Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Bringing a rendered CGI shot into After Effects is a chore. Hunt through the open-file dialog, import the EXR, then wire up EXtractoR for every pass by hand — then do it again for the next shot, and the next version of it.
Gulp replaces the routine. Point it at a render folder, browse your shots in a panel, and build a comp with every pass on its own named layer — channel routing, blend modes, depth remapping and PuzzleMatte splitting done.
aescripts.com/Gulp
BROWSE YOUR RENDERS, NOT THE FILE DIALOG
• Image sequences collapse to a single line with their real frame range — [1001–1150] · 150f
• Multichannel EXRs carry a multipass tag — hover to see the passes inside
• Filter by name or extension, with negative terms to exclude what you don't want
• Favourite folders globally or per project; recent roots sit by the picker
• Select footage in AE's Project panel and jump straight to it on disk
• Drag a folder from Explorer or Finder onto the panel
IT READS THE EXR BEFORE YOU IMPORT IT
• Headers are parsed as you browse: passes, channel layout, bit depth (16-bit half or 32-bit float), frame rate where present
• The build dialog shows the detected colourspace and bit depth before anything is imported
• Frame ranges and gaps are visible before you commit
• Missing frames are named, not just counted — hover the badge to see exactly which
• Gulp can silence After Effects' own missing-frame dialogs
ONE CLICK, ONE FINISHED COMP
• Build takes the multipass EXR plus any standalone AOVs beside it and returns a named comp
• Every pass on its own labelled layer, filed into tidy project folders
• Lighting passes get additive blend modes; data passes arrive parked, not polluting the picture
• EXtractoR / IDentifier channel selection is set on each layer by Gulp's own native plugin — no manual channel picking
• A shot with a beauty builds with the other passes switched off, so you start from the picture
• Progress bars on builds and imports
DEPTH AND MATTES, HANDLED PROPERLY
• Depth arrives as one layer, Z routed to RGB, black/white points set from a near/far range
• That range is prefilled from the render camera's own metadata where present (Redshift writes it)
• PuzzleMattes split into one luma-matte layer per ID, ready to use as track mattes
• A matte baked as a single ID at render time stays one layer, not three duplicates
IT KNOWS THE RENDER ISN'T FINISHED
• A shot still coming off the farm shows a completeness bar: frames present against the expected range
• Tick "Watch this shot for renders" and Gulp extends the comp and every pass layer as frames land — no re-import, no rebuild
• If earlier frames appear, it asks whether to slide the shot to the new start
WORKS WITH DROPBOX, ONEDRIVE AND ICLOUD
• Online-only files are badged, and reading an EXR header never triggers a download
• Download what you need from the browser — right-click, or click the badge
• Every prompt states the cost in GB before it acts — nothing pulls 40GB behind your back
• Inspect an online-only sequence's passes on demand
SPLIT A MULTIPASS TO REAL FILES ON DISK
• Right-click a multipass EXR and each pass is written out as its own sequence, then the folder opens
• Choose the output compression: DWAB, DWAA, ZIP or PIZ
• Powered by the bundled oiiotool, so every EXR compression is handled
RELINK A BROKEN PROJECT IN ONE PASS
• Scans for missing footage and matches it against a folder you point at, to a search depth you set
• Relinks in bulk — sequences, stills and movies, including items whose type AE got wrong
• Ambiguous matches get a per-item choice, not a silent guess
QUICK IMPORT WHEN YOU DON'T WANT A COMP
• Import any footage with its own dialog: frame rate, destination folder, layer naming, straight into the active comp if you want
• Loose movies and stills can build a comp too, sized and timed from the footage — mp4, mov, png and the rest
SEND THE COMP TO PREMIERE
• One click sends the active comp to an open Premiere project as a Dynamic Link comp, optionally at the playhead
• If the project isn't saved yet, Gulp prompts you and carries on
COLOUR, STATED HONESTLY
• Reads your project's live colour state — engine, OCIO config, working space, bit depth
• Walks you through an ACES setup, recommending 32bpc and an ACEScg working space for scene-linear EXRs
• AE will not let a script change all of it — Gulp sets what is settable and says exactly what to click for the rest, rather than pretending
AN INTERFACE THAT FITS YOUR AFTER EFFECTS
• Five themes previewed live in Preferences, the default matching AE's own darkest interface and Adobe accent
SPECIFICATION
• After Effects 2022 and above
• Windows x64 · macOS universal (Apple Silicon and Intel), Apple-notarized — no security prompts
• Multipass / multichannel EXRs from any renderer — Redshift, Octane, Arnold, V-Ray, Cinema 4D
• Under the hood: a CEP panel, a native AE plugin (AEGP) doing the comp building and channel routing, plus a bundled oiiotool
Bringing a rendered CGI shot into After Effects is a chore. Hunt through the open-file dialog, import the EXR, then wire up EXtractoR for every pass by hand — then do it again for the next shot, and the next version of it.
Gulp replaces the routine. Point it at a render folder, browse your shots in a panel, and build a comp with every pass on its own named layer — channel routing, blend modes, depth remapping and PuzzleMatte splitting done.
aescripts.com/Gulp
BROWSE YOUR RENDERS, NOT THE FILE DIALOG
• Image sequences collapse to a single line with their real frame range — [1001–1150] · 150f
• Multichannel EXRs carry a multipass tag — hover to see the passes inside
• Filter by name or extension, with negative terms to exclude what you don't want
• Favourite folders globally or per project; recent roots sit by the picker
• Select footage in AE's Project panel and jump straight to it on disk
• Drag a folder from Explorer or Finder onto the panel
IT READS THE EXR BEFORE YOU IMPORT IT
• Headers are parsed as you browse: passes, channel layout, bit depth (16-bit half or 32-bit float), frame rate where present
• The build dialog shows the detected colourspace and bit depth before anything is imported
• Frame ranges and gaps are visible before you commit
• Missing frames are named, not just counted — hover the badge to see exactly which
• Gulp can silence After Effects' own missing-frame dialogs
ONE CLICK, ONE FINISHED COMP
• Build takes the multipass EXR plus any standalone AOVs beside it and returns a named comp
• Every pass on its own labelled layer, filed into tidy project folders
• Lighting passes get additive blend modes; data passes arrive parked, not polluting the picture
• EXtractoR / IDentifier channel selection is set on each layer by Gulp's own native plugin — no manual channel picking
• A shot with a beauty builds with the other passes switched off, so you start from the picture
• Progress bars on builds and imports
DEPTH AND MATTES, HANDLED PROPERLY
• Depth arrives as one layer, Z routed to RGB, black/white points set from a near/far range
• That range is prefilled from the render camera's own metadata where present (Redshift writes it)
• PuzzleMattes split into one luma-matte layer per ID, ready to use as track mattes
• A matte baked as a single ID at render time stays one layer, not three duplicates
IT KNOWS THE RENDER ISN'T FINISHED
• A shot still coming off the farm shows a completeness bar: frames present against the expected range
• Tick "Watch this shot for renders" and Gulp extends the comp and every pass layer as frames land — no re-import, no rebuild
• If earlier frames appear, it asks whether to slide the shot to the new start
WORKS WITH DROPBOX, ONEDRIVE AND ICLOUD
• Online-only files are badged, and reading an EXR header never triggers a download
• Download what you need from the browser — right-click, or click the badge
• Every prompt states the cost in GB before it acts — nothing pulls 40GB behind your back
• Inspect an online-only sequence's passes on demand
SPLIT A MULTIPASS TO REAL FILES ON DISK
• Right-click a multipass EXR and each pass is written out as its own sequence, then the folder opens
• Choose the output compression: DWAB, DWAA, ZIP or PIZ
• Powered by the bundled oiiotool, so every EXR compression is handled
RELINK A BROKEN PROJECT IN ONE PASS
• Scans for missing footage and matches it against a folder you point at, to a search depth you set
• Relinks in bulk — sequences, stills and movies, including items whose type AE got wrong
• Ambiguous matches get a per-item choice, not a silent guess
QUICK IMPORT WHEN YOU DON'T WANT A COMP
• Import any footage with its own dialog: frame rate, destination folder, layer naming, straight into the active comp if you want
• Loose movies and stills can build a comp too, sized and timed from the footage — mp4, mov, png and the rest
SEND THE COMP TO PREMIERE
• One click sends the active comp to an open Premiere project as a Dynamic Link comp, optionally at the playhead
• If the project isn't saved yet, Gulp prompts you and carries on
COLOUR, STATED HONESTLY
• Reads your project's live colour state — engine, OCIO config, working space, bit depth
• Walks you through an ACES setup, recommending 32bpc and an ACEScg working space for scene-linear EXRs
• AE will not let a script change all of it — Gulp sets what is settable and says exactly what to click for the rest, rather than pretending
AN INTERFACE THAT FITS YOUR AFTER EFFECTS
• Five themes previewed live in Preferences, the default matching AE's own darkest interface and Adobe accent
SPECIFICATION
• After Effects 2022 and above
• Windows x64 · macOS universal (Apple Silicon and Intel), Apple-notarized — no security prompts
• Multipass / multichannel EXRs from any renderer — Redshift, Octane, Arnold, V-Ray, Cinema 4D
• Under the hood: a CEP panel, a native AE plugin (AEGP) doing the comp building and channel routing, plus a bundled oiiotool
