# after effects project setup and compositions This is the setup work you do to get started building an animated sequence in After Effects. ## projects Projects are the single main file that holds all the construction information used to build your animations. Project files have links to the external files (images, videos, audio, etc.), as well as the compositions, timeline information, etc. Think of projects as the main working files where everything is organized and built. To create a new project, use the pulldown menus for **File > New > New Project**. ### project folder If possible, it is a good habit to compile all of your project files into one main project folder. Move your images, videos, audio stuff into the project folder. Save your After Effects project file into this folder as well. This way all of your assets are organized into one location. We do this because the After Effects project file saves references to the external files you are using. If you have links out to multiple locations it is easy to accidentally lose the connection to one of your files if something gets moved. It can be annoyingly frustrating to open up a project and realize the background video you are using is suddenly missing because the original file was moved. Now you have to go looking for that file and relinking. That’s a hassle. Better to just keep everything together in one main folder. --- ## compositions Compositions are the actual animated sequences you build in After Effects. They contain all the different elements organized into layers in the timeline. These are the internal units that make up your project. They exist as items inside an After Effects file. You can have several different compositions within the same project. They appear in the project bin alongside all the other images, videos, and other files. ### create a new composition There are several ways to create a new composition. 1. Using the pulldown menus go to **Composition > New Composition..** 2. Click on the **Create a New Composition** button at the bottom of the project bin A Composition Settings dialog appears where you can adjust things like size, resolution, frame rate, duration, etc. These settings are not locked in, you can change these whenever you want. After you press OK, your timeline becomes active. --- Learn more… --- tags: #aftereffects #resources home: [[! after effects]]