# Animated Masks? (with feathered edges)

**URL:** <https://forum.kirupa.com/t/animated-masks-with-feathered-edges/106359>\
**Category:** Uncategorized\
**Created:** [April 5, 2004, 1:59am UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/animated-masks-with-feathered-edges/106359 "2004-04-05T01:59:26Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![The\_Red\_Fall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dec6dc/32.png) [@The\_Red\_Fall](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/The_Red_Fall)\
**Post date:** [April 5, 2004, 1:59am UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/animated-masks-with-feathered-edges/106359/1 "2004-04-05T01:59:26Z")

</div>

I’m wondering if anyone can help me. I’m setting up an interface, and some content boxes are slowly revealed by a mask once the animation runs. I decided I didn’t want just straight lines, so went to edit the Movie Clip with mask applied. I basically have a rectangle which expands and reveals the entire content area. Only, when I edited the shape (which is grouped in the mc’s timeline) to add a stroke and the hand-drawn stroke style, but when I preview it, the edge of the mask is as straight as ever. Is there a good way to create a mask with uneven edges? Also, on the subject of feathered masks, how are they done? Is it just a matter of a mask and a layer over that with a gradient on it (which gives the illusion of being part of the mask)?

EDIT: Here’s a quote which confirmed my suspicions:

> Flash ignores bitmaps, gradients, transparency, colors, and line styles in a mask layer. Any filled area is completely transparent in the mask; any nonfilled area is opaque.

Hope someone can help :beam:,

~[COLOR=DarkRed] **The Red Fall** [/COLOR]~