This tutorial can be helpful if you want to create a really fast Rim Light in 2D. Just need the matte of the character/object you want and move the rotate slider.
First of all I would like to thank Sabine Janetzka for introducing me to this technique with the Matrices.
You can download the Gizmo for Nuke here:
Download from Nukepedia
If you want to go deeper with Matrices, have a look here:
Read More
Overview
In Nuke bring a Matrix Node from here: Filter → Matrix... and select the dimension of the matrix. In this case 3x3.


When you will find this Textfield, you can copy-paste the values directly in another Matrix 3x3 node in Nuke.
Easy Solutions
| -1 | 0 | 0 |
| 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 0 | 0 | -1 |
| 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 0 | 0 | 0 |
| -1 | 0 | 0 |
| 0 | 0 | -1 |
| 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1 | 0 | 0 |
Matrices
- Original Image
This is our original image: a simple circle 2D. You can get it with the Radial Node in Nuke.

This GIF is showing you the result of this Gizmo: starting from a sphere we will get the Rim Light!

- RIM LIGHT 01
| -1 | 0 | 1 |
| -1 | 0 | 1 |
| -1 | 0 | 1 |
- RIM LIGHT 02
| -1 | -1 | 1 |
| -1 | 0 | 1 |
| -1 | 1 | 1 |
- RIM LIGHT 03
| -1 | -1 | 0 |
| -1 | 0 | 1 |
| 0 | 1 | 1 |
- RIM LIGHT 04
| -1 | -1 | -1 |
| -1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1 | 1 | 1 |
- RIM LIGHT 05
| -1 | -1 | -1 |
| 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1 | 1 | 1 |
- RIM LIGHT 06
| -1 | -1 | -1 |
| 1 | 0 | -1 |
| 1 | 1 | 1 |
- RIM LIGHT 07
| 0 | -1 | -1 |
| 1 | 0 | -1 |
| 1 | 1 | 0 |
- RIM LIGHT 08
| 1 | -1 | -1 |
| 1 | 0 | -1 |
| 1 | 1 | -1 |
- RIM LIGHT 09
| 1 | 0 | -1 |
| 1 | 0 | -1 |
| 1 | 0 | -1 |
- RIM LIGHT 10
| 1 | 1 | -1 |
| 1 | 0 | -1 |
| 1 | -1 | -1 |
- RIM LIGHT 11
| 1 | 1 | -1 |
| 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1 | -1 | -1 |
- RIM LIGHT 12
| 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1 | 0 | -1 |
| 0 | -1 | -1 |
- RIM LIGHT 13
| 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 1 | 0 | -1 |
| -1 | -1 | -1 |
- RIM LIGHT 14
| 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 0 | 0 | 0 |
| -1 | -1 | -1 |
- RIM LIGHT 15
| 1 | 1 | 1 |
| -1 | 0 | 1 |
| -1 | -1 | -1 |
- RIM LIGHT 16
| 0 | 1 | 1 |
| -1 | 0 | 1 |
| -1 | -1 | 0 |
