📺 Bad TV Effect in After Effects – Step-by-Step Tutorial

Want to recreate that old-school glitchy television vibe in your videos? This Bad TV Effect tutorial will guide you step-by-step using Adobe After Effects, with or without presets. Whether you're going for a retro VHS style or a distorted broadcast look — this effect nails it.

🧰 What You’ll Need:

✅ Adobe After Effects (any version)
✅ A video or text layer to apply the effect to
✅ (Optional) Noise texture or VHS overlays for extra realism

🛠️ Steps to Create the Bad TV Effect:

🔹 1. Add Your Footage or Text Layer

Import your video or text into the composition.
Right-click on the layer → Pre-compose (choose “Move all attributes into the new composition”).

🔹 2. Apply the Built-In “Bad TV” Preset (If Available)

Go to: Effects & Presets
Search: Bad TV (under Animation Presets → Image - Creative)
🎉 If found, drag it onto your layer and you’re done!

🚫 If not available, proceed with the manual method below:

🔹 3. Add "Wave Warp" Effect

Go to: Effect > Distort > Wave Warp
Adjust settings:
- Wave Type: Square
- Wave Height: 10–30
- Wave Width: 600–1000
- Direction: 90°
- Wave Speed: 1.5

✅ This creates classic horizontal scan lines like on old CRT TVs.

🔹 4. Add "Turbulent Displace"

Go to: Effect > Distort > Turbulent Displace
Adjust:
- Amount: 30–50
- Size: 20–50
🔄 Animate Evolution for organic movement (set keyframes or use expressions like time*50).

🔹 5. Add "Noise" or "Grain"

Go to: Effect > Noise & Grain > Noise
Settings:
- Amount of Noise: 5–10%
- ✅ Enable Color Noise for RGB-style color distortion

🔹 6. Add "Color Balance (RGB Split)"

Go to: Effect > Color Correction > Color Balance (RGB)
Slightly offset Red, Green, Blue values:
- Example: Red Offset = +2px, Green = -2px, Blue = 0px
🔀 Optional: Use Directional Blur on individual color channels for added glitch

🔹 7. Add Camera Shake (Optional)

Alt + Click on Position stopwatch
Enter this expression:

wiggle(3,10)

🌀 Adds jittery camera shake, mimicking signal interference.

🔹 8. Add "Venetian Blinds" (Scanlines)

Go to: Effect > Transition > Venetian Blinds
Set:
- Transition Completion: 50%
- Direction: 0°
- Width: 5–10

📡 This simulates retro TV scanline flickering.

📼 Bonus Tips: Enhance the Glitch

Add a VHS Overlay or noise texture
Set Blend Mode: Screen or Add
Animate Opacity (flicker between 100%–90% randomly)
Add slight Fast Blur or Unsharp Mask to soften clarity

✅ Final Output

Once you’re satisfied with the effect:

🧾 Export with Render Queue

File > Export > Add to Render Queue
Set Format: QuickTime (.mov)
Enable: RGB + Alpha (for transparent BG use)
Click Render 🚀

🎉 Done! You’ve Just Created a Bad TV Glitch Effect!

This effect is perfect for:

🎬 Retro intros
👻 Horror-style edits
📼 Nostalgic music videos
🧪 Sci-fi transmission scenes

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Bad TV Effect in After Effects – Step-by-Step Tutorial