Book excerpt: Boris plug-in applications, including Graffiti, FX, and Red, permit video editors to add titling, effects, compositing, and 3D capabilities to their nonlinear editing (NLE) systems. Documentation and training materials have been notoriously lacking for these applications. Instant Boris Effects is a complete guide for novice and intermediate users of Boris Graffiti, FX, and Red applications. Beginning with an orientation to the user interface, readers learn how masks, splines, containers, and filters work. They'll learn how to apply Boris effects through their NLE, and the benefits of using them as stand-alone applications. The second section provides detailed, step-by-step instructions on building example effects that readers can incorporate into their own work - including rotoscoping effects, animating still images, text on a path, 3D extruded objects with media mapping, and clean chroma-key effects.