After Effects MCP Server for Claude Desktop: Setup & Config

What you can do with After Effects in Claude Desktop

Bring assistant commands into an existing After Effects session for composition and animation edits.

• Set up a composition with the requested image dimensions and animation timing.
• Revise multiple layers together through a batch property update.
• Animate a property with keyframes or connect its behavior to an expression.

Before you start: After Effects in Claude Desktop

• Adobe After Effects version 2022 or above
• Node.js version 14 or above
• npm or yarn for dependencies and build steps
• Installed bridge scripts and an open MCP Bridge Auto panel

The placeholder entry-point path comes from the README and must be replaced with your built checkout's location. Prepare the checkout by installing dependencies with npm install, compiling with npm run build, then copying the bridge through npm run install-bridge. The README also supplies yarn variants. In After Effects, open mcp-bridge-auto.jsx from Window and enable the panel's Auto-run commands option.

After Effects Claude Desktop configuration

1. Choose Claude Desktop configuration scope

   For After Effects MCP Server, open macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json. Merge under mcpServers via Settings → Developer → Edit Config when available.

2. Add After Effects MCP Server to Claude Desktop

   Use the after-effects-mcp entry below in mcpServers. Keep After Effects MCP Server's documented stdio connection fields and your other Claude Desktop entries.

3. Check After Effects MCP Server in Claude Desktop

   After Effects MCP Server: Fully quit and reopen Claude Desktop; check developer diagnostics.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "after-effects-mcp": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": [
        "PATH/TO/after-effects-mcp/build/index.js"
      ],
      "env": {}
    }
  }
}

After Effects tools available to Claude Desktop

After Effects's stored tool list documents 14 tools; compare it with Claude Desktop's connected tool list, because the stored list is not a live check.

get-help

When Claude Desktop requests get-help from After Effects, review the action before approving it.

Look up guidance for commands exposed by the integration.

create-composition

When Claude Desktop requests create-composition from After Effects, review the action before approving it.

Set up an After Effects composition using supplied settings.

getLayerInfo

When Claude Desktop requests getLayerInfo from After Effects, review the action before approving it.

Inspect a layer, including its position and whether it is three-dimensional.

batchSetLayerProperties

When Claude Desktop requests batchSetLayerProperties from After Effects, review the action before approving it.

Update property settings across a group of layers.

setLayerProperties

When Claude Desktop requests setLayerProperties from After Effects, review the action before approving it.

Update one layer's transforms, compositing options, visibility, and related attributes.

setLayerMask

When Claude Desktop requests setLayerMask from After Effects, review the action before approving it.

Add a mask or revise an existing layer mask.

setLayerExpression

When Claude Desktop requests setLayerExpression from After Effects, review the action before approving it.

Change whether a property uses an expression and supply the expression when needed.

setLayerKeyframe

When Claude Desktop requests setLayerKeyframe from After Effects, review the action before approving it.

createNullObject

When Claude Desktop requests createNullObject from After Effects, review the action before approving it.

createCamera

When Claude Desktop requests createCamera from After Effects, review the action before approving it.

duplicateLayer

When Claude Desktop requests duplicateLayer from After Effects, review the action before approving it.

deleteLayer

When Claude Desktop requests deleteLayer from After Effects, review the action before approving it.

run-script

When Claude Desktop requests run-script from After Effects, review the action before approving it.

get-results

When Claude Desktop requests get-results from After Effects, review the action before approving it.

After Effects: full stored tool descriptions

Troubleshooting After Effects in Claude Desktop

• Fully quit and reopen Claude Desktop for After Effects MCP Server. If node (Node.js) is missing, check the desktop process's PATH, which may differ from your terminal.
• After Effects MCP Server uses stdio here: Claude Desktop must keep the configured process running; protocol output belongs on stdout and diagnostics on stderr.
• Known limitation: Requires a compatible installed After Effects application, not only the MCP package.
• Known limitation: Bridge installation and an active panel with automatic execution are necessary desktop-side steps.
• General Claude Desktop troubleshooting lives in the /clients/claude-desktop guide.

Frequently asked questions