Track mattes: cut any layer with another layer's shape or brightness
Kubrick's track mattes let one layer show only through another layer's alpha or brightness, the After Effects way, without grouping or losing timing.
Footage inside the letters of a word. A gradient that only shows where a shape is. A photo revealed through a moving brush stroke. These all come from the same tool: a track matte.
How to use it
Select the layer you want to cut, the one that should show through. In its properties, open Track matte and pick the layer that does the cutting, then pick how it cuts:
- Alpha: show the layer only where the matte layer is solid
- Alpha inverted: show it everywhere except there
- Luma: use the matte's brightness, so white shows and black hides
- Luma inverted: the other way round
Nothing gets grouped or moved. Both layers keep their own timing, motion and place in the layers list, so you can still animate the matte and the picture separately. Animate the word and the footage stays put inside it; move the footage and the word stays still.
A hidden matte layer still cuts, which is usually what you want: the matte does its job without drawing itself.
Examples
- Video in type. A big headline as the matte with Alpha, and a clip on the layer above it.
- Light leaks. A soft gradient as a Luma matte over a photo, so the photo glows in only where the light is.
- Wipe reveals. Animate a shape across the frame as the matte and the scene behind is wiped on.
The agent can set mattes too, so you can ask for the footage inside the title instead of wiring it up yourself.
Try it in Kubrick
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