FAQ

What is Quartz Composer?

A node-based tool from Apple for building real-time motion graphics on Mac OS X. You wire patches together instead of writing code. Compositions are saved as .qtz files.

Where do I get it?

It shipped as part of Apple's developer tools (Xcode / the Graphics Tools package) on older versions of Mac OS X. It is not included in current toolchains.

Does it still run on a modern Mac?

Not reliably. Apple deprecated it and stopped shipping it, so opening old compositions usually means keeping an older Mac OS X machine or a virtual machine around.

What can I use instead?

VDMX and Vuo are the usual choices for live visuals, and TouchDesigner for heavier work. Origami, used for interface prototyping, began as a set of Quartz Composer patches.