by Digital Anarchy·VFX
Images © Digital Anarchy. Used for product review; image policy.
Samurai Sharpen stands out in the Toolfarm library for pairing edge-aware sharpening with masking that keeps shadows, highlights, and their noise out of the process. Version 1.2.7 fixes the crash reporter and Apple Silicon rendering in After Effects.
Video footage is often a little soft, and Samurai Sharpen for Video sharpens and enhances detail in After Effects, Premiere Pro, and other supported editors. Its tools let you isolate specific areas of footage and sharpen only those, keeping the process precise.
The filter is edge-aware, so it enhances well-defined edges like eyes while leaving flatter areas such as skin alone. Built-in masking protects shadow and highlight areas from being sharpened, which keeps the noise common in dark areas from being enhanced and prevents highlights from getting blown out. Blend controls adjust the intensity of the light or dark halo along an edge independently, since sharpening works by increasing contrast along edges.
Samurai Sharpen supports Adobe After Effects and Premiere Pro, Apple Final Cut Pro X, Avid Media Composer, and Blackmagic Design DaVinci Resolve, running on Windows 10 and macOS 10.14 or later. GPU rendering uses your video card to speed up rendering, reaching real-time performance with some video cards.
Digital Anarchy Samurai Sharpen for Video is best for sharpening soft video footage while keeping skin, shadow, and highlight areas protected from unwanted sharpening and noise.
Digital Anarchy Samurai Sharpen for Video is completely free to download and use.
Samurai Sharpen for Video supports Adobe After Effects and Premiere Pro, Apple Final Cut Pro X, Avid Media Composer, and Blackmagic Design DaVinci Resolve. Digital Anarchy notes its products are kept up to date and run in the latest versions of the host application. Whichever of these editors or compositors you work in, the edge-aware sharpening, masking, and blend controls are available. For the current host list and any application-specific details, check the developer's page.
Samurai Sharpen for Video runs on Windows 10 and macOS 10.14 or later. Digital Anarchy notes that older builds may be available for Windows 7 and 8, and suggests using their request form to check whether a compatible version exists for older Windows systems. The plugins are also kept up to date to run in the latest OS versions. For confirmation on your exact setup, the developer's page is the best reference.
Samurai Sharpen for Video uses your video card's GPU to speed up rendering, reaching real-time performance with some video cards. This lets the sharpening fit into a video production or color grading workflow. Rendering speed depends on the specific GPU in your system, and no required card model is listed. For the most current hardware notes and recommendations, the developer's page is the place to look.
Samurai Sharpen for Video version 1.2.7 fixed the crash reporter, resolved artifacts and glitches on the current frame when adjusting Radius on Apple Silicon in After Effects, and fixed an issue on PC where the first frame cached previous compositions in After Effects. Earlier updates added support for DaVinci Resolve and included a fix for After Effects CC 2018. This build was last updated on March 10, 2025.
Samurai Sharpen for Video is listed as free in this catalog. Licensing terms can change, so for current pricing, trial options, and purchase details, check Digital Anarchy's own page. The catalog entry reflects how it's categorized here rather than a guarantee of the developer's terms at any given moment. Once installed, it works as a filter inside supported hosts like After Effects and Premiere Pro.
Also in VFX for After Effects.
by MEGAKRUNCH
Dither Decay is a plugin for After Effects and Premiere Pro that turns any video into grungy, pixelated footage using authentic dithering algorithms. It ships with several dithering methods and parameters for controlling the result.
by KeenTools
KeenTools GeoTracker is a 3D object tracking plugin for After Effects. Billed as the first 3D object tracker for the app, it brings geometry-based tracking, 3D object and camera alignment, and focal length estimation using a pin-based approach.
by vimager
SpeedX is a time remapping tool for After Effects and Premiere Pro, powered by AI technology. Its performance is highly dependent on your GPU card, so the developer recommends trying it before purchase. A demo video is available.
by AEJuice
AEJuice Big Impact Volume 3 is an asset pack for After Effects, Premiere Pro, and any video editing software, delivering over 410 4K destruction assets including nuclear bombs, explosions, meteors, and shockwaves in Apple ProRes 4444 MOV format.
by vimager
FacePro is an AI-powered plugin for After Effects and Premiere Pro built for face masking and portrait retouching. It covers blemish removal, smoothing, and more, working across both host applications.
by Video Copilot
Saber is a free After Effects plug-in from Video Copilot for creating energy beams, lightsabers, lasers, portals, neon lights, electric, and haze effects. It includes 50 presets and works with dynamic text and mask outlines.
by Baskl.ai
CorridorKey brings Corridor Digital's CorridorKey to After Effects, DaVinci Resolve, and Premiere Pro through a plugin implementation for easy use. Currently at version 1.3.0, it ranks among the most popular entries on aescripts.
by Plugin Everything
Quick Chromatic Aberration 3 is a free After Effects plugin that adds RGB shift and distortion to emulate the chromatic aberration produced by real lenses, with GPU-accelerated, 32bpc processing and per-channel control.
by Boris FX
Boris FX Sapphire Annual Subscription is a filter set for After Effects, DaVinci Resolve, and Premiere Pro, offering wipe transitions, lens flares, glares, defocus effects, and a builder for custom effects and transitions.
by Pixel Sorter Studio
Pixel Sorter 4 is a pixel-sorting plugin for After Effects, DaVinci Resolve and Premiere Pro from Pixel Sorter Studio. It creates glitch art, digital artifacts and sorted-pixel effects with constraint masks, stretch mode and animation controls.
by Boris FX
Boris FX Continuum is a collection of effects for After Effects, DaVinci Resolve and Premiere Pro. It covers AI image restoration, footage fixes, stylizing, film looks and grains, greenscreen compositing, drag-and-drop transitions and Mocha tracking built into every effect.
