Nothing happens when I click
| Message or badge | Cause and fix |
|---|---|
| No active composition, badge No comp | Open a composition and select layers in its Timeline. |
| Select a shape layer to explode, badge No selection or No shapes | Select an unlocked shape layer. Convert vector footage to shapes in After Effects first. |
| Select shape layers to merge, badge No selection | Select at least two eligible layers in the active comp. |
| Selected layers are locked, badge N locked | Unlock the layers before exploding. |
| Select two or more 2D shape layers to merge, badge Select 2+, No shapes or N locked | Merge needs two unlocked 2D shape layers with nonempty Contents. Unlock layers, turn off their 3D switches if appropriate, or change the selection. |
Mixed selections can still succeed. The success message reports locked layers and other skipped layers. A selected shape layer that cannot split at the chosen depth is left untouched without a separate skipped-layer count.
I see “One piece”
Nothing to split at this depth means no eligible source has at least two pieces. Open Contents and check the hierarchy.
When a source has one top group but several deeper pieces, the message becomes One group at the top · Shift-click explodes deeper. Try Shift-click Explode, or Alt-click for individual paths. See the depth rules.
Merge shows “Not merged”
The narrowest tile may show ! instead. These messages mean Merge stopped before retiring the sources.
| Message | What to do |
|---|---|
| Merge needs After Effects’ Group Shapes command, which this version doesn’t offer | Use an After Effects version that provides the command. |
| After Effects didn’t group the shapes of [layer], so nothing was merged | Inspect that source’s Contents and confirm Group Shapes works on it in After Effects. Retry with a small selection. |
| After Effects didn’t paste the shapes of [layer], so nothing was merged | Check that After Effects can copy and paste that source’s shape group. Retry with a small selection. |
| Keyframes of [layer] moved when pasted, so nothing was merged | Merge rejected a paste whose keyframe count or first-key timing changed. Keep the source layers, or copy the affected shapes manually and check their timing. |
For these grouping or paste checks, Merge removes its temporary layers and unfinished result, restores the playhead and reselects the eligible sources. The clipboard may already have changed.
My result looks different
Layer effects are not copied by either action. A message such as 1 effect not copied is expected. Shape fills, gradients, strokes and Trim Paths are shape contents and are retained.
For a split, check shared shape operators whose result depends on several paths being together. For a merge, check separated Position animation, expressions, timing, parenting and layer compositing against the transfer rules. Undo if the result does not suit that artwork.
My anchor did not center, or my original disappeared
Anchor centering has guards for animated transforms and empty bounds. A hidden original may simply be concealed by After Effects’ Hide Shy Layers switch. Both behaviors and recovery steps are covered in Settings.
I see “Not done” or an unexpected error
Not done is the fallback badge for an unrecognized failure. Read the accompanying message. Explode could not finish is used when no more specific message is available.
Inspect the comp before retrying. An unexpected host error can occur after changes have begun, so use After Effects’ undo history to return to the previous state if needed.