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After Effects
Control Groups
Group layers and timeline bookmarks with intuitive global keyboard controls. NEW: Shy and Solo toggles for groups and layers
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Control Groups is a revolutionary plugin that lets you save, recall, and manage layer selections and timeline locations in After Effects instantly.
Build keyboard-driven groups, jump through your project faster, and cut out repetitive panel work with composition bookmarks, Spaces, and dedicated undo/redo built for speed.
Overview
Control Groups streamlines the repetitive After Effects tasks you repeat constantly:
- Re-selecting previous layer selections
- Navigating within and between compositions
Save layers or timeline locations into keyboard-triggered groups, then recall them instantly to move through your project faster and stay focused on animation instead of panel management.
A dedicated, project-aware undo/redo system extends that speed even further, letting you rewind group edits, selections, and navigation without breaking your flow.
Key Features
Control Groups & Spaces
Group layers or locations together into 'Control Groups', and select
them again at any time with a keyboard shortcut. Pick a base key for
a Control Group slot (digit keys 0-9 recommended). The
base key will select the Control Group and its corresponding layers
when pressed. Adding keyboard modifiers (e.g. Alt,
Control, etc.) will modify the Control Group's contents
(see "Control Group Logic & Modifiers").
Organise your Control Groups into spaces (analogous to desktop spaces or pages). Each space can be switched to with their own definable shortcut. With 10 Control Groups per space, easily create and control 100 Control Groups with a single set of 10 base keys.
Layer & Location Management
A world first for After Effects: in the same vein as strategy games, assign 'locations' (a point in time in any composition) as items in Control Groups — instantly jump to these points with a click or definable keyboard shortcut.
Double-click a layer group or the group's shortcut to navigate to its layers directly, regardless of what composition they're in. Select layers remotely — choose whether to jump to the relevant composition or select a layer across compositions.
Toggle shy and solo states for entire Control Groups or individual layers with dedicated shortcuts and UI buttons. Each button dynamically reflects the current state of the group's layers, including partial mixes.
Dynamic UI & Audio Feedback
A highly dynamic, resizable, animated, minimalist UI design. Easily view the contents of Control Groups at a glance, or minimise the slide-out panel for a more compact UI view. Contextual tooltips appear on hover throughout the panel, providing dynamic descriptions of each element's current function.
Use sound effects for Control Group selections, modifiers and actions. Build habits and muscle memory quickly by incorporating auditory feedback into your workflow. Two complementary SFX soundboards are included: "Kalimba Bottle" and "Halous" .
Event-Driven Undo/Redo
A fast, event-driven Undo/Redo flow purpose-built for Control Groups, separate from the built-in After Effects system. Instantly rewind group edits, selections, and navigation — and optionally jump back to the exact composition and timeline position where each change occurred. It’s configurable, project-aware, and immediately feels intuitive.
- One-tap undo for group & item changes
- Selection & navigation undo/redo, per-type toggles
- Undo history persists across sessions and project files
- Configurable history cap with automatic trimming
Customisation
Access customisation options for groups through the right-click context menu:
- Custom icons for groups: choose from 60+ icons to label each Control Group. Saved per space and per slot. Layer context groups also support an "Auto" mode that automatically displays an icon matching the most common layer type in the group.
- Custom names for groups: rename individual Control Group slots. Names are displayed in the panel and propagate through notifications.
- Custom names for Spaces: rename Spaces via the Spaces menu. Custom names appear throughout the UI and in notifications.
- Slot numbers: optional numbers on the bottom right of each group. Optionally display slot names instead of the layer counter.
Contexts
Contexts are the types of items that can be part of a Control Group. Each Control Group is composed of a single context type:
- Layers: One or more layers from a given composition.
- Locations: Saved points in time within compositions for instant navigation
The active context can be toggled between layers and locations with the UI button or a shortcut. Group creation and modification only apply to the active context, preventing different item types from being mixed.
What Makes Control Groups Unique?
- Focused Purpose: Control Groups is focused specifically on fast layer recall and navigation, rather than treating grouping as a side feature.
- Keyboard-first depth: Spaces, modifiers, and dedicated shortcuts let you build a much faster workflow than traditional panel-based organisation tools.
- True composition bookmarks: Save timeline positions inside comps and jump back to them on demand.
- Immediate payoff: Even a small setup can save time quickly by removing repeated searching, reselecting, and navigation.
Feature Comparison
See how Control Groups compares to other layer organisation solutions:
| Feature | Control Groups | Other Organisation Plugins |
|---|---|---|
| Bookmarks / Navigation | First-ever plugin to offer inner-composition bookmarking | N/A |
| Stream Deck Support | First-class native support with dynamic appearance and real-time syncing with After Effects | N/A |
| Sound Effects | 50 sound effects included. Most actions' sound effects can be user-defined | N/A |
| Plugin Undo/Redo system | Customisable, persistent, dynamic, navigate to points in time when and where actions occurred | N/A |
| Shortcuts | Most advanced keyboard controls and shortcut handling of any plugin | Extremely limited, if any |
| Shy / Solo Controls | Group-and-layer-level shy and solo toggling with advanced state-aware UI buttons and assignable shortcuts | Basic and brittle state logic that often confuses group shy and solo flags with After Effects' layer flags. |
| Integration | Groups are stored as references only - underlying layers are never modified | Often rely on embedding data in layers, potentially conflicting with other plugins. |
| Speed | Groups are designed to be repeatedly created, modified, and removed on the fly | Panel visibility, mouse use, and multiple UI steps. Stop-and-start workflow mandatory |
| User Interface | Highly fluid, responsive, animated. Minimalist-focused UI with contextual tooltips. Global visual/audio feedback | Largely static / buried among unrelated features |
| UX – Beginners | Extremely powerful even with a single Control Group. Slide-out panel displays group contents. Features can be used with mouse controls in-panel. Integrated tutorial | Standard, information-heavy panel. Basic layer grouping in a single vertical list |
| UX – Power Users | Every facet is designed to foster relational memory and facilitate user input at speeds akin to competitive strategy games. Panel visibility optional | No additional considerations |
Stream Deck Integration
Control Groups is the first layer organisation tool to offer dedicated Stream Deck support. A first-class plugin transforms your Stream Deck into a hardware control surface for After Effects, enabling rapid group selection, space switching, and workflow control at your fingertips.
Every button dynamically reflects the state of your Control Groups in real-time. Icons, colours, mouse highlights, slot numbers, and custom names sync directly from the panel, creating an authentic visual representation that updates instantly as you work. Input from either the Stream Deck or After Effects UI is reflected on the other in real-time.
Stream Deck Features
- 10 Control Group buttons: Each button displays the group's custom icon, colour stripe, and slot number. Buttons highlight when selected or previewed.
- 10 Space switching buttons: Switch between Spaces instantly. Custom Space names are displayed, and the active Space is highlighted.
- Full control suite: Undo/Redo, Context toggle, Shortcut Lock, Slideout Panel, Sequential Cycling, and Help.
- Device profiles: Pre-configured profiles for Stream Deck Classic, Mini, XL, and Plus. The Plus profile includes encoder support for Space navigation.
The Stream Deck plugin and device profiles are bundled with Control
Groups. Double-click the included
.streamDeckPlugin file to install. Requires Stream Deck
software 6.6+, macOS 13+ or Windows 10+.
SB Shortcut Manager Support
Our advanced, native companion plugin enables the extension's most robust and powerful shortcut handling. The bundled plugin allows extension control and use with definable global shortcuts, dramatically enhancing speed and convenience.
The development of this plugin was in service of creating a platform for faster, optimised workflows. Saving time is a serious value proposition in and of itself; every second saved enhances your value as a designer.
Control Group Logic & Modifiers
Basic Operations
-
Select Control Group:
[Base key](we recommend digits0-9). Selects all layers in the chosen Control Group (layer context) or jumps to the saved location(s) (location context). -
Combine Selection:
[Shift] + [base key]- combine a selection of layers, items or Control Groups with the target group and its contents. -
Jump to Control Group:
[Double Tap] [base key]or double click - use layer context Control Groups as references for project navigation.
Modifier Keys
-
'Overwrite' modifier:
[Cmd/Ctrl]– Replaces a Control Group's contents with your current selection. -
'Add' modifier:
[Cmd/Ctrl + Shift]– Adds a selection to a Control Group. -
'Subtract' modifier:
[Option/Alt]– Removes a selection from a Control Group. -
'Exclusive Trim' modifier:
[Cmd/Ctrl + Option/Alt]– Adds a selection to a Control Group while removing those items from any group they currently exist in.
Additional Features
Management at Speed
Manage Control Groups at speed - add to, overwrite, or remove from Control Groups with shortcuts or UI panel without skipping a beat. Control Groups are designed to be constantly redefined and modified.
Control Groups upon Control Groups - create and modify selections using groups themselves.
Advanced Location Control
A location context Control Group can contain multiple saved locations to cycle through sequentially. Repeatedly using the same location Control Group will sequentially cycle the timeline view between each item in the group.
Layer Sequential Selection Cycling
A layer context Control Group can be used to cycle through its corresponding layers with an optional setting. Repeatedly using the same layer Control Group in this mode will sequentially cycle the selection through each layer in the group, restoring layer selections one at a time for more granular control.
Floating Notification System
A beautifully animated, fully configurable, floating notification palette displays actions and information separate from the main panel. Configurable to display either alongside the cursor, stationary at the current mouse position, or at a single re-definable point on-screen. Use the global notification system, the local-panel notifications, or neither. Enable or disable individual notification types per system.
Miscellaneous Features
- Control Groups are automatically saved to the Project File itself for seamless persistence and portability. Plugin settings and configurations are saved to a local file.
- The panel can be freely re-sized and can be used in very flat or tall configurations to perfectly fit within your workspace.
- The shortcut lock toggle allows for quick toggling of the primary Control Groups global shortcuts.
- Panel controls support all features of Control Groups with mouse-only controls using the context menu.
- Cheat Sheet — a quick-access menu for information on the different modifiers, actions, and core plugin features available, plus an embedded tutorial (with its own definable shortcut!)
Synergy with Compstronaut
While Control Groups revolutionises how you organise and recall layers and timeline bookmarks, adding Compstronaut to your toolkit elevates your workflow to a new dimension.
- Seamless Navigation Capture: Every time you use Control Groups to jump between layers or timeline positions, Compstronaut automatically tracks those moves in a persistent navigation history. This is in addition to your natural composition switches and timeline scrubbing recorded by Compstronaut as you work. Your entire session becomes an interactive history, letting you retrace creative paths with a single click or shortcut.
- Unified Feedback System: Both extensions share the same floating notification layer, delivering crisp, real-time visual and audio feedback for every action, whether you are triggering a Control Group or navigating through your history with Compstronaut.
- Complementary Workflow: Control Groups gives you instant, organised access to complex layer selection and location. Compstronaut then lets you move backward or forward through your creative session, browser-style, in chronological order with keyboard shortcuts or by freely scrolling through your history and selecting a previous position.
For the ultimate After Effects workflow, pair Control Groups with Compstronaut. Together, they transform project navigation and selection into something as fluid and intuitive as working in a modern web browser. Once you experience this level of integration and speed, you will never want to go back.
Customisable Settings Page
Tailor Control Groups to your workflow with a dedicated settings page:
- Shortcuts and base keys: assign group slots, modifiers, space switching, context switching, shy/solo, help, and more.
- Behaviour: configure sequential cycling, slot-number display, and shortcut conflict suppression.
- Feedback: adjust sound effects, volume, and related behaviour for cycling and actions.
- Undo/Redo: choose how history behaves, including navigation restore and maximum history size.
Compatibility
Adobe After Effects
Versions tested and supported:
- Apple macOS (Intel processors): 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026 releases.
- Apple macOS (Apple Silicon processors): 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026 releases.
- Microsoft Windows: 2024, 2025 and 2026 releases.
Note: Releases from calendar‑year 2022 may operate successfully but have not been validated. Versions from 2021 and older are not supported.
Note: performance may vary on older hardware.
Operating System
Minimum required operating system versions:
- Microsoft Windows 10 (64‑bit) or later.
- Apple macOS 13 Ventura or later.
Conquer Your Compositions
Control Groups is the definitive solution for layer grouping and composition navigation — a seamless, fluid tool obsessively designed to let you work faster and more intuitively with After Effects.
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Version History
1.7 -
Apr 10, 2026
- Major new feature - Integrated various Control Group actions as hooks in the upcoming product Command Frame.
1.6 -
Mar 10, 2026
- New feature - "shy" toggle for Control Groups and layers, controllable with shortcuts and a new UI button that changes in appearance based on the current "shy" state of relevant layers, including when a partial mix is detected.
- New feature - "solo" toggle for Control Groups and layers, controllable with shortcuts and a new UI button that changes in appearance based on the current "shy" state of relevant layers, including when a partial mix is detected.
- New shortcuts, sound effects, notifications and settings for the new shy and solo features.
- New feature - automatic layer Control Group customisation. Layer context control groups now have a new default customisation option, "auto", which automatically changes the group's icon to reflect the most common layer type within that group. For example, groups with mostly light layers display a lightbulb icon, groups with mostly null layers display a null layer icon, and so on.
- New feature - tooltips. Various UI elements on the main panel page now display tooltips when hovered over. Tooltip text updates dynamically and is contextually driven. For example, the tooltip will describe the actions the undo/redo buttons will incur.
Fixed
- Fixed a bug that would cause the shortcut lock toggle to interfere with functions triggered from the Stream Deck.
Changed
- Add more collapsible sections to the "Panel Shortcuts" settings page for organisation.
1.5 -
Dec 27, 2025
Stream Deck Support
- Major new feature - Stream Deck Support. Control Groups now fully supports the Stream Deck with a bespoke first-class plugin that takes full advantage of the platform:
- Control Groups' icons, colours, slot numbers and custom names are represented on each slot's buttons authentically.
- Control Group and Space buttons dynamically react in real time to selections and changing spaces.
- The Stream Deck buttons and Control Groups After Effects UI both react in real time to input received on the other.
- 10 Control Group selection buttons with dynamic appearance reflecting panel customisation.
- 10 Space switching buttons with custom Space names and active state highlighting.
- Space increment buttons for cycling through Spaces.
- Direct access to commands and functions such as: Control Groups, Undo/Redo, Context toggle, Shortcut Lock, Slideout panel, Sequential Cycling and Deselect All.
- Pre-configured device profiles for Stream Deck Classic, Mini, XL, and Plus.
- The Stream Deck plugin and device profiles are bundled with Control Groups. Double-click the included .streamDeckPlugin file to install. Requires Stream Deck software 6.6+, macOS 13+ or Windows 10+.
Added
- New feature - added the ability to rename individual Control Group slots as persistent settings. Right-click a Control Group to rename its slot through the right-click context menu.
- New feature - added the ability to rename individual Spaces globally. Open the Spaces menu button in the main panel view (visible by default), and click the chevron to the right of a given space to access options including customisation.
- Custom Control Groups' and Spaces' names will propagate through the UI and through notifications, and can be reset back to the default.
- Significantly improved the settings page organisation by introducing collapsible sections in the settings page, and reorganising the existing General tab.
- Added a new setting - display Control Groups' slot names instead of the layer counter. If the group has no name, it defaults to using the number counter as before.
- Added two new assignable shortcuts to facilitate switching between Spaces incrementally: Increment Space Down and Increment Space Up.
- Added the ability to assign both a name and an icon to a Control Group slot to its 'dummy'/ placeholder state.
- Added error notifications for various scenarios that would prevent a Space switch for more informative feedback.
- Added a new warning system if certain user-defined After Effects shortcuts/settings aren't configured correctly, in addition to new settings to configure whether to suppress these (showing a popup in the main UI by default). This complements an edge-case fix detailed below, ensuring these types of errors can be self-diagnosed if they occur in the future.
- Added an embed in the help popup and store page linking to the r/aescripts discussion thread.
Changed
- Expanded the wording of the warning text that appears in the panel when the SBShortcutManager companion plugin is not connected to provide instructions on how to fix the issue (i.e., reinstalling the extension).
- Grouped the sound effects configuration into a collapsible section, and also moved it beside the general audio settings in the General tab (versus the poorly-seperated Shortcuts tab).
Fixed
- Fixed a bug that would prevent selections or navigation from occurring if the user's native After Effects settings were missing certain values.
- Fixed a bug that would distort the floating notification panel animations when closing.
- Fixed a bug in which global shortcut selections of Control Groups would not highlight the corresponding Control Group UI representations, preventing their contents from appearing in the slideout panel.
- Fixed a bug that prevented the Control Groups tutorial from appearing in the help popup.
1.4.5 -
Nov 8, 2025
- Updated the aescripts licensing framework to the latest version.
1.4.4 -
Nov 4, 2025
- Extended the temporary blocking of global shortcuts from other extensions using the SBShortcutManager when interacting with input fields to prevent unintentional shortcut triggering.
1.4.3 -
Oct 29, 2025
- Bundled the latest version of the SBShortcutManager.
- Minor tweak to third party licensing text.
Fixed
- Ensured global shortcuts from "Select Every Other Layer" aren't mistakenly triggered while assigning shortcuts in Control Groups.
1.4.2 -
Oct 19, 2025
- Added a new setting for enabling the shortcut lock sound effect on extension startup if the shortcut lock was enabled (defaulting to off, i.e., won't play on startup). Previously, the shortcut lock sound effect would always play on extension startup.
Fixed
- Hotfix for the panel background not displaying warning messages for the SBShortcutManager not being found, or no project file being open.
- Fix for in-panel update notifications of the Control Groups extension.
1.4.1 -
Oct 15, 2025
- New warning text appears in the panel when the SBShortcutManager companion plugin is not connected.
- Added text truncation (shortening) for longer composition names and layer names for global notifications.
- Added a banner image to the About tab of the licensing.
- Updates to the SBShortcutManager for better compatability with future extensions.
Fixed
- Fixed a bug where selecting compostions in the project bin would interfere with saving project-navigation-related data.
- Fixed a bug that result in two selection sound effects when navigating using a layer-context control group via keyboard shortcuts.
- Fixed a bug that caused the panel to reload when altering the settings of the global notifications.
- Minor tweaks / improvements to the intiial loading sequence.
Changed
- Minor styling updates for the settings page for better readability / visual consistency.
- Minor styling updates for the licensing information for better readability / visual consistency.
- Updated Readme with additional FAQ / troubleshooting information.
1.4 -
Aug 15, 2025
- New feature - Control Group customisation. The UI representations of Control Groups can now have an Icon applied to them to use over the standard location/layer icons. Over 60 icons are available to use.
- Right-click an existing Control Group to customise its appearance:
- Color (already available by clicking the color stripe, but now also present in the context menu)
- Icon
- Control Group customisations now persist per-slot in each space rather than per group. Applying a customisation to a Control Group will also, in turn, customise that slot (e.g Control Group 5 in space 1) - future groups that exist in this slot will also receive the same customisation options.
- New feature - display the Control Group slot numbers on the bottom right of each group. Added new toggles (settings page -> General) to enable/disable these separately for groups (disabled by default) and on placeholders in Sort Mode (enabled by default).
- The context menu now gracefully animates in height. Plus additional minor styling tweaks.
- The context menu now permits you to click options pertaining to creating control Groups even if the resulting operation is invalid (instead of disabling the option). Now, a yellow highlight for the action will indicate there's an issue, and pressing the option will present a notification explaining the issue.
- New feature - when a Control Group, or its items, are used to navigate, the group block in the panel will emit a cosmetic glow as feedback.
- Initial implementation of styling per version of After Effects.
Fixed
- Fixed a bug which would cause the dummy blocks in sort mode to generate lag.
- Fixed a bug that would prevent creating location context groups via the context menu when additionally selecting groups with the mouse.
- Fixed Undo/Redo inconsistency with layer restoration using the deselect all action.
- Improved color selection for generated and preset group colours to prefer brighter colors.
- Fixed a bug that prevented the setting for displaying location times as frames from taking effect.
- Fixed a bug with inverse handling for inert Control Group edits on Undo/Redo. When adding layers already present or subtracting layers not present, undo no longer removes or adds items. Inverse actions now capture only the actual delta to preserve group membership.
- Fixed a bug where inert Control Groups edit actions would result in a new entry in the undo history.
1.3.1 -
Aug 13, 2025
- Fixed a bug preventing the setting to turn off Undo/Redo navigation for selection events from taking effect.
- Fixed Undo/Redo inconsistency with restoring layer selections and UI selections.
- Fixed Undo/Redo inconsistency for double-tap-to-navigate for layer context control groups and location context control groups.
Changed
- Enabled in-panel status bar notifications for new updates.
1.3 -
Aug 12, 2025
- New major feature - Control Groups now supports Undo/Redo operations separately from After Effects' own undo system. This system supports:
- Undo/Redo support for creating, modifying and removing Control Groups.
- Undo/Redo support for selection of layer-context groups and items (including selections of respective associated layers) and location-context groups and items.
- Undo/Redo support for adding/removing individual items from Control Groups.
- Undo/Redo support for composition navigation events instigated by groups or items of either context.
- Undo/Redo support for active context switches.
- Undo/Redo support for space switches.
- Undo/Redo support for the deselect all actions, including Control Group selections and layer selections
- New feature - navigation history for undo/redo events. As a sub-system of the Undo/Redo system, the time in a given composition when certain actions occur can automatically be navigated to/from when undone/redone.
- Undo/Redo navigation support for selection-based actions (including UI selections and layer selections) (enabled by default).
- Undo/Redo navigation support for deselection actions (i.e when using "deselect all") (enabled by default).
- Undo/Redo navigation support for active context switches (disabled by default).
- Undo/Redo navigation support for space switches (disabled by default).
- Added global shortcuts for triggering undo or redo events specifically for the Control Groups extension.
- Added Undo/Redo buttons in the panel. These appear disabled to indicate if at the start/end of the undo history, respectively.
- Added Undo/Redo buttons in the context menu. These appear disabled to indicate if at the start/end of the undo history, respectively.
- Added toggles (settings page -> General) to hide either or both of the Undo/Redo buttons.
- Added new "Nothing to [undo/redo]" notification types with toggles to disable either for both the local and global notification systems.
- Added a value field (settings page -> General) to allow defining the minimum or maximum number of entries for the Undo/Redo system's history. The current minimum and maximum number of possible entries are 3 and 150, respectively, with the default being 20. The history exists as a file stored alongside the other user settings.
- Added toggles (settings page -> General) to enable/disable the Undo/Redo behaviour of navigating to the original composition and point in time when a given undo-able/redo-able action was made.
Fixed
- Fixed a bug in which shortcuts could be triggered when entering values for shortcut fields.
- Fixed a bug where the panel would indefinitely switch between two loading-related messages if After Effects wasn't in focus while the panel was loading. Only a single loading message will be displayed while the panel waits for After Effects to return to focus.
- Fixed a bug that would prevent Control Groups from loading project data if After Effects wasn't already in focus.
- Fixed a bug where it was possible to select the text in the local notification toasts / UI popups.
- Fixed a bug in which an additive selection could consist of layer context control groups containing layers from separate compositions. This is now prevented from occurring alongside a new notification explaining why.
- Fixed a UI bug - the drag handle on Control Groups is now removed when in Sort Mode, as drag and drop is disabled.
Changed
- Changed the wording of the deselect all notification from "Control Groups deselected" to "Deselect all" for consistency with other notifications.
- Re-arranged the General tab of the settings page to be more intuitive: licensing -> settings -> shortcut file management -> info & attributions.
- Added blocks to space switches, active context switches, and undo/redo events while the settings page is open. This is accompanied by a new notification type, flagging that the settings page should be closed first.
1.2 -
Aug 4, 2025
- New feature - Sort mode. In this new mode, Control Groups will appear in a fixed position in the panel, corresponding to their Control Group slot number. Drag and drop for group organisation is disabled in this mode to maintain a fixed order. As sort mode facilitates a more intuitive user experience, it is also enabled by default. You may still prefer not to use Sort Mode if you only intend to only use a couple of Control Groups, or want a very small panel size.
- New feature - targeting specific slots with the context menu for creating Control Groups. Using sort mode, unoccupied slots are now filled with a placeholder which can be directly targeted for creating Control Groups with right-clicking.
- Added the ability to confirm a choice with the colour picker by double-clicking (in addition to pressing enter).
- Added new settings toggles for enabling / disabling selection sound effects when selecting, or shift-selecting, layer-items in the Control Groups' expanded view or slide-out panel.
Fixed
- Fixed a bug in which the colour picker would not be prioritised in certain scenarios when using the enter key.
- Fixed a bug which allowed the colour picker to remain open when the settings page was opened.
Changed
- Tab highlighting / selection locally in the panel using the tab key now works in ascending "number" order (1 > 2 > 3 > etc) (and vice versa for alt + tab) irrespective of creation order.
1.1 -
Jul 24, 2025
- New feature - Layer selection cycling. Optional setting in the settings page > shortcuts tab (disabled by default). Using this mode enables the sequential selection of individual layers within a layer context Control Group by either repeatedly clicking or using the group's corresponding shortcut.
- Added an in-panel warning on macOS if attempting to use features that require the accessibility permission without having already granted it.
- Added an in-panel warning if the After Effects setting "Allow Scripts to Write Files and Access Network" isn't turned on.
- Added missing punctuation keys for use within shortcuts or as single-key shortcuts on macOS.
- Added two new settings to enable suppression of shortcut conflict messages when assigning shortcuts for Control Group slots, also auto-resolving these conflicts:
- "Suppress After Effects shortcut conflcit messages"
- "Suppress macOS shortcut conflcit messages" (macOS only)
- Added a new setting to format location times as frames instead.
- Added automatic generation of a backup of the user's After Effects shortcut preference file when the extension first launches.
- Added settings to disable excessive sound effects triggered when:
- Location cycling.
- Layer selection cycling.
- The "Toggle Active Context" and "Toggle Shortcut Lock" shortcuts can now be assigned to single keys.
Fixed
- Fixed excessive hanging / lagging for features that relied on accessibility permissions. These are now disabled until these permissions have been granted (communicated within the aforementioned new in-panel warning).
- Fixed displayed AE shortcut conflicts from showing double parentheses in the shortcut fields in the panel settings.
- Fixed a bug in which the local notifications pop-up would sometimes queue and attempt to display multiple duplicate messages.
- Fixed a bug in which location context Control Groups would not incur navigation if local-panel keyboard controls (read: not global) were used to trigger it.
- Fixed a bug in which location context Control Group navigations would display the composition ID instead of the user-set composition name.
- Fixed a bug in which location items/notifications would not display a correctly formatted time.
- Increased reliability of layer-context-Control-Groups-based composition navigation resulting in the corresponding Control Group's layers being selected post-navigation.
- Further hardened protections for the user settings file.
Removed
- Removed the bulk "Clear digit keys shortcuts" button in the shortcuts tab of the settings page. With the combination of the new warning suppression toggles, the UX is now more focused:
- Clearer distinction between the different types of conflicts with the new toggles (i.e macOS conflicts, AE conflicts)
- Non-power-users - no warning suppression. Clear, repeated reminders of possible conflicts and opportunities to create shortcuts. Removing the bulk unassignment button reduces the likelihood of unintentional confusion.
- Power-users - suppress shortcut conflict warnings. Fast, intentional, targeted.
- Original shortcuts are always safe thanks to the new automatic backup, guaranteeing at least one backup.
1.0.2 -
Jul 21, 2025
- Cosmetic and minor updates to the licensing framework.
Fixed
- User settings now persist through uninstallation / installation of Control Group instead of being reset.
- Fix for the Control Groups panel only loading correctly when first opened.
1.0.1 -
Jul 17, 2025
1.0 -
Jul 15, 2025
Compatibility
After Effects
2026, 2025, 2024, 2023
EULA
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This Agreement entitles you to install and use one copy of the Software Product. In addition, you may make one archival copy of the Software Product. The archival copy must be on a storage medium other than a hard drive, and may only be used for the reinstallation of the Software Product. This Agreement does not permit the installation or use of multiple copies of the Software Product, or the installation of the Software Product on more than one computer at any given time, on a system that allows shared used of applications, on a multi-user network, or on any configuration or system of computers that allows multiple users. Multiple copy use or installation is only allowed if you obtain an appropriate licensing agreement for each user and each copy of the Software Product.
Restrictions on Transfer
Without first obtaining the express written consent of the author, you may not assign your rights and obligations under this Agreement, or redistribute, encumber, sell, rent, lease, sublicense, or otherwise transfer your rights to the Software Product.
Restrictions on Use
You may not use, copy, or install the Software Product on any system with more than one computer, or permit the use, copying, or installation of the Software Product by more than one user or on more than one computer. If you hold multiple, validly licensed copies, you may not use, copy, or install the Software Product on any system with more than the number of computers permitted by license, or permit the use, copying, or installation by more users, or on more computers than the number permitted by license.
You may not decompile, "reverse-engineer", disassemble, or otherwise attempt to derive the source code for the Software Product.
Restrictions on Alteration
You may not modify the Software Product or create any derivative work of the Software Product or its accompanying documentation. Derivative works include but are not limited to translations. You may not alter any files or libraries in any portion of the Software Product.
Restrictions on Copying
You may not copy any part of the Software Product except to the extent that licensed use inherently demands the creation of a temporary copy stored in computer memory and not permanently affixed on storage medium. You may make one archival copy which must be stored on a medium other than a computer hard drive.
Disclaimer of Warranties and Limitation of Liability
UNLESS OTHERWISE EXPLICITLY AGREED TO IN WRITING BY THE AUTHOR, THE AUTHOR MAKES NO OTHER WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN FACT OR IN LAW, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OTHER THAN AS SET FORTH IN THIS AGREEMENT OR IN THE LIMITED WARRANTY DOCUMENTS PROVIDED WITH THE SOFTWARE PRODUCT.
The author makes no warranty that the Software Product will meet your requirements or operate under your specific conditions of use. The author makes no warranty that operation of the Software Product will be secure, error free, or free from interruption. YOU MUST DETERMINE WHETHER THE SOFTWARE PRODUCT SUFFICIENTLY MEETS YOUR REQUIREMENTS FOR SECURITY AND UNINTERRUPTABILITY. YOU BEAR SOLE RESPONSIBILITY AND ALL LIABILITY FOR ANY LOSS INCURRED DUE TO FAILURE OF THE SOFTWARE PRODUCT TO MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS. THE AUTHOR WILL NOT, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, BE RESPONSIBLE OR LIABLE FOR THE LOSS OF DATA ON ANY COMPUTER OR INFORMATION STORAGE DEVICE.
UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHALL THE AUTHOR, ITS DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES OR AGENTS BE LIABLE TO YOU OR ANY OTHER PARTY FOR INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES OF ANY KIND INCLUDING LOST REVENUES OR PROFITS OR LOSS OF BUSINESS) RESULTING FROM THIS AGREEMENT, OR FROM THE FURNISHING, PERFORMANCE, INSTALLATION, OR USE OF THE SOFTWARE PRODUCT, WHETHER DUE TO A BREACH OF CONTRACT, BREACH OF WARRANTY, OR THE NEGLIGENCE OF THE AUTHOR OR ANY OTHER PARTY, EVEN IF THE AUTHOR IS ADVISED BEFOREHAND OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. TO THE EXTENT THAT THE APPLICABLE JURISDICTION LIMITS THE AUTHOR'S ABILITY TO DISCLAIM ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES, THIS DISCLAIMER SHALL BE EFFECTIVE TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED.
Limitation of Remedies and Damages
Any claim must be made within the applicable warranty period. All warranties cover only defects arising under normal use and do not include malfunctions or failure resulting from misuse, abuse, neglect, alteration, problems with electrical power, acts of nature, unusual temperatures or humidity, improper installation, or damage determined by the author to have been caused by you. All limited warranties on the Software Product are granted only to you and are non-transferable. You agree to indemnify and hold the author harmless from all claims, judgments, liabilities, expenses, or costs arising from your breach of this Agreement and/or acts or omissions.
Governing Law, Jurisdiction and Costs
This Agreement is governed by the laws of New York, without regard to New York's conflict or choice of law provisions.
Severability
If any provision of this Agreement shall be held to be invalid or unenforceable, the remainder of this Agreement shall remain in full force and effect. To the extent any express or implied restrictions are not permitted by applicable laws, these express or implied restrictions shall remain in force and effect to the maximum extent permitted by such applicable laws.