Read the project state

Read is how the agent learns what is already in your project before it changes anything. It sees the structure: which compositions exist, and for the one you name, which layers it holds and how they sit in time. It never sees your files and never sees pixels; for pixels there is snapshot.

How to use it

You say: "Tell me about my current composition." or "What is in the Main comp?"

Naming the composition saves a round trip: After Effects does not tell the agent which comp is in front, so an unnamed request ends with the agent listing what it found and asking you which one you mean.

What you get

For the project: its name and every composition with its size, duration, frame rate and layer count.

For a named composition: each layer with its name, type (text, shape, solid, footage, precomp, camera and so on), the four switches, its in and out points, its parent and its blending mode. That is enough for the agent to place new work correctly, address a layer by name, and notice a locked or hidden layer before it tries to write to it.

A composition name that does not match returns the names that do exist, so the next request is right without a guess.

Notes and limits

• What it does not read. Property values, keyframes, effects and expressions are not part of a read; the agent reads those through a script, which returns exactly the numbers it asks for.
• After a slow change. Reading the composition you changed is the way to confirm the work landed, including after a timeout. Read it; do not run the change again.
• Size. A whole project can be large, so the default is the composition list, and the layer detail comes per composition.
• The panel must be open and connected. A read runs inside After Effects like everything else.

Common questions

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