After Effects MCP Server
Server Configuration
Describes the environment variables required to run the server.
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
No arguments | |||
Instructions
Guidance the server publishes about itself, which clients place ahead of the tool catalog so the model reads it before choosing anything.
This server publishes no instructions, or was last inspected before Glama recorded them.
Capabilities
Features and capabilities supported by this server
Protocol revision2025-11-25
| Capability | Details |
|---|---|
| tools | {
"listChanged": true
} |
| prompts | {
"listChanged": true
} |
| resources | {
"listChanged": true
} |
Tools
Functions exposed to the LLM to take actions
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| run-scriptA | Run a read-only script in After Effects |
| get-resultsB | Get results from the last script executed in After Effects |
| get-helpA | Get help on using the After Effects MCP integration |
| create-compositionA | Create a new composition in After Effects with specified parameters |
| setLayerKeyframeB | Set a keyframe for a specific layer property at a given time. |
| setLayerExpressionB | Set or remove an expression for a specific layer property. |
| test-animationD | Test animation functionality in After Effects |
| apply-effectC | Apply an effect to a layer in After Effects |
| apply-effect-templateB | Apply a predefined effect template to a layer in After Effects |
| mcp_aftereffects_applyEffectC | Apply an effect to a layer in After Effects |
| mcp_aftereffects_applyEffectTemplateC | Apply a predefined effect template to a layer in After Effects |
| mcp_aftereffects_get_effects_helpB | Get help on using After Effects effects |
| run-bridge-testA | Run the bridge test effects script to verify communication and apply test effects |
Prompts
Interactive templates invoked by user choice
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| list-compositions | List compositions in the current After Effects project |
| analyze-composition | |
| create-composition | Create a new composition with specified settings |
Resources
Contextual data attached and managed by the client
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| compositions |
TDQS
Scored across 13 tools
Several tools have overlapping purposes and names, e.g., apply-effect and mcp_aftereffects_applyEffect have identical descriptions, causing ambiguity. The presence of both generic help (get-help) and specific help (mcp_aftereffects_get_effects_help) further blurs distinctions.
Naming conventions are mixed: some tools use snake_case with hyphens (e.g., apply-effect), others use camelCase (setLayerExpression), and some have a redundant mcp_aftereffects_ prefix. This lack of a consistent pattern makes the tool set harder to navigate.
With 13 tools, the count is reasonable for an After Effects MCP server. However, the presence of duplicate tools (e.g., apply-effect and mcp_aftereffects_applyEffect) inflates the count unnecessarily, suggesting some redundancy.
The tool set covers core After Effects workflows: creating compositions, applying effects, setting keyframes and expressions, running scripts. Minor gaps exist (e.g., no import/export or deletion tools), but overall the surface is fairly complete for typical automation tasks.