After Effects Layer Property Shortcuts
A single layer in After Effects can carry dozens of animatable properties, and rather than scrolling through a long expandable list every time you want to keyframe just one of them, single-letter shortcuts instantly isolate exactly the property you need in the Timeline panel. Beyond the four core Transform properties, dedicated single-letter shortcuts also reveal a layer's anchor point, its mask shape, and any applied effect parameters, extending the same fast-isolation workflow to less frequently but still commonly keyframed properties.
| Action | Windows | Mac | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reveal Position property | P (layer selected) | P | Filters the Timeline panel down to show just the Position property for the selected layer, cutting through everything else so the one property you're about to keyframe or inspect is the only thing on screen. |
| Reveal Scale property | S | S | Shows only the Scale property for the selected layer, isolating it from the rest of the layer's transform properties. |
| Reveal Rotation property | R | R | Shows only the Rotation property for the selected layer, isolating it for direct keyframing without other properties cluttering the view. |
| Reveal Opacity property | T | T | Shows only the Opacity property, commonly used for keyframing fade-in and fade-out effects on a layer. |
| Reveal all Transform properties | Ctrl+Shift+A then U, or U twice | Cmd+Shift+A then U, or U twice | Pressing U twice reveals every animated (keyframed) property on the selected layer at once, useful for reviewing everything currently animated on a complex layer without checking each property key individually. |
| Reveal Anchor Point property | A (layer selected) | A | Shows only the Anchor Point property, which controls the fixed reference point a layer scales and rotates around, distinct from Position which controls the layer's actual location in the composition. |
| Reveal Mask Path property | M (layer with a mask selected) | M | Isolates the Mask Path property in the Timeline for a masked layer, exposing the mask outline itself for keyframing — the standard trick for animating a wipe or reveal effect over time. |
| Reveal Effect controls | E (layer with an effect applied) | E | Shows only properties belonging to effects applied to the selected layer, isolating effect parameters from the standard Transform properties, useful when keyframing an effect's settings rather than the layer's position or scale. |
P, S, R, and T reveal Position, Scale, Rotation, and Opacity respectively — the four properties that make up the vast majority of basic motion graphics animation, chosen as single letters specifically because they're used so constantly that a modifier-key combo would slow down a fast-moving animation session. Pressing one of these with a layer selected replaces whatever was previously shown in the Timeline with just that one property row, ready for immediate keyframing or value adjustment.
These shortcuts are additive when combined with Shift — holding Shift while pressing a second property letter (say, pressing P, then Shift+S) reveals both Position and Scale simultaneously rather than replacing one with the other, letting you build a custom multi-property view without needing the full property list open. This is particularly useful when animating two related properties together, like scale and opacity for a pop-in effect, and wanting to see both sets of keyframes lined up against each other in the timeline.
Double-U (pressing U twice in quick succession) takes a different approach entirely, revealing every animatable Transform property on the layer rather than requiring you to know in advance which ones you want to see — useful for a quick audit of everything currently animated on a complex layer. A single U press instead shows only properties that already have keyframes set, a faster way to review what's actually been animated so far without seeing unanimated properties cluttering the view.
Understanding that these are toggles bound to the currently selected layer (not global filters) matters for multi-layer workflows — selecting a different layer and pressing the same letter reveals that new layer's version of the property, and having multiple layers selected simultaneously reveals the shared property across all of them at once for synchronized keyframing.
A for Anchor Point reveals a property that's conceptually distinct from Position despite both affecting a layer's apparent placement: Anchor Point defines the fixed reference coordinate a layer rotates and scales around, while Position defines where that anchor point sits within the composition. Confusing the two is a common source of unexpected rotation or scaling behavior — a layer that spins around an unexpected corner rather than its visual center almost always traces back to an anchor point that isn't actually centered on the layer's content.
M for Mask Path becomes relevant once a layer has a mask applied, letting you keyframe the mask's actual shape over time — commonly used for animated reveal or wipe transitions where a shape needs to grow, shrink, or move to progressively show or hide content beneath it, distinct from simply animating the masked layer's opacity or position.
E for Effect controls isolates whatever parameters belong to effects applied to the layer, separate from its Transform properties entirely — useful once you're keyframing an effect's own settings (a blur's intensity, a color correction's parameters) rather than the layer's spatial transform properties, letting you build a Timeline view focused specifically on effect animation without Transform properties cluttering the same view.
As with the core Transform property shortcuts, all of these support the same Shift-to-add-rather-than-replace behavior, letting you combine, say, Position and Mask Path in the same Timeline view when animating both a layer's movement and its mask shape together in a coordinated way.