How to animate a cursor hover effect in After Effects

Build a cursor hover demo where three UI cards react as the pointer approaches.

• You will: Animate a visible cursor and pair an effector with three cards.

• Prerequisites: macOS or Windows, MotionUI, After Effects, a composition containing three separate card layers

How do you prepare the cards and cursor?

Step 1: Open MotionUI and prepare your composition

Start in the MotionUI app and access plugin setup from there. MotionUI is a desktop app for macOS and Windows by HIVER connecting Figma, After Effects, Claude Code and Codex. This tutorial uses its After Effects tools; MotionUI is available for macOS and Windows.

Open an After Effects composition containing three cards on separate layers. If your design starts in Figma, direct Figma to After Effects import is available through MotionUI. For this exercise, arrange the cards in a row with enough space to see each card's reaction independently.

Expected result: You can select each card separately and have space around the row for the cursor to enter and leave.

Step 2: Add the visible cursor

Open Cursor under More to add a ready-made cursor graphic as an editable shape layer. Place it beside the first card, keeping it visible against the interface background.

The cursor graphic shows viewers where to look. It does not provide proximity behavior on its own. Keep it separate from the effector you will create next. See the cursor and composition tools instructions for the documented cursor workflow.

Expected result: Your composition contains three card layers and a visible cursor shape layer.

How do you pair an effector with the cards?

Step 3: Create the proximity effector

In Proximity, choose an effector type and set Radius and Strength. Click New Effector to add it to the composition. Position the effector at the cursor tip so the response originates where viewers expect contact.

Choose an effect preset, or enable the effects and strengths you want. For this example, use a small scale reaction. Proximity can also drive movement, rotation, fade or blur, but one reaction makes the initial setup easier to inspect.

Expected result: An effector is present with an affected area and a chosen response. The Proximity help page documents these controls.

Step 4: Select the effector and target layers

Select the effector and all three card layers, then click Apply. Leave the visible cursor out of the target selection: in this demo, the cards should react while the pointer remains visually consistent.

The direction of influence is from the effector to the paired cards. Moving the effector near the left card makes that card eligible to react within the affected area. Moving it toward the right card shifts that influence along the row. Animating the cursor graphic alone does not move the effector.

Keep the roles separate: The cursor is the visible pointer, the effector supplies proximity influence, and the paired cards receive the reaction.

Expected result: Moving the effector near a paired card produces the selected response.

How do you animate and test the full cursor path?

Step 5: Animate the cursor and effector together

Animate the cursor's position from outside the row toward the left card, across the middle card, then toward the right card and away. Add a pause near each card so you can inspect the response.

Animate the effector position along the same route and at the same times, keeping it aligned with the cursor tip. Scrub between position keyframes to check alignment during travel, not only at the pauses.

Expected result: The visible pointer leads the demonstration while the effector drives reactions along its path.

Step 6: Tune the affected area and reaction

Preview the entire route at your intended output size. Adjust Radius when you need to change which nearby cards fall within the affected area. Adjust Strength and the selected effects when you need to change how the cards react.

For a focused hover demonstration, reduce the affected area if neighboring cards respond too early. For a broader response, expand it so nearby cards can participate. Start with a small effect and increase it until the reaction reads clearly.

Check the approach, pauses, gaps between cards and final exit. A useful final check is whether the response follows the pointer convincingly throughout the full route.

Expected result: Each card reacts as intended, with transitions that remain readable between stops.

What should you check when troubleshooting?

• Cards do not react: Select the effector and intended card layers, click Apply, and move the effector close enough to test the affected area.

• The reaction trails the cursor: Check cursor-tip and effector alignment throughout the animation. Match their timing and position paths.

• Neighboring cards react too soon: Reduce Radius and preview the gaps between cards again.

• The reaction is too strong: Reduce Strength or adjust the selected effects. Use Remove Selected or Remove All in the proximity controls when you need to remove an effect.

Need to set up the app first? Follow the MotionUI setup guide for Mac and Windows.