Layer Manager 3 For After Effects

The dichotomy is this. After Effects is a layer based compositor, with absolutely no way to manage layers. Not sure how that is possible. Don’t worry though, as per usual, serious oversights are picked up by the burgeoning 3rd party base for Ae’s ecosystem.

easily show, hide, select and control all layers from a single place in the After Effects UI

In this case, Tony Pinkevich adds an update to his After Effects Layer Manager, with Layer Manager 3. The script looks to have a new look, better functionality, and seems to be a great way to manage many layers in the Ae Timeline.

At first glance, there doesn’t seem to be much to Layer Manager 3. Simply select the layers and make a new layer group in the Layer Manager 3 panel. This lets you easily show, hide, select and control all layers from a single place in the After Effects UI.

Even though its functionality seems simple, the features of Layer Manager 3 are pretty great though. You can easily focus on one layer grouping with the click of a button, instantly removing the clutter from either the Ae timeline, or the viewer.

Layer-Manager-3

The most important feature of Layer Manager 3, is that it is fast. The script can calculate the layers in seconds, and even works well even with compositions that have more than a thousand layers.

Layer Manager 3 will let you easily, remove, label, select, solo, render, lock, or show effects for any grouping of layers in Ae. Layer Manager 3 works with any version of After Effects CC or higher, and projects that use Layer Manager 3 will not ask of the plugin if it is missing, letting you share projects with people who don’t have the script.

Layer Manager is working on any version of After Effects CC and higher, and carries a price of around $16.o0. Visit tniich.com for more information on Layer Manager 3 for After Effects.