Start with the Motion Dock open and a composition with a few layers that move. Shape layers or small solids work well.
Add Synapse
- Click Edit layout in the Motion Dock.
- Click an empty area of the layout and choose Synapse.
- Click Exit layout mode.
If Synapse is already in the current layout, use its existing slot.
Select the layers in order
Select four or five layers in the timeline, one at a time, in the order you want them linked. Cmd-click adds a layer to the selection (Ctrl-click on Windows).
Each selected layer shows up as a star in Synapse's sky, at its place in the comp. The caption reads the number of layers, here 5 layers.
Click Chain
Hover Chain. Blue lines appear in the sky, one between each layer and the next, and the caption reads Chain · 4 lines.
Click Chain to draw them.
The lines draw across the stars and the tile shows 4 lines for a moment.
Your comp now has a new layer named Synapse, just below the lowest of the linked layers. It's selected, so the sky shows its lines.
Preview the comp. The lines run from each layer’s anchor point to the next and stay attached as the layers move. One Undo removes the whole Synapse.
Select the Synapse layer and open its effect in the Effect Controls panel to change the width or color. Style and animate the lines covers every control.
If the tile shakes and says Select 2+, Synapse found fewer than two layers to link. Select at least two layers that aren’t a Synapse or a camera.