Time
Everything about the playhead
Move layers so they start or end at the playhead, trim them to it, split, freeze a frame, trim or set the work area.
inouttrim intrim outsplitfreezetrim waset wa
Free with AppleFX
Cortex.
Every timeline chore. One click.
A panel for After Effects that does the boring part for you: move and trim layers to the playhead, set the anchor point, add a smart null, pre-compose, color labels, rename in batches. 50+ one-click actions, zero dialogs.
Not sold separately
Cortex ships free with every AppleFX license. Get AppleFX and Cortex comes with it.
- After Effects 2022+
- Mac and Windows
- Free updates
Try it right here
Click a tile. Watch it work.
This is the real Cortex panel, running in your browser. Open the sections, press the tiles, switch to edit mode. In After Effects each of them does its job the moment you click.
Live preview. In After Effects the tiles act on your comp.
- Green flash: doneEvery tile confirms the action with a quick lime flash.
- Red flash: it tells you whyNo layer selected or no comp open? The status line says so in plain words.
- Make it yoursThe pencil turns on edit mode: drag tiles, hide the ones you never use, add your own.
- Fits any dockThree densities and collapsible sections, from a tiny side dock to a wide panel.
What is inside
Five sections. Zero dialogs.
Transform
Anchor, precomp, fit
A 3 x 3 anchor grid (Alt or Option + click moves the layer to that spot of the comp), pre-compose, center, fit and fill.
precompcenter
fitfill
Layers
New layers, right where you need them
Null, adjustment, solid, background, text, shape, camera, light. Each lands right above your selection.
nulladjustsolidbgtextshapecameralight
Labels
Color the timeline
All 16 label colors and no label, one click each, on every selected layer.
Tools
The heavy lifting
Batch rename, stretch, match, replace, save a frame, clean the project, sequence and reverse layers.
renamestretchmatchreplacesave framecleansequencereverse
Smart nullSelect layers, press null: it lands right above them and is already their parent.
Alt-click the anchor gridA click sets the anchor point. Alt or Option + click moves the whole layer to that spot of the comp.
Rename in batchesName the whole selection at once: a prefix, a counter and a suffix. Top to bottom it reads
shot_01, shot_02, shot_03.
New layers land where you lookAdjustment, solid, text or camera appear right above the selected layer, not at the top of a long stack.
It tells you what happenedA green flash when the job is done. A red one with a plain reason when it is not: no comp open, nothing selected.
Your panel, your layoutEdit mode lets you reorder and hide tiles. Three densities and collapsible sections fit any dock.
Only with AppleFX.
Cortex is not for sale on its own. Get AppleFX and Cortex comes in the same order, free, with every future update.
AppleFX$89
Cortex$39FREE
You pay$89
Get AppleFX + CortexCortex is added to your AppleFX order automatically.
- After Effects 2022 or newer
- Mac and Windows
- Instant download
- Lifetime updates