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*Note:

• You can use the standard version of After Effects if you have Cycore FX. Download a Free Demo of Cycore FX. Cycore Effects is included on the After Effects Pro installer disk.
• The FE Sphere Effect (Final Effects) and CC Sphere (Cycore FX) effect are pretty much interchangeable.

In my 20s I went nightclubbing a lot. The best club of my youth had no doors on the bathroom stalls, no seats on the toilets, no A/C. They served beer in Mason jars. The place reeked of cigarettes, but they had a great DJ and a discoball. This is my tribute to that little hole-in-the-wall.

This Discotheque was generated completely in After Effects with solids, effects, and lights. Trapcode Lux give you volumetric light and Starglow gives you amazing sparkles on the disco ball. I threw in an animated disco floor and a bit of a camera move, just to jazz things up.

Instructions

1. Install the Trapcode Suite demos if you do not own them.
2. You can use either CC Sphere (Cycore FX) or Boris Final Effects Sphere in this project. If you own the AE 6.5 professional bundle, CC Sphere is included on the CD. Install Cult Effects plug-ins to get them.
3. Create a new composition, 720x540, or whatever you prefer. Make it 8 seconds and make the background black (command+shift+b or ctrl+shift+b to bring up background color.
4. Save as disco.aep.

Disco Ball

1. Create a new solid (Layer > New > Solid) and make it 600x300 pixels and call it Disco Ball. The color is unimportant.
2. Apply Fractal Noise (Effect > Noise > Fractal Noise). Change the following settings from the defaults.
   - Noise Type: Block
   - Contrast: 289.0
   - Transform > Scale: 12
   - Evolution (we'll set keyframes for this... stay tuned)
   - Blend Mode: Lighten
   
   Back to evolution: I set keyframes every 15 frames and made them Hold Keyframes. They shift about 100° and then hold. You can experiment with this and see what works for you.
3. Apply CC Sphere or Final Effects Sphere.
   Radius: 76.0
   Rotation Y: Set keyframes.
       First frame: 0 x 0.0°
       Last frame: 0 x +124.0°.
4. Apply Trapcode Starglow. I thought the default settings looked perfectly good.
5. Save.

Disco Floor

1. Create a new solid that is 1100x800 pixels. The color is unimportant. Call it Floor Squares.
2. We'll use the same sort of process as we did for the disco ball with a few slight changes. To make the squares on the floor apply Fractal Noise again.
   - Noise Type: Block
   - Transform > Scale: 150.0
   - Evolution: set some keyframes
       First frame: 0 x 0.0°
       Last frame: 0 x 15.0°
   - Blending Mode: Lighten
3. To make the colors, apply Colorama. Effect > Image Control > Colorama. Change the following from defaults:
   - Input Phase > Phase Shift: 113.0°
   - Output Cycle > Cycle Repetitions: 12.00
   
   This layer will be made into a 3D layer and rotated as a floor plane, but for now, we want to add some detail to the floor, namely some caulk between the tiles.
4. Create a new layer... again 1100x800. Call it Floor Grid.
5. Apply Grid to the Floor Grid layer. Effect > Render > Grid. Change the following settings:
   - Anchor: 483.9, 21.0
   - Size from: Width Slider
   - Width: 100.0
   - Border: 11.0
   - Blending Mode: Stencil Alpha
   
   The grid should line up with the floor squares. If not, play with the anchor and width until they line up perfectly.
6. Apply Bevel Alpha. Effect > Perspective > Bevel Alpha.
   - Edge Thickness: 9.20
7. Set both Floor Grid and Floor Squares to 3D layers by clicking the 3D check box in the switches column.
8. Go to the Parent column of Floor Grid and choose Floor Squares.
9. Select the Floor Squares layer. Hit the R key to bring up rotation.
   - X Rotation: 0 x -88.0°
   - Position: 360.1, 363.9, 0.0
10. Drag the Disco Ball above the floor layers. This is what your comp should look like. Yes, the floor floats, but we'll add a camera and everything will magically fall into place.
    

You could animate the floor to the audio if you wish, with Trapcode Sound Keys or Avidion Synchronize. That's another tutorial.

You could also add some glow to the floor.

 

Seeing the lights

Trapcode Lux is a really interesting product that allows you to create volumetric light, that is, light beams that you can see as opposed to ambient light. Lux works with the built-in lights in After Effects and it's very simple to use.

1. You will not be able to see the volumetric-ness of the light until you apply Lux. We'll add Lux before you apply the light.
   
   At the first frame, create a new solid, full screen. The color is unimportant. Call the layer "Lux". Apply Lux to this layer. Effect > Trapcode > Lux. We'll go back and adjust the settings after we create a light. Don't get confused!
2. Add a light. Layer > New > Light. Make sure it's a Spot Light.
   
   I'm not going to go into the details of controlling the lights, so if you're not too familiar with it, just drag the little arrows around until you get the light positioned. I used the following settings. These may or may not work for you.
   - Transform > Point of Interest: 289.9, 325.0, -17.2 (pointing at the disco ball)
   - Transform > Position: 93.4, -8.2, -287.6
   - Transform > Orientation: keyframed so it moves back and forth, like spotlights do (x value oscillates between 336.0° and 23.0° over 2 seconds.)
   - Options: Spot
   - Options > Color: Light yellow
   - Options > Casts Shadows: On
3. Go back to the "Lux" layer. Change the following settings:
   - Spot Lights > Reach: 2390
   - Spot Lights > Individual Reach: Intensity (mult)
4. Follow Step 2 and add a second light. Position it to the right of the disco ball and aim it toward the disco ball. Make the light green.
   
5. You can make the beams more prominent or add more lights.

Smokin'

One thing I really hate about nightclubs is the smoke.... from the smoke machines or other patrons. I've added smoke to give the scene a bit more ambience.

1. Create a new solid that's full screen. Call it "Smoke". The color, once again, is unimportant. Make sure it starts at the first frame.
2. Apply Radio Waves. Effect > Render > Radio Waves. I used the following settings:
   - Producer Point: -9, 531.0
   - Wave Motion > Frequency: 4.40
   - Wave Motion > Expansion: 1.20
   - Wave Motion > Orientation: 0 x -290.0°
   - Wave Motion > Direction: Add expression (explained below)
   - Wave Motion > Velocity: 37.0
   - Wave Motion > Lifespan (sec): 24.000
   - Stroke > Profile: Sine
   - Stroke > Color: White
   - Stroke > Fade-out Time: 13.900
   
   Add an expression to Direction by holding down the option key and clicking on the stopwatch. Add this expression:
   

   random(150)

3. Apply a Fast Blur on top of the Radio Waves. Effect > Blur & Sharpen > Fast Blur. Change the following settings:
   - Blurriness: 66.0
   - Repeat Edge Pixels: On
4. Turn the opacity of the layer to 72%. Place this layer above the floor layers if you have not already done that.

A little camera move

I've added just a little pan of the camera to give it some interest.

1. Add a camera, starting at the first frame. Layer > New > Camera. I used a 35mm at the default settings.
2. I set the point of interest to 352.0, 92.0, 151.0.... pointing right a the disco ball. The disco ball is not a 3D layer and the ball will become squished and flat if you look at it from another angle.
3. I keyframed both Y Rotation and Z Rotation.
   At the first frame:
   - Y Rotation: 0 x +10.0°
   - Z Rotation: 0 x -3.0°
   
   At the last frame:
   - Y Rotation: 0 x -10.0°
   - Z Rotation: 0 x +3.0°

You could add dancers shot over blue screen or cg characters too. Just don't let them do the Macarena.