Switching After Effects to English – simple trick for users

Customizing software to individual needs is crucial to increase productivity. If you want to access After Effects tutorials, templates, or expressions in English, it may be helpful to change the language of the User Interface. This article shows you how to efficiently switch After Effects to English, so you can easily work with international content.

Main insights

Switching After Effects to English is simple and does not require admin rights. You just need to create a specific file. This allows you to use many English expressions and templates without running into issues due to language differences.

Step-by-step guide to switch After Effects to English

First, you need to find the right location on your computer to save the required file. On Windows, this is usually in the "Documents" folder, while on a Mac it can also be found in your Documents.

Now open the editor (Notepad on Windows) to create the file. You don't need any special text; the file can remain empty.

Now comes the crucial step: Save the file under a specific name in the correct directory. Make sure everything is written in lowercase.

The filename should look exactly like this: AE_force_english.txt. It is important that you spell "english" correctly, so in English writing.

Once you have saved the file, you can start After Effects. To do this, close all open windows and restart the software.

In the startup screen, you will now see that After Effects has started in English. Note that all options, effects, and menus are now in English.

This means you can now easily access templates and expressions that have been created for the English version of After Effects without running into complications.

If you no longer need this setting, you can easily rename the file instead of deleting it. Just put an exclamation mark before the filename.

This way, it is easier for you to remember how the file is always correctly named when you decide to switch After Effects back to the German language.

After renaming and restarting After Effects, the software should be back to German.

This method is straightforward and very effective for optimizing your workflow in After Effects.

Summary – Switching After Effects to English made easy

Switching After Effects to English can be achieved with a simple file. You just have to use the correct name and save the file in the appropriate directory. This opens up numerous possibilities for you to work with international resources and utilize the software effectively.