by YB_·Workflow
Images © YB_. Used for product review; image policy.
Earns its place in the Blender extensions library for a narrow, practical job: turning grease pencil layers into sequenced keyframes and a Clip Studio Paint-style CSV timing sheet that carries into After Effects.
YB Animator Tool is an animation add-on for Blender from developer YB_, built to address some of the inconveniences encountered when creating animations in Blender. It exports grease pencil layer content as sequenced keyframes and generates a CSV timing sheet file.
The CSV timing sheet follows the sorting method and file format produced by the painting software Clip Studio Paint, so it can be imported into After Effects the same way a Clip Studio Paint timing sheet is. To export, you select a grease pencil object and use the grease pencil keyframe render option in the render menu. Layers whose names carry a Hide suffix are treated as hidden and are left out of the export queue.
The add-on requests file output permission to write the CSV and sequence diagram. It is compatible with Blender 4.2 LTS and newer, and is distributed under the GNU General Public License v3.0 or later. Source code is available on the developer's GitHub page, and 3D keyframe rendering is noted as a feature under consideration.
YB Animator Tool is best for blender artists exporting grease pencil layers as sequenced keyframes and CSV timing sheets for use in After Effects.
YB Animator Tool is completely free to download and use.
YB Animator Tool lists compatibility with Blender 4.2 LTS and newer, so it is aimed at recent Blender releases rather than older builds. The add-on can be added by dragging and dropping the download into Blender, or by downloading it and installing from disk. For the most current compatibility details and any updates, the developer's GitHub page and the extension listing are the best places to check before installing.
YB Animator Tool exports grease pencil layers by having you select a grease pencil object and then choose the grease pencil keyframe render option in the render menu. It writes the layer content out as sequenced keyframes along with a CSV timing sheet file. Layers whose names include a Hide suffix are treated as hidden and are kept out of the export queue, so only the layers you want are included. The add-on requests file output permission to write the CSV and sequence diagram files.
YB Animator Tool generates its CSV timing sheet following the sorting method and file format that the painting software Clip Studio Paint produces. Because of that, the exported CSV can be imported into After Effects in the same way a Clip Studio Paint timing sheet is. This makes it a bridge between grease pencil work in Blender and a timing sheet workflow in After Effects. Details on the file structure are documented on the developer's GitHub page.
YB Animator Tool is listed as free here, and it is distributed under the GNU General Public License v3.0 or later. That license covers how you can use, modify and redistribute the add-on, and the full source code is available on the developer's GitHub page. For the most current licensing terms, releases and any changes, checking the developer's page directly is the best approach before you rely on it in a project.
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