The Concept
Console to AE bridges two worlds that rarely talk to each other: browser development and motion design. It captures events from a web browser's developer console and translates them into timeline markers inside After Effects. The result is a synchronized link between what happens in a web application and what appears on an AE timeline.
How It Works
The system has two components. A Chrome extension monitors the browser's console output -- logs, errors, warnings, network events, and custom events -- and captures them with timestamps. An After Effects script receives this event data and places corresponding markers on the active composition's timeline, positioned to match the timing of the original browser events.
Why It Exists
When creating motion design pieces that visualize or demonstrate web application behavior -- marketing videos, developer documentation, product demos, technical presentations -- the typical workflow involves screen recording, then manually placing markers or keyframes to align animations with application events. Console to AE automates that alignment. Fire an event in the browser, get a marker in AE at the right timestamp.
Use Cases
Product demo videos where UI animations need to sync with application state changes. Developer documentation videos where code execution needs visual annotation. Bug reproduction videos where console errors need to be highlighted on the timeline. Any workflow where browser events and motion design timelines need to be in sync.
Technical Architecture
The Chrome extension uses the chrome.devtools API to intercept console messages and the chrome.runtime messaging system to pass events to a background script. The After Effects side uses ExtendScript to create MarkerValue objects and place them on the active composition. Communication between Chrome and AE happens through a lightweight intermediary -- either a local file that both sides can read/write, or a localhost WebSocket connection.
Tech Stack
Chrome Extension APIs (devtools, runtime, tabs), ExtendScript (ES3) for After Effects, MarkerValue API, WebSocket or file-based IPC.