dcc-mcp-aftereffects

Part of the DCC-MCP host matrix

dcc-mcp-aftereffects — Adobe After Effects adapter with typed project, layer, render queue, and official DOM workflows.

It is one of 47 host adapters in the DCC-MCP catalog. Every adapter speaks the same MCP protocol and builds on the same core runtime contract; each one exposes the tools its own host needs on top of that.

• All host adapters and install metadata
• Host matrix on the core README
• Showcase

This block is generated from the catalog entry in dcc-mcp-catalog.yml. Re-run the generator after changing the catalog.

Agent workflow

AI agents should use the shared gateway through dcc-mcp-cli; IDE users may continue to use the MCP endpoint. Prefer typed skills and tools over raw scripts.

Install or update the CLI

dcc-mcp-cli is the preferred control path for every shell-capable agent. If it is missing, ask the user before installing the latest official release:

# Linux/macOS
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/dcc-mcp/dcc-mcp-core/main/scripts/install-cli.sh | sh

# Windows PowerShell
powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -c "irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/dcc-mcp/dcc-mcp-core/main/scripts/install-cli.ps1 | iex"

Keep an official build current through the release manifest:

dcc-mcp-cli update check
dcc-mcp-cli update apply

update apply downloads and stages the latest CLI for the next launch. It does not update a running dcc-mcp-server; update that server in its own environment.

dcc-mcp-cli dcc-types
dcc-mcp-cli list
dcc-mcp-cli search --query "<task>" --dcc-type aftereffects
dcc-mcp-cli describe <tool-slug>
dcc-mcp-cli call <tool-slug> --json '{"key":"value"}'

dcc-types reports release-catalog support; list reports live sessions. If a tool belongs to an inactive progressive skill, call dcc-mcp-cli load-skill <skill-name> --dcc-type aftereffects before retrying. For post-task improvement, attach a stable session id with --meta-json, query dcc-mcp-cli stats --range 24h --session-id <task-id>, then pass the bounded evidence to the review_skill_improvement prompt from dcc-mcp-skills-creator.

MCP adapter for Adobe After Effects, built on the shared adobepy broker, CEP bridge, and typed facade.

pip install dcc-mcp-aftereffects

Use the standard adapter-owned lifecycle; it stages the official adobepy CEP bridge without putting ADOBEPY_TOKEN in process arguments:

dcc-mcp-aftereffects install --json --dry-run --dcc-path "<host>" --python "<python>"
dcc-mcp-aftereffects install --json --yes --dcc-path "<host>" --python "<python>"
dcc-mcp-aftereffects verify --json --dcc-path "<host>" --python "<python>"

For an Internal deployment with an approved prebuilt CEP bridge, the shared CLI can link the bridge directly into the Adobe CEP extension root:

dcc-mcp-cli install --dcc-type aftereffects `
  --plugin-source F:\studio\artifacts\aftereffects-cep-bridge `
  --adobe-debug-root "$env:APPDATA\Adobe\CEP\extensions" `
  --execute

The source directory must contain the bridge manifest and is selected by an approved catalog or Internal descriptor. This path does not copy files or require a Developer Tool, but it is only valid for a bridge that has already been built and approved. The adapter-owned installer remains canonical for adobepy provisioning, generated CEP bridges, receipts, upgrades, and uninstall. Restart After Effects if it has already cached the extension, then use dcc-mcp-cli wait-ready --dcc-type aftereffects to verify the live bridge.

See install.md for supported Windows/macOS paths, the Linux boundary, adobepy CLI provisioning, receipt-driven upgrade/uninstall, stable exit codes, and troubleshooting. Each adapter instance uses an OS-assigned port and registers it for CLI discovery. Connect through the stable gateway at http://127.0.0.1:9765/mcp; set DCC_MCP_AFTEREFFECTS_PORT only when a fixed direct endpoint is required.

Set ADOBEPY_TOKEN to the same non-default token used when installing the bridge.

The adapter reports ready only after the target After Effects bridge advertises the complete typed/official-DOM contract, a real host version RPC succeeds, and trusted runtime identity is available. adobepy 0.12.0 still rejects After Effects identity until CEP launch-receipt/bootstrap support exists, so readiness remains fail-closed. The dependency update does not claim live-host support. A broker process is stopped only when it was started by this adapter.

Skill groups

• aftereffects-project: inspect/open/save projects, list and import project items, create compositions, and run the motion-intro workflow.
• aftereffects-layers: inspect compositions, layers, effects, masks, and text; create text/solid/footage layers; edit text, transforms, keyframes, and order.
• aftereffects-render: inspect and control the render queue, queue compositions, and configure render settings and output modules.
• aftereffects-advanced: structured access to the complete official object model. Raw ExtendScript is an explicit destructive fallback, not the primary API.

Load a group before first use when progressive loading is enabled:

dcc-mcp-cli load-skill aftereffects-layers --dcc-type aftereffects
dcc-mcp-cli search --query "create text layer" --dcc-type aftereffects