How to Use Brush, Polygon, and Text Masks in PowerDirector
Paint a mask by hand, trace one node by node, or cut the shot into the shape of a word.
Updated Aug. 29, 2026 · 5 min read
In a hurry? Use the custom masks quick guide instead.
PowerDirector's ready-made masks cover the common cases: a line to split the frame, a circle, a heart. When the area you want does not match any of them, the Custom tab lets you paint it, trace it, or type it. If a preset would do, start with the shape and line masks instead, because they take seconds and these take minutes.
- Select the clip, click Edit, open the Mask tab, then click Advanced at the lower right.
- Switch to the Custom tab and pick Brush, Polygon or Text.
- Paint, click out nodes, or type, then confirm with OK.
Custom Masks in PowerDirector
Prefer to watch? Here is the whole thing in a little over three minutes.
Find the Custom Tab
Select the clip, click Edit, then open the Mask tab. Click Advanced at the lower right to open Advanced Mask Editing, and switch from Preset to Custom. That gives you four tools: Brush, Polygon, Text and Image.
Brush: Paint the Area
The first two entries under Manual Tools add to the mask and remove from it. Paint over what you want kept, switch to the eraser for anything you took too much of.
Brush Size underneath sets how wide the stroke is. Large for the body of a shape, small for the edges, which is the same way you would work in any paint tool.
The other two tools are the smart brush, which selects or removes a whole region from one stroke instead of making you cover it. On anything with a clear outline it is far quicker than painting.
On a still image there is one more: the Auto object selection tool, which detects objects on its own and leaves you to refine the result with the manual tools underneath.
Missing that tool? Check what the clip is. The Auto object selection tool is for images only and does not appear when you are editing video. If it is absent, the clip is the reason, not the setup.
Polygon: Trace It Exactly
When the edge has to be precise, use Polygon. Click around the area to drop nodes, and close the shape by joining the last node back to the first.
Corners do not have to stay sharp. Click a node and two small circles appear either side of it; drag those to curve the edge through that point.
Too few nodes to follow the shape? Click the mask edge where you need another and one appears there.
The slider on the left feathers the mask edge, and the checkbox below it inverts the mask. Both work the same way they do on the preset masks.
One clip can carry several polygon masks. Click + to add another, and each one gets its own entry with its own feather and invert settings.
Text: Cut the Shot Into a Word
Text uses letters as the visible area, so the footage plays inside the words. Choose the tool, then click on the preview to type.
The panel on the left sets font, size, spacing and position. To put a second block of text on the same clip, click Insert title at the top right.
The Result
Removing a text mask has one step people miss. Click its edge: the outline changes from a dashed line to a solid one, which means it is selected. Only then does Delete remove it.
Haven't got PowerDirector yet? When a ready-made shape does not fit the area you want, the Custom tab is where you draw it yourself.
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