I have searched and read all kinds of posts on creating a matte from an AE project. In my case it's one of the aAE projects from Digital Juice's Motion Designer Toolkit. I grabbed their project, pulled it into AE and changed it to the length I needed and exported. Then I have done exactly what is listed on this form and in the avid manual:

Background on V1
Foreground on V2
Black image with alpha on V3 then nest the Matte Key effect on top.

The images come through, but the video underneath has a washed out look to it. The alpha looks good until I apply the key effect. It's almost as if the key effect pust down an extra white background over everything.

I have tried numerous import settings within avid and export setting withing AE, all with essentially the same results.

I have also run a test by trying to make a matte from a simple avid-created Title (The world "APLHA")  and from a simple Photoshop file (a big, black circle) the matte comes through where it is supposed to, but my video looks like crap.

I have gone through all the settings within the effect editor with no satisfactory results. What's up? it has to be something simple, right?

Anyone?

NateW:

The images come through, but the video underneath has a washed out look to it. The alpha looks good until I apply the key effect. It's almost as if the key effect pust down an extra white background over everything.

It might help if your described the effect you're trying to achieve.   Matte Key effects are generally unecessary if you're using AE to create the content.  

The only reason for using AE is that it came to me as an AE file (Digital Juice) that was only a few frames long. I needed it to be 8 seconds long. The AE output is set to render pre-multiplied, so I tried to output to straight alpha. No change in the result.

As I mentioned I am getting the same results from files created in PhotoShop and Avid's title tool. Is there some setting inside Avid that i don't know about as to how it will deal with matte key I have zero problems with alpha channels in any other effect or import.

Apologies if I'm pointing out the obvious here:

Are you using the matte key effect with a hi con clip or are you trying to use the effect on a clip that already has an alpha ? 

NateW:

Background on V1
Foreground on V2
Black image with alpha on V3 then nest the Matte Key effect on top.

The images come through, but the video underneath has a washed out look to it. The alpha looks good until I apply the key effect.

Create a simple title with white text.  Lay it on V3.  Park on the title and hit the remove effect button.  This will remove the alpha and leave the graphic fill for the effect.  Now that you have a high con clip to work with apply the matte key, it should work as advertised.

Alternatively, you can step into a clip that already has an alpha and edit your foreground footage into the fill layer.  This is just another way to skin the cat.

You might want to check that the Alpha has the correct black and white levels using that handy Mac "DigitalColor Meter" utility or the CC sample dropper tools- 16 and 235 in PAL and HD.

Never apologive for pointing out the obvious. I'm one of the self-taught users that all too often doesn't know what is "obvious" to everyone elese. I put a white background onto the AE file and exported it without alha--just like you said and the effect works exactly as I want now.

Not sure why I assumed it needed an alpha to function correctly. THANKS!

Nate,

If I am understanding you correctly, you are trying to use a Digital Juice clip as an alpha channel for a separate fill layer.  Is that correct?  If so, there is another way to do this if you want.

You can render out the file in AE with a straight alpha, and import with the alpha not inverted into MC.  Drop that over your background layer on V2.  Then, step into V2 and replace the foreground layer with the video fill you want.  Step out again, and it should be all set.

The advantage to this method is that if you want to move the key around, you can do so with it already being a single layer.

HTH

Kevin Klimek:

You can render out the file in AE with a straight alpha, and import with the alpha not inverted into MC.  Drop that over your background layer on V2.  Then, step into V2 and replace the foreground layer with the video fill you want.  Step out again, and it should be all set.

Kevin--You are correct! That's pretty slick too. THANKS!