The Fusion Experiment
I’ve been using Adobe After Effects for close to two decades. I’m no expert, but I’m pretty decent at creating motion graphics and animations. It’s been my go-to tool for anything that needs to move on screen.
But recently, I wanted to try something different. I’d heard about DaVinci Resolve’s Fusion page and how it uses a node-based editor to build animations. This was completely different from the layer and composition-based method I was used to in After Effects.
So I decided to give it a shot.
Learning a New Way to Think
The biggest shift was wrapping my head around the node-based workflow. In After Effects, everything is layers stacked on top of each other in a composition. You apply effects to layers, and you work from bottom to top.
Fusion works differently. Everything is a node, and you connect them together like a flow chart. Your image flows from one node to another, with each node doing something specific to transform it. It’s more like building a machine than stacking pancakes.
The node view in Fusion - each box does one thing, and they’re all connected together.
My First Animation
After watching a few tutorials on YouTube and playing around with the software, I made a quick animation. It’s pretty basic, but it was fun to make.
The process felt different from what I was used to. Instead of thinking about layers, I had to think about the flow of data. Text goes into a text node, gets transformed by a transform node, maybe gets some effects from other nodes, and finally gets merged with the background.
What I Learned
The node-based approach has some real advantages once you get used to it:
- It’s more organized - You can see exactly what’s happening to your image at each step
- It’s flexible - You can easily reroute connections and try different combinations
- It’s powerful - Complex effects that would need multiple layers in After Effects can be done with a few connected nodes
But it’s also got a learning curve. I found myself reaching for familiar After Effects shortcuts that didn’t exist. The interface is different, and some things that are simple in After Effects require a different approach in Fusion.
My Verdict
I’m glad I tried it. Fusion is a solid tool, and for certain types of work, the node-based approach might actually be better than what I’m used to. It’s definitely worth exploring if you’re curious about different ways to create motion graphics.
Will I switch completely? Probably not. After Effects is still my main tool because I know it so well. But Fusion has earned a place in my toolkit for when I want to try a different approach to a problem.
Sometimes it’s good to step outside your comfort zone and learn something new. Even if it’s just to remind yourself that there’s always more than one way to solve a problem.