About time-remapping

In After Effects you can easily expand, compress, play backward, or freeze a portion of a layer's duration using a process known as time-remapping. For example, if you are using footage of a person walking, you can play footage of the person moving forward, and then play a few frames backwards to make the person retreat, and then play forward again to have the person resume walking.


Footage is usually displayed at a constant speed in one direction.

Time-remapping distorts time for a range of frames within a layer.

You can also time-remap layers containing audio or both audio and video. When you apply time-remap to a layer containing audio and video, the audio and video remain synchronized. You can remap audio files to gradually decrease or increase the pitch, play audio backwards, or create a warbled or scratchy sound.

You can remap time in either the Layer window or the Timeline window. Remapping video in one window displays the results in both windows. Each window provides a different view of the layer duration:

• The Layer window provides a visual reference of the frames you change, as well as the frame number. The window displays the current-time indicator and a remap-time marker, which you move to select the frame you want to play at the current time.

Layer window for time remapping A. Current-time indicator B. Remap-time marker C. Time-remap value D. Navigator bar
• The Timeline window provides a precise view of the changes you specify over time by marking your changes with keyframes and a graph similar to the one displayed for other layer properties. You must be familiar with using keyframes to remap time in the Timeline window. (See Understanding keyframes.)

Time remapping values A. First frame B. Last frame C. Active frame D. Top speed E. Current speed F. Lowest speed

Related Subtopics:

Working with the Time Remap graph
Time-remapping parts of a motion footage or audio layer
Time-remapping audio pitch