With the Live Update capability, when you use Quick Selection and Selection Brush tools, your strokes are reflected in real time as you paint, giving you instant visual feedback so you can make more accurate selections without waiting for a refresh.
Last updated on
Jul 22, 2026
Learn how to use the AI-powered Object Matte in Adobe After Effects to isolate and track subjects in your footage within a composition.
In the latest version of After Effects, a new set of core tools has been introduced to expand rotoscoping beyond a brush-only workflow. This approach combines single-click AI subject selection with precise manual refinement that updates in real time, and intelligent propagation across time.
Object Matte is built on the same AI technology that powers the Object Mask workflow in Premiere, delivering faster and more intuitive results with significantly less manual effort. It enables you to isolate specific areas of footage to apply effects, color corrections, or selectively blur elements with greater speed and control.
After Effects now has the following Object Matte core tools to streamline and refine your rotoscoping and masking workflows:
- Object Matte Tool
- Quick Selection Tool
- Selection Brush Tool
- Refine Edge Tool
Tools in the Object Matte suite
Object Matte Tool
Quickly isolate objects in your footage with one-click or marquee-based selection using Rectangle or Lasso tool. This tool leverages advanced segmentation logic to accurately propagate across frames, reducing manual effort for complex scenes.
Quick Selection Tool
Classic Roto Brush reimagined as Quick Selection Tool and optimized for faster, more intuitive workflows that allow you to click or drag over an object to select it based on its color, contrast, and edges in the footage.
Selection Brush Tool
For fine-tuned adjustments, use Selection Brush Tool, which allows additive and subtractive strokes with enhanced cursor feedback. Modifier keys make switching between selection modes seamless.
Refine Edge Tool
Paint along the edges of the object to capture and maintain natural edges and intricate details, such as hair, using Refine Edge Tool.
Use Object Matte in your composition
Create a composition, import a footage, and add it to the timeline.
Double-click the footage in the Timeline panel to open it in the Layer panel.
Select the Object Matte Tool from the menubar. You can also use the following keyboard shortcuts to activate this tool:
- macOS: Option + W
- Windows: Ctrl + W
Selecting Object Matte Tool enables access to the following options as well:
- Quick Selection Tool
- Selection Brush Tool
- Refine Edge Tool
Hover over your subject with the Object Matte Tool to preview the matte, then select to apply it.
As you paint with the Quick Selection or Selection Brush tools, Live Update shows your changes in real time, so you can see exactly what is being selected as you refine your matte, without waiting for the frame to refresh.
You can also use marquee-based selection tools for object selection – Rectangle , Lasso , or switch to other tools to further refine the matte as needed.
Once satisfied with the base frame selection, begin propagation by moving forward through the timeline:
- Pressing the spacebar
- Use these keyboard shortcuts to move frame by frame
- Move the CTI (Current-time indicator) to a target frame manually
After Effects tracks and propagates (analyzes the movement of the subject and extends the matte) the matte across frames. Review the propagated result and refine any problem areas using the available selection tools.
You can use the Effect Controls panel (Effects > Object Matte) to refine mask properties and adjust settings after propagation.
When propagation is complete, select Freeze at the bottom of the Layer panel to lock the matte. Return to the Composition panel to continue compositing.
Tip
- Navigate to the Timeline panel, untwirl the layer's properties, and go to Effects > Object Matte > Selections to view the individual mask selections and work with their keyframes.
- If you need manual control, detailed edge refinement, or a traditional rotoscoping workflow, learn how to work with Roto Brush and Refine Matte.
- In the latest After Effects (beta), the Object Matte propagation results are now cached to disk.
Use new beta features
Disk Caching for Object Matte is now available for testing and feedback. Try it now in After Effects (beta).
In the latest beta version of After Effects, Object Matte propagation results are cached to disk, so your work is preserved for the next time you open the project.
Previously, propagated frames lived only in memory. If you closed your project without freezing the matte, or your system ran low on RAM, those results were lost, and reopening the project meant propagating again.
Because propagated frames can now live on disk instead of only in memory, you'll notice a few immediate benefits:
- Your Object Matte survives across sessions. Propagate a matte, save, and close your project. When you reopen it, the cached frames are still there.
- Your RAM has more room to work with. After Effects doesn't need to hold every propagated frame in memory anymore, so you'll see fewer interruptions and smoother playback while you refine a matte.
- Long clips propagate faster the second time around. Frames you've already computed come back from disk instead of being rebuilt from scratch, which matters most on longer roto shots.
The Object Matte cache markings in the Timeline panel show what's stored on disk, so you can see what's ready to play back and what still needs to propagate.
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