Every effector-type Geo Op and every deformer carries a Falloff block. It decides where the operator acts and how strongly: full strength inside, nothing outside, a soft band in between. With no falloff set (Sphere with Radius 0) the operator acts at full strength everywhere.
Operators with a Falloff block: Transform, Noise Displace, Step, Random Transform, Color, Plain, Attract / Repel, Orbit, Target, Visibility, Follow, Delay, Inheritance, Image, Sound, and the deformers Bend, Twist, Taper, Bulge, Squash & Stretch and Path Deform.
How to use it
- Twirl open Falloff at the bottom of the operator's rows. It is collapsed by default; the header summarises what it is doing.
- Pick a Shape.
- Set its size (Radius, Width/Height, Length and so on). Once it has a size, a gizmo appears in the viewer that you can drag.
- Optionally pick a layer under Follow, or click New Null, so the falloff centre rides along with a null you can animate or parent.
- Shape the soft band with Softness and the curve editor, and use Invert to affect the outside instead.
- Click + Falloff to stack more falloffs, blended onto the ones above.
Shapes
| Shape | What it does |
|---|---|
| Sphere | Strength by distance from the centre. |
| Linear | A wipe along one direction. |
| Box | A turned rectangle. |
| Capsule | A stadium shape. |
| Radial | An angle sweep around the centre. |
| Noise | A moving noise field. |
| Layer | Inside another shape or text layer's outline is full strength. |
| Index | By place in the clone list, not by distance (like a text Range selector). |
| Time | Each clone ramps up in turn. |
Parameters
Rows appear only for the shapes that use them.
| Name | What it does | Default/range |
|---|---|---|
| Shape | The falloff type (above). | Sphere |
| Center X / Y (Z in a 3D comp) | Where the falloff sits. Replaced by "follows" and the layer name when it follows a layer. | 0, 0 |
| Follow | A layer the centre follows, usually a null. Unlink stops following and leaves the centre where it is. | None |
| New Null | Creates a null at the centre and follows it, in one undo step. | — |
| Layer | (Layer) The shape or text layer whose outline is the falloff. | None |
| Radius | (Sphere, Linear, Capsule) Size of the falloff. 0 = off, acts everywhere. | 0 px, min 0 |
| Feather | (Layer) Width of the soft edge around the outline. | min 0 |
| Width / Height | (Box) Size of the rectangle. | 200 × 200 px |
| Length | (Capsule) Length of the stadium. | 200 px |
| Angle | (Linear, Box, Capsule) Direction or turn of the falloff. | 0° |
| Start | (Radial) Where the sweep starts. | 0° |
| Sweep | (Radial) How far the sweep runs. | 180°, 0–360 |
| Softness | Width of the soft band. 1 = soft across the whole radius, 0 = a hard edge. | 1, 0–1 |
| Scale | (Noise) Size of the noise features. | 200 px, min 1 |
| Speed | (Noise) How fast the noise moves. | 0 /s |
| Seed | (Noise) Which noise pattern. | 0 |
| Count | (Index, Time) What it counts: Clones, Characters, Words or Lines. Text units count clones on shape layers. | Clones |
| Curve | (Index) How strength runs across the range, from the text animator's curve presets. | — |
| Start / End / Offset | (Index) The range over the clone list. | Start −1–2, End −1–2, Offset −2–2 |
| Strength | (Index) Strength of the range. | −1–1 |
| Smoothness | (Index) Softens the range edges. | 0–1 |
| Start | (Time) When the first clone starts ramping. | 0 s |
| Duration | (Time) How long each clone's ramp lasts. | 1 s |
| Stagger | (Time) Delay between one clone and the next. | 0.1 s |
| Curve editor | (all but Index) Strength across the soft band. Empty uses the built-in smoothstep. | — |
| Invert | Affect what is outside instead of inside. | Off |
Stacking falloffs
Click + Falloff to add another falloff. Each stacked entry (Falloff 2, Falloff 3…) has the same rows as above plus:
| Name | What it does | Default/range |
|---|---|---|
| Enable dot | Switch this falloff off; it stays in the stack. | On |
| Blend | How it combines with the falloffs above: Add reaches further, Subtract carves a hole, Multiply keeps only the overlap, Max, Min. | Add |
| Opacity | How much of this entry is blended in. | 1, 0–1 |
| ✕ | Remove this falloff. | — |
Once there is a stack, a Remap group appears:
| Name | What it does | Default/range |
|---|---|---|
| Strength | Multiplies the combined strength. | 1× |
| Contrast | Pushes the strength toward 0 or 1. | 0, min −1 |
| Clamp | Keeps the stack's strength between 0 and 1. | Off |
Tips
- All the falloff numbers can be keyframed like any other operator parameter.
- Index and Time falloffs on a text layer can count characters, words or lines, so a falloff can step through a title one word at a time.
- The comp's dynamics forces use a simpler version of this (Radius, Softness, Center, Follow); see Dynamics World.