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After Effects
drAEw
Draw and animate inside After Effects using vector brushes! By converting your art into editable shape layers in your timeline, drAEw facilitates the workflow of motion designers, animators, and storyboard creators. NEW: Pressure-sensitive calligraphy brush.
Drawing meets animation inside After Effects!
drAEw is a creative playground embedded in After Effects. Forget about bouncing between sketch apps and AE — draw, animate, and deploy frame-by-frame shapes within one panel.
With vector tools, onion skinning, and real-time shape export, drAEw makes animation and storyboarding fluid and fast. It’s precision where you want it, and sketch freedom where you need it.
Output your animations as a single keyframed layer, or, if you prefer granular control, as a stack of layers following your chosen frame timing. The "Automatic Mode" allows you to draw 'n' push in AE on the fly! Total flexibility, no friction.
Core Features
- Grab the current view into drAew whenever you need
- Draw vector paths directly on drAew and convert to editable AE shapes
- Frame duration control for precise animation pacing
- Stroke, fill and alpha customization — live
- Onion skin overlays for consistent frame-by-frame motion
- Simplify and smooth tools to refine your lines
- Automatic Mode and Manual Mode for flexible output
- Respect comp size and coordinates
- Timeline-ready exports with preserved attributes
- Responsive and dockable
In Action
- Draw, Animate and send to your Comp
- Sketch storyboards and animatics directly in your comp
- Dive in fast frame-by-frame animation
- Play with opacity and trace above your art, one layer after another
- Layer annotations, callouts, and notes visually
- Instant back and forth between the viewport and your canvas
- Export layers or keys with one press or shortcut
TUTORIALS :
| drAEw | AE Paint Tool | |
|---|---|---|
| Setup Speed | Fast panel-based access | Slower, tool switching |
| Undo/Redo Experience | Intuitive, UI-driven | Cumbersome (undo brush steps) |
| Reusability | High (shapes can be reused/modified) | Low (baked into footage) |
| Editing After Drawing | Fully non-destructive | Very limited |
| Frame-by-frame animation | Native onion skin, timelines | Manual layer duplication |
Responsive User Interface:
New Calligraphy Brush :
Keyboard shortcuts in drAEw aren’t just convenience — they’re a speed interface for artists who don’t want to interrupt their flow.
- ⌘ or Ctrl + Tab = Grab Frame:
Capture the current comp frame and bring it onto your canvas as a visual reference. - Alt/Option + Shift = New Layer:
Instantly adds a new canvas layer — useful for evolving motion passes or layered breakdowns. - Alt/Option + Enter = Send:
Push canvases as a keyframed layer or layers to AE timeline - ⌘ or Ctrl + Enter = Alternative way to send
...For hands-on artists who live between pen and timeline. No clicking through layers, no menus, just quick moves.
Overview
Smart Jump & Grab
With the arrow in the bottom-right corner, you can automatically advance in time and grab the next comp frame in one click — no shortcuts needed.
It uses your defined "Frame Duration" (slider) to calculate the jump, then instantly grabs the new view as your next drawing reference.
Perfect for fast straight-ahead animation, breakdowns, or pose-to-pose workflows.
Frame Duration in drAEw
Timing is everything in animation , and with drAEw, the Frame Duration slider gives you direct control over how long each drawing stays visible in your timeline.This slider defines the number of frames each canvas will hold once pushed into After Effects.
Opacity Slider
The Opacity Slider controls the transparency of the canvas layers inside drAEw.It’s especially useful when onion skinning, letting you trace over previous drawings without losing clarity.It also helps when working over reference images or footage, allowing you to lower the opacity and focus on your next frame with precision.
Export Options
Stack of Layers vs. Single Keyframed Layer When sending your drawings to After Effects, drAEw gives you two export modes, each suited to a different workflow:
Stack of Layers Each canvas is pushed as a separate shape layer, with its own position in time based on the defined frame duration. Perfect for granular editing, custom layer styling, and timeline control.
Single Keyframed Layer All canvases are combined into one shape layer, with a new keyframe at each drawing. Ideal when you want to keep your timeline clean and focused.
Congrats Fred! This is an amazing tool!!! Definitely feels like an immediate upgrade to After Effects when the script is installed
— François Lefebvre (@lachamade) April 17, 2025
wow!!!
— Adobe Video & Motion (@AdobeVideo) April 24, 2025
This looks so promising!
— Eran Stern (@sternfx) February 25, 2025
Discussions
Want to talk about it?
Head over to r/aescripts to chat with fellow users about this product.
Need Support?
Please open a support ticket to be connected directly with the author of this product
Version History
1.0.015 -
Aug 4, 2025
1.0.014 -
Jul 25, 2025
Shortkeys optimizations
1.0.013 -
May 15, 2025
1.0.012 -
May 9, 2025
Stroke optimizations
Minor Changes in UI.
1.0.011 -
May 6, 2025
1.0.010 -
May 5, 2025
1.0.009 -
May 2, 2025
1.0.008 -
May 1, 2025
1.0.007 -
Apr 28, 2025
Straight lines: trace maintaining SHIFT
1.0.006 -
Apr 23, 2025
1.0.004-5 -
Apr 23, 2025
Grab Arrow for Win OK
1.0.004 -
Apr 22, 2025
1.0.003 -
Apr 22, 2025
1.0.002 -
Apr 17, 2025
1.0.001 -
Apr 16, 2025
Compatibility
After Effects
2026, 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020
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