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project: Animating Masks
 
   
 

description: In this tutorial you will learn how to animate masks in Flash MX to produce animations like the one shown at right.

Files: The animating_masks.fla file is in the fla_files folder.
   
 
   
 

step 1: Watch the following movie. (Figure A) By now you should be able to duplicate the steps without written instructions. Trust yourself! You already know how to use the Free Transform Tool (Q), nudge (arrow keys), add keyframes (F6), add frames (F5), and Shape Tween, right?

•Note: I'll explain the process in class. Once you understand masking and how to animate the masks a whole new dimension of animation is within your grasp.
   
  A
   
  step 2: Add your own flourish with the author's name so the quotation is properly attributed. Just for the sake of practice throw in a button and the appropriate actions so that our animation has a bit of interactivity. (Figure B)
   
  B
   
  step 3: The following looping animation (Figure C) is nothing more than an image and a mask. The mask, of course, is just a simple shape tween. Animated masks offer a very simple way to jazz up an otherwise static image.
   
  C
   
  step 4: Try combining text, masks, and imagery and see what you can come up with. Next up: Intro to loadMovie.
   
   
   
   
 
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