US-based Adobe Systems Incorporated today announced the India launch of Adobe After Effects 5.0, a new version of the company's motion graphics and visual effects software.

Adobe After Effects 5.0 offers more than 100 new features and productivity enhancements that enable creative professionals to generate compelling content for film, video, multimedia and the Web, according to a company release.

Commenting on the launch of After Effects 5.0, Adobe Systems India Pvt Ltd business development manager Sandeep Mehrotra said: "India represents an escalating demand among professionals for a comprehensive video editing software for special effects in movies, television channels and the Internet."

"The new version of After Effects is a complete tool set for 2-D and 3-D compositing, animation, special effects for film, video, multimedia, and the Web and integrates well with Photoshop, Premiere and Illustrator. We look forward to the success of After Effects 5.0 in India."

Adobe After Effects 5.0 offers a superior implementation of tools that professionals demand in a leading compositing software package. The new version includes a true 3D compositing environment. In addition, new vector paint tools and 16-bit color support expand the Production Bundle version.

The combination of new features along with numerous productivity enhancements will help visual effects artists and motion graphics designers explore their creative ideas and execute them with precise control, the release states.

New Features in Adobe After Effects 5.0 include a) Parenting, which allows users to animate layers hierarchically; b) Expressions, which create live relationships between layer properties; c) Masking enhancements to draw masks in the Comp window, d) Expand masks and add Motion Blur to masks; d) Macromedia® Flash? (SWF) output which allow users to create vector animations for Web sites.

Adobe After Effects 5.0 software is available in two versions. The standard version provides the core 2D and 3D compositing and effects tools that motion graphics professionals and Web designers need. The production bundle version is designed for visual effects artists and motion graphics designers who need all of the tools in the standard version, plus additional keying, motion control and distortion tools, audio effects, 3D channel effects, 16-bit per channel color, vector paint tools, and support for network rendering. The standard version has a market price of Rs 33,500 and the production bundle is available at RS 77,500.