets

Animation Presets › Synthetics

Shape Backgrounds 6 presets

Animation Presets › Shapes › Backgrounds

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How to use these background presets

  1. Find the preset you like above and click it. Its name is copied.
  2. In After Effects open Window › Effects & Presets and paste the name in the search box.
  3. Select your layer, put the playhead where the animation should start, and double-click the preset.

Nothing to download: every preset here is already installed with After Effects. Also see the text animation presets, transition presets, shape presets, behavior presets, image effect presets, effects.

How do I use a background preset in After Effects?

Make a new solid the size of your composition (Layer › New › Solid), select it, and double-click the preset in Effects & Presets (Animation Presets › Backgrounds or Synthetics). For the Shapes › Backgrounds presets, make sure no layer is selected and double-click the preset; After Effects creates the shape layer for you.

Can I change the colours of a background preset?

Yes. Open the Effect Controls panel on the solid. Most of these backgrounds are built from effects such as Fractal Noise, Colorama or Tint, and their colours can be edited there.

Do the backgrounds loop?

Most are driven by expressions or long keyframes and keep moving for the whole layer. For a perfect loop, render a few seconds and cross-fade the end into the start.