Sweeper
Swap a layer's source for another item while keeping its keyframes, effects, masks, and trims intact in After Effects.
Sweeper swaps the source of a layer you already animated for a different footage or comp item, while keeping everything you built on that layer. The layer's keyframes, effects, masks, transform, and in/out points all stay exactly where they are — only the underlying media changes. Reach for it when you have a finished layer and just need to drop in different content: a new logo, an updated render, a corrected clip, or a placeholder swapped for the real asset.
How to use it
Sweeper is selection-driven, so you point it at the two things you want to connect before you run it.
Open the composition in the timeline and select the one layer whose source you want to replace. It must be a footage or comp layer (not a text, shape, or null layer).
In the Project panel, select the single footage or comp item you want to swap in.
Open the Tools tab in the Prism panel and run Sweeper. The layer's source is replaced in place, and you get back a confirmation naming the layer and its new source.
You can also just ask your AI to swap the layer for you once your two selections are set. It runs the same tool and reports the result.
The swap happens inside a single undo group, so one undo puts everything back if you change your mind.
What you get
- In-place swap. Sweeper replaces only the layer's underlying source. It never recreates or duplicates the layer, so your keyframes, effects, masks, transform values, and in/out points carry straight over to the new media.
- Your source is untouched. Swapping in a new item does not alter the original Project-panel items in any way — it only repoints the layer.
- One selection on each side. You need exactly one footage or comp item selected in the Project panel and exactly one layer selected in the timeline. If you select zero or more than one layer, Sweeper tells you to fix the selection rather than guessing.
- Optional: re-point expressions. There's an option to update expressions that referenced the old source by name so they point at the new one. It's off by default; turn it on if your layer drives behavior off the source name.
- Shorter new source. If the layer was trimmed longer than the new source's duration, the out point is not auto-extended — Sweeper leaves your trim as-is and notes it in the result so you can adjust if needed.
- Guardrails. You can't swap a composition into one of its own layers, and only footage or comp items qualify as a valid source. Sweeper returns a clear message in these cases instead of making a bad swap.
Related
- The Tools tab — where Sweeper and the other selection-driven tools live.
- The active comp is the context — how Prism knows which comp and layers you mean.
- Usage and limits — plan caps and credit costs for the metered tools.
Lottie
Bring a Lottie JSON animation into After Effects as a new, already-moving composition built from editable shape and null layers.
Troubleshooting
Fix the most common Prism issues in After Effects — connection checks, tools that do nothing, wrong-looking results, clipped glyphs, and intermittent operations.