Use the Sliced Scale filter in Motion

You can use the Sliced Scale filter to scale and tile an image or shape while protecting portions of the image from distortion. The filter is especially useful for creating Final Cut Pro templates that dynamically scale lower-third titles, arrows, rectangles, and other images with linked objects (using the Link parameter behavior). For example, you can scale a speech bubble to accommodate changes in text without affecting the shape of the bubble’s corners or tail, or scale a lower third without distorting its pattern.

Canvas showing effect of Sliced Scale filter

Scale a portion of an image without distorting its shape or pattern

In the Layers list in Motion, select the image or shape you want to scale, click Filters in the toolbar, then choose Distortion > Sliced Scale.
To define the center slice (which will be resized in step 3), select the Edit Slices checkbox, then do either of the following:
- Define the slice in the canvas: To specify the size or aspect ratio of the center slice, drag a corner handle or dashed line. To reposition the center slice within the image, drag inside the slice.
  The center slice represents the stretchable area of the image that will be scaled.
  Tip: Shift-drag a handle to proportionally adjust the slice, Option-drag a handle to adjust the slice around its center, or Option-Shift-drag a handle to adjust the slice proportionally around its center.
- Define the slice in the Filters Inspector: To specify the size or aspect ratio of the center slice, drag the Slice Right Top or Slice Left Bottom value sliders.
To resize the center slice and the image proportionally, deselect the Edit Slices checkbox in the Filters Inspector, then do either of the following:
- Resize in the canvas: Drag a scale handle.
  When you scale the center slice, the upper and lower slices scale horizontally, the left and right slices scale vertically, and the corner slices move to accommodate the scale change, preserving the intrinsic shape of the image.
- Resize in the Filters Inspector: Drag the Scale slider. Click the disclosure triangle to reveal X and Y sliders to more precisely scale the slice.
Optional: If the image contains a pattern that should be repeated instead of stretched, do either of the following:
- Tile an image with a small pattern or texture, such as a halftone dot pattern: Click the Scale Method pop-up menu, then choose Partial Tiles.
- Tile an image with a large pattern or texture, such as an ornate picture frame: Click the Scale Method pop-up menu, then choose Whole Tiles.

Example: Dynamically scale a portion of a shape or image without distorting its shape or pattern

This advanced example uses the Sliced Scale filter, the Align To behavior, and the Link parameter behavior to create a shape that dynamically resizes based on text positioned within the shape. You use the Align To behavior to align the shape with the text, the Sliced Scale filter to slice the shape into nine slices, and the Link behavior to link the scale of the shape to the size of the text. Once linked, the shape resizes with any changes in the text—without changing its intrinsic shape.

This example assumes you’re working in a Final Cut title template, effect template, or generator template project that contains a shape or image (such as a speech bubble shape, a rectangle shape, or lower-third image) and a text object that’s positioned above the shape or image in the Layers list.

Once the template is applied to your Final Cut Pro project, the shape (or image) dynamically scales as you add, remove, or resize text in Final Cut Pro.

In the Layers list in Motion, select the shape, click Filters in the toolbar, then choose Distortion > Sliced Scale.
In the Filters Inspector, select the Edit Slices checkbox.
In the canvas, drag the corner handles to define the portion of the shape that dynamically scales when you make any changes to the text.
In this example, the center slice doesn’t overlap the rounded corners or tail of the speech bubble. When the slice is scaled, the shape of the speech bubble is preserved.
In the Filters Inspector, deselect the Edit Slices checkbox, move the pointer over the right side of the Scale parameter row, then click the down arrow and choose Add Parameter > Link.
The Link behavior lets you link the size of the shape to the size of the text object.
Drag the text object from the Layers list to the Source Object well in the Behaviors Inspector.
In the Behaviors Inspector, click the Compatible Parameters pop-up menu, then choose Object Attributes > Size > All.
The shape may temporarily appear distorted, but will be corrected in step 10.
In the Layers list in Motion, select the shape object, click Behaviors in the toolbar, then choose Basic Motion > Align To from the pop-up menu.
Drag the text object from the Layers list to the Object well in the Behaviors Inspector.
In the Behaviors Inspector, click the Align pop-up menu and choose an option, then click the To pop-up menu and choose an option to specify how the text aligns with the shape.
In the Layers list, select the Sliced Scale filter, click the Expand disclosure triangle in the Filters Inspector, then adjust the Left, Right, Top, and Bottom parameters until the text looks correctly positioned in the shape.
In the Layers list, select the text object, then modify the text in the canvas (or in the Text field at the bottom of the Format pane of the Text Inspector).
As you change the text, the shape dynamically scales with the text without distorting its original form.
Note: If the shape contains a pattern that becomes stretched when the slice is scaled, you can choose Partial Tiles or Whole Tiles in the Scale Method pop-up menu to tile the pattern. Unless the scale is large enough to trigger an additional tile, choosing Whole Tiles has no effect on the pattern.
In the Filters Inspector, choose which parameter controls are available in the title, effect, or generator template when it’s applied to a clip in Final Cut Pro, then save the project.
See Create an effect template in Motion, Create a title template in Motion, or Create a generator template in Motion.

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Motion User Guide

Use the Sliced Scale filter in Motion

Scale a portion of an image without distorting its shape or pattern

Example: Dynamically scale a portion of a shape or image without distorting its shape or pattern