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After Effects
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JustPaste
JustPaste! is an extension for Adobe After Effects that turns the tedious, multi-step workflow of saving, exporting, locating, and dragging asset files into a single, seamless copy-and-paste action.
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Copy almost any visual asset to your clipboard from virtually any app (web browsers, image viewers, screenshots, Illustrator, Photoshop, Figma, and more), or copy one or several files in Finder or Explorer, then return to After Effects, bring up the JustPaste! panel, and click PASTE! (or press Ctrl + V / Cmd + V while the panel is active).
Once pasted, the extension automatically names the asset, saves it right next to your After Effects project (optionally inside a dedicated folder), and instantly drops it into your active composition. And it handles the assets that normally refuse to be pasted: copy an animated GIF from the web and it arrives with its full animation, not a frozen first frame. Copy an SVG (raw code or a visually copied element) and watch it turn into fully editable shape layers right on your timeline
Supported Formats
Supported formats from the web and apps (clipboard)*:
JPG/JPEG, PNG, GIF (also with animation), SVG, WebP, AVIF, BMP, TIFF
* Practically any visual you can copy from anywhere to the clipboard is supported. Because browsers and most apps place the copied image on the clipboard as raw pixel data, so the source format doesn't matter. JustPaste! automatically saves it next to your project with best quality. Animated GIFs keep their full animation. Vectors are supported as SVG, whether copied as an element (from Figma, Illustrator, or a browser) or as raw SVG code.
Supported formats from local files copied in Finder or Explorer*:
PNG, JPG/JPEG, GIF, BMP, TIF/TIFF, SVG, TGA, EXR, WebP, PSD, AI, EPS, MOV, MP4, M4V, AVI, MPG/MPEG, MXF, MTS, M2TS, 3GP, WAV, MP3, AIF/AIFF, M4A, and AAC
* Files are imported with After Effects' native importers, so a given format needs an After Effects version that supports it: SVG requires After Effects 2026, and WebP files require a recent AE release.
Key Features
- Paste any image or vector copied to your system clipboard directly into your After Effects composition with a single click or Ctrl/Cmd + V
- Paste files copied in Finder or File Explorer directly into your current After Effects project and project folder. Preserve original filenames or automatically rename them using a custom naming template in Settings. Supports pasting multiple files at once.
- Paste animated GIFs from the web with full animation only via right click and "Copy Image"
- Works with content copied from web browsers, Illustrator, Photoshop, Figma, and most apps
- Auto mode detects copied assets and automatically selects the best format to save them
- Convert SVGs into editable shape layers automatically*
- Auto-saves each file next to your .aep project, optionally inside a custom-named folder, created both on disk and in the Project panel
- Control layer placement: top, bottom, above, or below the selected layer
- Match the pasted layer's timing to the playhead, or to the selected layer's start/end
- Optional "ask for file name before each paste," plus customizable file-name templates
- Choose what happens if a file name already exists: add a number, overwrite, or skip
Compatible with Adobe After Effects CC 2019 (16.0) or newer*
OS: Windows 10/11 or macOS
* Note: The SVG pasting (including SVG to shapes) requires After Effects 2026 (26.0), the first version with native SVG import.
FAQ / Troubleshooting
Why can't the extension create files or paste?
Make sure your After Effects project is saved first (pasted files are written next to the project file). If file creation still fails, check that "Allow Scripts to Write Files and Access Network" is enabled: Windows → Edit > Preferences > Scripting & Expressions, macOS → After Effects > Settings/Preferences > Scripting & Expressions.
Which apps can I copy from?
Practically anything that puts an image or vector on your clipboard: web browsers (Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari), Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, Figma, and most other design apps. You can also paste raw SVG code, or even supported files you've copied in Finder/Explorer.
What file formats does it support?
You can copy almost any image or vector: the clipboard holds the copied data as raw pixel data (and, for vectors like SVG, as vector data), so the source doesn't matter. What matters is the format it's saved as next to your project, and JustPaste! uses the formats After Effects supports natively: PNG (with transparency, best quality), JPG, and SVG. In Auto mode it picks the best format for what you copied; in Manual mode you force a specific one. You can change this in JustPaste!'s Settings. Files copied in Finder/Explorer are not converted, they are imported in their original format.
Why isn't my copied SVG pasted into the project?
Pasting the SVG format requires After Effects 2026 (26.0) or newer, since that's when native SVG import was added. On older versions the SVG file is still saved beside your project, but After Effects can't import it (you'll see "Saved (SVG), but AE couldn't import it"). On AE CC 2019+ you can instead paste it as PNG.
Does it work on both Windows and macOS?
Yes. The paste workflow is the same on both, only the underlying clipboard mechanism differs.
The Ctrl/Cmd+V shortcut doesn't paste, is it broken?
The shortcut only works while the JustPaste! panel is active/focused. This is intentional: it is not a global shortcut, so it won't interfere with pasting elsewhere in After Effects. Click inside the panel first, or use the PASTE! button.
If I paste a copied file, does it move or change my original?
No. JustPaste! only creates a copy of the original file into your project folder, keeping its original name by default.
Need more features? 🚀
Don't hesitate to contact me. I will be happy to hear your ideas and feature requests.
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
1.2.1 -
Jul 12, 2026
- New: Audio file support: WAV, MP3, AIF/AIFF, M4A, and AAC are now accepted from Finder/Explorer, both single and in multi-file batches.
- General bug fixes and improvements.
1.2 -
Jul 2, 2026
- New: paste multiple files at once, copy several files in Finder or Explorer and paste them all in one step (one undo, all selected).
- New: paste files copied in Finder or Explorer, now including video (MOV, MP4, and more) as well as PSD, AI and images.
- New: files copied from Finder or Explorer keep their original file names (can be turned off in Settings).
- Improved: pasted layers now always go to the composition active in your Timeline, even if another composition is selected in the Project panel.
- Improved: after pasting, only the new footage and layers are selected in the Project panel and Timeline.
- Fixed: image pasting from Safari and some other apps on macOS is more reliable.
- Fixed: compatibility with older After Effects versions, image and file pasting now work correctly on earlier releases.
- Fixed: SVG to shapes conversion now works on non-English versions of After Effects.
- Fixed: files with non-English characters in their names now paste correctly on Windows.
- General bug fixes and improvements.
1.1 -
Jun 29, 2026
- Control layer placement: top, bottom, above, or below the selected layer
- Match the pasted layer's start to the playhead or the selected layer's start or end
- Optional "ask for file name before saving each paste" prompt
- Interface now follows the native After Effects color theme (light / dark / darkest)
- Fixed: the Paste button now should work on all macOS releases.
- New: paste a file copied in Finder/Explorer — it's copied into your project folder and renamed per your template (Windows & macOS).
- New: "If the name already exists" option (Add a number / Overwrite / Skip) so pastes never silently overwrite each other.
- Improved: one Cmd/Ctrl+Z now undoes a whole paste in a single step.
- General bug fixes and improvements.
1.0 -
Jun 26, 2026
Compatibility
After Effects
2026, 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, CC 2019
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