I tried installing FBXtoAE Pro for Ae 20204 using the Ae Scripts manager, but it wasn't able to.
I was able to install it manually for Ae 2024, but FBXtoAE Pro is not showing up in the Import menu. I do see FBXtoAe Pro in the Export menu, but I need the import module to work.
I wonder if the Trapcode plugin is somehow interfering? If I select a random FBX file and import it anyway using the generic Import File command with the FBX2AE Pro file option selected, I get a black card stating 3D MODEL FOR USE WITH TRAPCODE.
Note: this particular FBX data (a character file) might not be appropriate for this plugin. When I have time, I'll prepare a file to specifically test FBXtoAe.
Any suggestions? Thanks in advance for any help.
Update: Sorry, I forgot to mention I'm running Ae 2024 on Window 11.
I tried again with an FBX file that contained only a camera and a box, no animation. I expected to see the camera and a null or a solid layer at the box's location. Before importing the file, I made sure the 3D Model For Trapcode option was disabled. I got the same result: I see only a black card with the text 3D MODEL FOR USE WITH TRAPCODE.
I also moved the FBXtoAe Pro plugins from the 2024 Plugins folder to the Common Plugins folder, but it made no difference. I see FBXtoAe in the Export menu, but not in the Import menu.
I guess I could try removing Trapcode, but I don't really want to do that. Maybe I'll try it on a different computer later today.
One more update: I tried the same configuration and steps using lastest public After Effects Beta, and I'm getting the same result.
I tried installing FBXtoAE Pro for Ae 20204 using the Ae Scripts manager, but it wasn't able to.
I was able to install it manually for Ae 2024, but FBXtoAE Pro is not showing up in the Import menu. I do see FBXtoAe Pro in the Export menu, but I need the import module to work.
I wonder if the Trapcode plugin is somehow interfering? If I select a random FBX file and import it anyway using the generic Import File command with the FBX2AE Pro file option selected, I get a black card stating 3D MODEL FOR USE WITH TRAPCODE.
Note: this particular FBX data (a character file) might not be appropriate for this plugin. When I have time, I'll prepare a file to specifically test FBXtoAe.
Any suggestions? Thanks in advance for any help.
Update: Sorry, I forgot to mention I'm running Ae 2024 on Window 11.
One last note though: tried this on a second computer, same result. I think FBX To Ae is incompatible with Ae 2024. Will document everything and submit this to a support ticket.
May try installing an older version of Ae later to confirm.
I submitted a support ticket a few days ago and am awaiting a reply.
To recap: The aescripts App appears unable to correctly install the FBXToAe Pro plugin for After Effects 2024 or 2025. I was able to manually install the plugins, but unfortunately, only the Export command is available from the menus, and not the Import command. (The part I need.)
I have a couple of ideas for why FBXToAe Pro is not working in my Ae 2024-2025...
I also have the Red Giant suites installed. Some of these plugins are capable of importing FBX but only for their own specific environments. Perhaps these plugins are interfering with FBXToAd Pro?
Or, the plugin is just broken for Ae 2024-2025.
I'm commenting here to check with other FBXToAe users whether the plugin should work with the recent releases of After Effects, or if this is a lost cause and I should just move on. I realize the plugin has not been updated since 2021, so I'm wondering if it's been abandoned by the developer.
If it's the latter, does anyone have a good suggestion for getting the camera and null animations from an FBX file into After Effects? I'm not interested in importing geometry, just camera settings and nulls animation data, and perhaps light positions but that's less important.
I'm able to do this using a 3D program called Lightwave, but it has a built-in link to Ae and doesn't use FBX for this. I've done this a few times with Maya too, also with a direct link to Ae.
But, I want to be able to do this with other animation and compositing programs that don't have a direct link to Ae, but can export FBX data. I'm able to import camera and null data from FBX into other compositing programs like Nuke and Fusion, but I wish to also do this with After Effects.
In case anyone is wondering, my current workaround is to import the FBX from other animation and compositing programs to LightWave, and then using LightWave's direct link to After Effects to send camera and null data to Ae.
This works, but I'm hoping for a more direct FBX solution for Ae.
FBXToAe Pro appears to have been the option, so it's unfortunate if this is no longer supported.
The plugin should work on all versions because it doesn't refer to specific elements of the AE API, but I haven’t had a chance to test it on the latest versions. The installation has always been described as manual, involving copying and pasting into the correct folders (see manual). Unfortunately, I’ve learned from various users that a Red Giant plugin 'obscures' the visibility of my FBX importer. At the moment, I’m unable to test the procedure and identify the issue. I understand the difficulty, and for urgent cases, I can only suggest uninstalling Red Giant or using other software, as suggested by you, to import FBX files into AE. I am no longer heavily involved in this plugin's development. I’ll try to reach out to Adobe or Red Giant to see if there’s an identified compatibility issue. Best regards.
Thank you so much for responding! I replied to to your response in the support ticket a few minutes ago, but I'll share part of my response here for other FBXToAe users also seeing this problem, or Ae users considering purchase:
I'll see if I can get FBXToAe Pro to work with the Red Giant plugins removed. I've been gradually replacing the RG plugins with similar tools from aescripts and other sources anyway, and I plan to cancel my Maxon subscription soon. (IMO, the RG plugins have gotten too insanely expensive since Maxon took over.) If FBXToAe does work as intended with the RG plugins removed, I'll certainly want to keep it on hand.
Hi all,