Overlord
$45.00 per license
Transfer shapes from Illustrator without files
Edit Ae shape layers in Illustrator
Explode shapes during transfer
Editable text
Parametric Rectangle and Ellipse
Ray Dynamic Color support
Need a studio license for more than 20 users? Contact us
What is Overlord?
The Prince that was promised. Our hope for the future. An end to blog posts about Prepping Illustrator Files for After Effects in 7 Easy Steps.
Overlord is a set of two panels that, when both open, create a portal between Illustrator and After Effects. This mystical Stargate allows the transfer of shapes as you need them, while animating, without the need for file organization, importing, converting to shape layers or redrawing. This is the vector workflow you imagined when working with apps created by the same company.
Ae shape layers may also be transferred back to Illustrator for editing with more robust drawing tools. Think of it as using Illustrator as a plugin for After Effects.
Work with shapes, not files.
Features
Shapes from Ai
Organize them or don't, vector shapes are now animatable with a single click.
Shapes from Ae
Use the Illustrator vector tools to edit shape layers instead of endless twirling.
Ai Gradients
New in v1.1, gradient fills and strokes. Unavailable to the standard Ai import.
Detect Ellipse/Rectangle
Automatically detect parametric rectangles and ellipses to allow size editing, not just path editing.
Adjust anchor points
Be free from a shape's internal transforms. Center anchors to object center or layer to comp center during transfer.
Shapes exploding
Split shapes to separate layers when transferring and preserve object and group naming that you spent so much time on.
Editable Text
You shouldn't have to retyping everything. Unavailable to the standard Ai import.
Ray Dynamic Color Support
Transfer swatches as guide layers to sample from or interactive Ray palettes.
Import Guides
Transfer baselines and proportion grids with a click. Unavailable to the standard Ai import.
Online manual and everything you could ever want to know about Overlord.
This is the holding place for all the ancient knowledge.
It's OUT! One of the most legit @AdobeAE to @Illustrator addons: OVERLORD. Nicely made @battleaxedotco View Tutes: https://t.co/tr2t5hMgW9
— Jayse Hansen (@jayse_) October 19, 2017
Had to iterate a ton, tried to build a rig for it; but it ended up just needing to be hand animated mostly; So using @battleaxedotco overlord I build out my shapes and basically inbetweened them in AE pic.twitter.com/DQPYWQH5vN
— TJ (@TaylorJonpeters) July 9, 2018
For real. It’s like having AI’s vector tools practically right inside @adobeAE! https://t.co/uq8z8dWKdX
— Paul Conigliaro (@conigs) October 16, 2017
The real deal - AE working with Illustrator will never be the same. https://t.co/6Pk8vQ2SLW
— Ryan Summers (@Oddernod) October 16, 2017
Overlord by @battleaxedotco has fundamentally changed my @Illustrator and @AdobeAE workflow for the best. Buy it.https://t.co/SRScdYGGTk
— Jordan Scott (@jdashscott) July 3, 2018
Overlord Release Marks a New Era in After Effects - https://t.co/vgbbZrF5Ul #Overlord #AfterEffects #Illustrator pic.twitter.com/Fo1G70bDyP
— lesterbanks (@lesterbanks) October 19, 2017
Featured
Concepted, written, designed and animated by Jordan Scott for SumUX at Google. Simple shapes, bold color and unbelievable smoothness.
Powerfully built using Overlord's soulmate, Ray Dynamic Color.
Sounds by Ambrose Yu
(SumUX is a really cool team to work with BTW)
"When building out the animation portion of this video, I didn't have to import a single Illustrator layer by solely relying on Overlord's mystical capabilities. The project was made infinitely easier by removing the middle man with Overlord."
- Jordan
FAQ
Does Overlord work with After Effects Version ___?
Overlord works with all recent versions of After Effects and Illustrator starting at CC2014. The technology that allows the apps to seamlessly talk to one another was not available in earlier versions.
IS THERE A FREE TRIAL VERSION?
Not right now. Maybe not ever. It's a lot easier to focus on the product without having to think about building a crippled version as well. If it doesn't fit your workflow then you'll get a full refund, no questions asked.
I have a weird question, who can I talk to?
Me. Hi. My name is Adam. Nice to meet you.
Are there any tutorials?
The Braindump has everything there is to know about Overlord. Tutorial videos are ultra short so you can get to work.
How do I install this?
First download the ZXP installer from aescripts + aeplugins. This allows for quick installation of all Adobe Extensions. Launch the installer and drag Overlord.zxp into it. Done.
More detailed installation instructions may be found here.