mazeFX
  • SystemSystem

    imagemazeFX

    Create random vector mazes (labyrinths) in After Effects. mazeFX is able to generate a unique solution for each maze and also create the appropriate effect controls, to take full control of the appearance of the maze. Finally, it has the ability to use masks to control the shape of each maze and also can place all of the needed parts in a single shape layer or create separate shape layers for each part of the maze.

    https://aescripts.com/mazefx/


  • Shahadat Rahman ShemulShahadat Rahman Shemul
    Can I generate images or videos and sell them as a stock?

    Thanks in advance!
  • Theodoros TziatziosTheodoros Tziatzios
    Shahadat Rahman Shemul said:
    Can I generate images or videos and sell them as a stock?

    Thanks in advance!

    Yes, you can do whatever you want with the generated images or videos that where created with the use of mazeFX.

    Cheers!

  • Kevin NelsonKevin Nelson
    Hello, I'm trying to put a maze around a logo. Is there a way to create a simple square cut-out in the middle of a maze using a mask?
  • Theodoros TziatziosTheodoros Tziatzios
    Kevin Nelson said:
    Hello, I'm trying to put a maze around a logo. Is there a way to create a simple square cut-out in the middle of a maze using a mask?

    Hello Kevin,

    Yes, of course you can. Here is how to do it:

    1. Create a composition

    2. On the mazeFX window select the "Using Masks" mode on the grid tab

    3. Adjust the GridX and GridY sliders according to how dense you want your maze to be

    4. Click the "Create Guide" button

    5. On the "Grid Guide 1" layer that mazeFX just created, draw (by selecting the pen tool from your toolbar) the mask you want to be excluded from the maze generation. (Careful to use the mask tool while drawing on the layer, and not the shape tool. The mask tool is located next to the star shaped button on the toolbar)

    6. When you finish drawing the mask, click the "Grid Guide 1" on the timeline and press "M" on your keyboard to reveal the mask properties. Set the mode of your mask from "Add" to "Subtract".

    7. With the "Grid Guide 1" still selected on the timeline, press the "Create Maze by using mask" button on the mazeFX window. All done! (you can now safely delete the "Grid Guide 1" layer)

    Cheers!


  • Kevin NelsonKevin Nelson
    Theodoros Tziatzios said:
    Kevin Nelson said:
    Hello, I'm trying to put a maze around a logo. Is there a way to create a simple square cut-out in the middle of a maze using a mask?

    Hello Kevin,

    Yes, of course you can. Here is how to do it:

    1. Create a composition

    2. On the mazeFX window select the "Using Masks" mode on the grid tab

    3. Adjust the GridX and GridY sliders according to how dense you want your maze to be

    4. Click the "Create Guide" button

    5. On the "Grid Guide 1" layer that mazeFX just created, draw (by selecting the pen tool from your toolbar) the mask you want to be excluded from the maze generation. (Careful to use the mask tool while drawing on the layer, and not the shape tool. The mask tool is located next to the star shaped button on the toolbar)

    6. When you finish drawing the mask, click the "Grid Guide 1" on the timeline and press "M" on your keyboard to reveal the mask properties. Set the mode of your mask from "Add" to "Subtract".

    7. With the "Grid Guide 1" still selected on the timeline, press the "Create Maze by using mask" button on the mazeFX window. All done! (you can now safely delete the "Grid Guide 1" layer)

    Cheers!

    Funny, I tried that but it didn't work, now it does, thank you.



  • Ronald AmbroseRonald Ambrose
    I am trying to bring a maze into E3D and it keeps crashing AE... any suggestions to help avoid this problem?  I am keeping the size of the maze at 15x15.

    Thanks for any help

  • Theodoros TziatziosTheodoros Tziatzios

    Hello Ronald,

    Forgive me if I'm wrong but Element 3D supports only layers with masks and not shape layers (mazeFX generates only shape layers).

    A fast and easy solution is to generate the maze and then Auto-trace the mazeFX shape layer into a masks layers (menu: Layer -> Auto-trace - > Channel Alpha). Then use the autotraced layer as a source in the "Custom Text and Masks" option in Element 3D.

    Here is an example of an autotraced layer inside E3D.

    image
    Hope this helps.

    Ronald Ambrose said:
    I am trying to bring a maze into E3D and it keeps crashing AE... any suggestions to help avoid this problem?  I am keeping the size of the maze at 15x15.

    Thanks for any help


  • Chris CunyChris Cuny
    Hello,

    I love this script but being a novice, I think it may be a bit complicated for me. Does it come with tutorials? I only see a teaser on teh main page.

    Thanks a lot.

    Chris
  • Theodoros TziatziosTheodoros Tziatzios
    Hello Chris,

    No, unfortunately (and for the time being) there isn't any tutorial.

    The script is pretty straightforward though, and a lot of fun to play with.

    Please download the demo, which will allow you to test every function of the script for 7 days.
    For more information, you can also read the PDF user guide, by clicking here.

    If you still have any questions, I'll be happy to answer you, here on this forum.

    Cheers!
  • Joseph TierneyJoseph Tierney
    This plugin is both incredibly useful and incredibly 'crash-tastic' if you want to push it to the upper limits. I'm loving the results I'm pulling from this, especially from the masked features and the detail that comes from each maze, but if I push the plugin a little to far, I'm SOL and need to reboot AE... and I'm running this on an 18-core Xeon iMac Pro with 128G RAM that handles fairly intense 3D renders on the daily. If you plan to use this extensively, plan to build any mazes in a pre-comp and save before and after each step in the process. in all honesty... 8 out of 10 for the output, but could really use some stability tweaks. thanks for the good work!
    image

  • Theodoros TziatziosTheodoros Tziatzios
    Hello Joseph,

    Thank you for your nice comment and critique.

    mazeFX is a script. This means that it runs on a special Adobe version of Javascript, called Extendscript. You can only tweak so much the code in Extendscript. The inherent execution speed of this specific programming language is very limited.

    Having said that, I'm always open for new challenges.
    Can you please tell me what settings, gives you a hard time or a crash so I can make a few tests?

    Also I would like to mention, that on large grid sizes (over 50x50) mazeFX and AE, may seem unresponsive but trust me it's doing hard work under the hood. Just give it time...

    By the way, that's a very nice result you uploaded!

    Cheers.
    Theodoros

  • Theodoros TziatziosTheodoros Tziatzios
    A new, free update of mazeFX, just dropped!

    Version 1.40 brings a vast improvement over the speed and efficiency of the maze generation algorithm.
    mazeFX now produces over 60% less vertices and path shapes!

    Enjoy!
  • Joseph TierneyJoseph Tierney
    using v1.4. no matter how much I reduce my layer settings, this plugin crashes aftereffects. Even with making basic things like a 10x4 square maze will crash the application, and constantly on the "drawing horizontal maze wall" part of the process. I let it sit and 'think' for 15 minutes on one round and still nothing on the progress bar. would really love some advice here as I have a short-turnaround project that is heavily dependent on this plugin. previous version worked pretty well. hoping I can accomplish what I need by installing the older version: 18 core iMac Pro Xeon - Vega 64 GPU - 128GB RAM - Mac OS11.2.3 - AE 18.0.0 
  • Theodoros TziatziosTheodoros Tziatzios
    Hello Joseph,

    A 10x4 maze should be drawn almost instantly while a 50x50 maze should take less than 60 seconds to calculate on a moderate machine, so there is definitely something wrong in your case.

    Could you be so kind and open a support ticket so we can investigate it?

    Thanks.
  • Joseph TierneyJoseph Tierney
    Theodoros Tziatzios said:
    Hello Joseph,

    A 10x4 maze should be drawn almost instantly while a 50x50 maze should take less than 60 seconds to calculate on a moderate machine, so there is definitely something wrong in your case.

    Could you be so kind and open a support ticket so we can investigate it?

    Thanks.
    Update on this: It appears to be working properly with AE 18.1.0
  • Jamie SteedmanJamie Steedman
    I was wondering how you extrude the maze like in the examples?

    Thanks,


  • Theodoros TziatziosTheodoros Tziatzios
    Hello Jamie,

    You just change the renderer on your composition settings from Classic 3D to Cinema 4D.
    (menu: Composition --> Composition Settings -> 3D Renderer -> Renderer : Cinema 4D)

    Then you enable the 3D switch on the generated mazeFX layer and play around with the geometry options (Bevel, Style, Extrusion etc.)
    It really helps if you create a camera and a point light.

    The examples on the promo video were created with an older version of After Effects which supported the now deprecated and painfully slow "Ray-Traced 3D" renderer. One of the things that the "Ray-Traced 3D" was better than the newer "Cinema4D" renderer, is that it supported motion blur and depth of field. Still waiting for Adobe to enable these features...

    Hope this helps.
    Cheers!

    Theodoros.

    Jamie Steedman said:
    I was wondering how you extrude the maze like in the examples?

  • Ethan AtticusEthan Atticus
    How would one go about creating a circle maze like the one in the promo video around 26 seconds?
  • Theodoros TziatziosTheodoros Tziatzios
    Hello Ethan,

    Here is an example from the mazeFX product page:

    image

    You essentially create a maze on a square composition, with the grid X cells number larger than the grid Y cells number (about 4:1 ratio). You then apply the built-in "Polar Coordinates" effect and set the interpolation to 100% and the Type of Conversion to "Rect to Polar".

    That's it!

    Cheers.
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