by Prosya·Rendering
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Earns its place in the aescripts library for a genuinely different approach: rendering at the layer level rather than the composition level, with direct FFmpeg access and codec presets built in.
LayerRender takes a different route to output in After Effects: it renders directly at the layer level, where other known After Effects renderers work at the composition level. Layers can be rendered straight from within an After Effects comp, and the plugin accesses external FFmpeg without writing intermediate files first.
It ships with extensive presets for VP9, H.264, H.265, DNxHD, Cineform and ProRes codecs, and includes direct access to open source codecs such as x264. Every render option can be tweaked through the Options window for finer control over how a render is produced, and it handles most codecs from 8-bit up to 16-bit.
Built by Prosya, LayerRender uses all cores and is meant to be easy to use. It runs on After Effects Creative Cloud and has been tested with CC 2017 through 2021, on macOS 10.12 and above or Windows 7 and above. A demo video is available.
LayerRender is best for after Effects users who want to render individual layers, output intermediate stages for a client to preview, or reach codecs like x264 and other formats without leaving After Effects.
LayerRender is completely free to download and use.
LayerRender runs on After Effects Creative Cloud and has been tested with CC 2017, CC 2018, CC 2019, 2020 and 2021. On the operating system side it works on macOS 10.12 and above or Windows 7 and above. If you are on a Creative Cloud release within that tested range, you should be covered. For newer releases beyond 2021, check the developer's page for the latest compatibility details before installing.
LayerRender includes extensive presets for VP9, H.264, H.265, DNxHD, Cineform and ProRes codecs, and it offers direct access to open source codecs such as x264. It reaches these formats through external FFmpeg without writing intermediate files. The plugin handles most codecs from 8-bit up to 16-bit, and every render option can be adjusted through the Options window when you need finer control over a particular render.
LayerRender is available for both platforms. It runs on macOS 10.12 and above and on Windows 7 and above, alongside After Effects Creative Cloud. Version 1.8, released in November 2021, uses After Effects internal memory management, and earlier updates added Mac support and resolved a notarization issue so the plugin works on macOS Catalina and above. For the current build and any platform notes, the developer's page is the place to look.
LayerRender is listed as free here in the catalog. Licensing terms can change over time, so for the current details it is best to check the developer's page directly. The plugin integrates aescripts licensing, and its trial version limits output resolution to 720P. If you are evaluating it, that trial gives you a way to see how rendering at the layer level fits your workflow before committing.
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