vangel76andClaude Opus 5.5
88278ea871
Problem: `$.evalFile` always threw, and `typeof BridgeTalk` was `undefined`, so frameworks such as DuAEF failed during initialisation when they load their modules or ask which application they run in. Fix: `$.evalFile(file[, timeout])` evaluates a script file in the global scope and returns its last value. Relative paths resolve against the folder of the file being evaluated (the running script's for the outermost call, else the project's); reads follow the same file gate, 16 MiB size cap and 32-deep nesting limit as `#include` (#759, shared `scriptfile.rs`), and the bracket-depth check runs before parsing. `BridgeTalk` names the host honestly (`appName` "effectcraft", its version, `appSpecifier`, `isRunning` / `getSpecifier` / `getStatus` / `getTargets` for ourselves only); `send()` throws a clear "not supported" error instead of messaging other applications. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5.5 <[email protected]>
4.1 KiB
Expressions and scripting parity
Last reviewed: 2026-10-10 · Last updated: 2026-10-10 · Change: major (first expressions and scripting checklist against After Effects 2026 26.5) · Target: Adobe After Effects 2026
Expressions and ExtendScript are how After Effects work is automated and how much of it is
built: rigs, templates, studio pipelines. They are also what carries over from After Effects
today, while .aep projects can't. Architecture: architecture.md §5 and §5a;
extension points: plugins.md; overall numbers:
target-app-parity.md.
Breadth ≈ 93%, ready ≈ 65% (estimated). The object models are written from Adobe's public Expression Language Reference and Scripting Guide (behaviour only, AGENTS.md §2) and tested with our own scripts; no real-world script library has been run against both apps.
| Feature | After Effects 2026 | EffectCraft | Status | Evidence / gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Expression language | JavaScript engine (default) and Legacy ExtendScript | JavaScript (boa) with legacy array maths (value + [10, 0]) |
good | crates/expr tests; no separate Legacy ExtendScript engine mode |
| Expression object model | thisComp, thisLayer, wiggle, loopOut, valueAtTime, sampleImage, footage(), text style API… |
Same members, from the reference | good | crates/expr/src/tests.rs; behaviour of edge cases unmeasured (G1) |
| Expression editing | Inline field, error bar, pick whip, Expression Language menu, external editors | Inline field that grows, error bar, pick whips (property and value), language menu | partial | External editor support (#364) |
| Expression performance | Cached, multi-frame | Per-thread boa contexts | unknown | No benchmark |
| Scripting object model | app, Project, items, layers, properties, keys, eases, render queue, TextDocument, Shape, markers, File/Folder, Socket, app.settings |
Same classes, edits run through undoable engine commands; match names table | good | crates/script tests (≈ 10 test files) |
$.evalFile, BridgeTalk |
Evaluate another script file; identify the host application and message other Adobe applications | $.evalFile evaluates a file relative to the calling file (nested at most 32 deep, under the scripts' file gate) and returns its last value; BridgeTalk names the host honestly (appName effectcraft, its version); messaging other applications throws "not supported" |
partial | tests_evalfile.rs (#760); no inter-application messaging |
| ScriptUI | Dialogs, palettes, dockable panels, resource strings, onDraw / ScriptUIGraphics |
Same, dockable panels reopen at launch | good | ui_scriptui, tests_ui* |
| Scripts menu, ScriptUI Panels folder | yes | yes | same | plugins.md |
| Startup / Shutdown folders | yes | not run | missing | plugins.md |
#include, #target directives |
yes | a script starting with one doesn't parse | missing | plugins.md; common in real scripts |
.jsxbin |
yes | no | out of scope | No public specification |
| Keyboard shortcuts for scripts | yes | no | missing | plugins.md |
Command-line rendering aerender |
yes | effectcraft-cli render, script, exec |
same purpose | apps/effectcraft-cli |
| Essential Graphics scripting hooks | addToMotionGraphicsTemplate… |
yes (M13.7) | good | — |
| Agent control (MCP, control channel, every command) | none | yes | beyond | agents.md, control-protocol.md; list_effects omits parameter types and ranges (#441) |
| Real-world script corpus | — | none run | gap | Run popular free scripts (the 11 sample scripts After Effects ships are a good start, run as behaviour tests, never copied) |
Estimate
≈ 20–40 h: #include / #target and Startup / Shutdown folders 4–8 h, script shortcuts 2–4 h,
a corpus of public scripts and expressions with the fixes it finds 10–20 h, an expression
performance benchmark 4–8 h.
Revision history
| Date | Change | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-10 | major | First expressions and scripting checklist |