Lightweight Swap

נבנה ונבדק

• Makes a placeholder for every video over a size threshold: same width, height, frame rate, frame count and duration, and a silent audio track if the original has audio.
• Works for odd frame sizes and fractional frame rates such as 23.976 and 29.97.
• Originals are never modified, moved or deleted, and nothing is overwritten. Dry run by default.
• Writes swap_manifest.json with every original and its placeholder; verify checks each placeholder still matches.
• Skips render caches and proxy folders; refuses an output folder inside a source.
• The browser demo shows the in-place swap: the project item keeps its id and name, so layers, timing, keyframes and effects stay put, and reconnecting restores the project exactly.

מגבלות

• Works in parts. The command line tool and the After Effects swap script are in the download. The script passed in After Effects 26.5.0 on macOS 27.0.1; Windows is not tested yet, so the whole item stays a prototype.
• Placeholders with an alpha channel come out opaque.
• Tested on Linux and macOS; Windows is not yet tested.
• Image sequences are not handled.

מתוכנן

Undo manifest, batch report, reconnect original footage and media checks.

• Download and unzip. Run a dry run: python3 lightweight_swap.py make "Project folder" --out "Placeholders".
• Add --apply to write the placeholders and the manifest. Use --min-mb to change the threshold (default 100).
• In After Effects, select a heavy item, File, Replace Footage, File, and pick its placeholder. Every layer stays connected.
• Before rendering, replace each item with the original path from the manifest. Run verify any time to check the placeholders.

• ffprobe reads exact stream facts: frame rate as a fraction, counted frames, audio sample rate and channels.
• ffmpeg draws a dark grid frame at that geometry and timing and encodes it small (H.264, 4:4:4 for odd sizes).
• The color source rounds odd sizes down, so the tool draws one pixel larger and crops to the exact size; a test caught this.
• In After Effects, Replace Footage changes the item's file, not the layers, which is why links and keyframes survive. It also renames the item after the new file; the first test in After Effects caught this, and the script now puts the name back.

• הורדה Lightweight Swap 1.1.0 (ZIP, Python and After Effects script)v1.1.0 · 10.6 KB · MIT
  SHA-256 318e9a2e80995efbdca6c39a971d7691a8d0c092c116d88f9ea11b0cb728b6c7
  נבדק: Automated tests on Linux, Python 3.13, ffmpeg 7. Placeholders made on macOS 27.0.1; the After Effects script tested in After Effects 26.5.0 on macOS 27.0.1. Windows not yet tested.

• עבר Package: placeholders match size, frame rate, frame count and audio; 20x+ smaller; originals unchanged (SHA-256) Linux, Python 3.13, ffmpeg 7
• עבר Package: odd frame size and 23.976 fps Linux, Python 3.13, ffmpeg 7
• עבר Package: dry run writes nothing; never overwrites; output inside a source refused Linux, Python 3.13, ffmpeg 7
• עבר Package: verify passes, then catches a mismatched placeholder Linux, Python 3.13, ffmpeg 7
• עבר Package: clear error without ffmpeg Linux, Python 3.13
• עבר Release 1.1.0: package tests (including the host script checks) re-run from the unzipped archive, public scan clean Linux
• עבר Unit: in-place swap keeps items, links, timing, keyframes, effects; reconnect is exact Node 22, Linux
• עבר Host script: compiles; Replace Footage only; no removal (static) Node 22, Linux
• עבר Browser: swap and reconnect in the demo, real run shown, download offered Chromium (Playwright), 1280px
• עבר Host: swap and reconnect inside After Effects After Effects 26.5.0, macOS 27.0.1
• עבר Package on macOS: makes placeholders that After Effects accepts in place of the originals macOS 27.0.1, Python 3.9.6, ffmpeg 9.0.2
• עוד לא נבדק Package on Windows Not run

נבדק לאחרונה: 2026-10-31.

יוצר הקבצים החלופיים וסקריפט ההחלפה שנבדק זמינים להורדה (1.1.0) (נבדקו ב-⁠Linux, וב-⁠macOS, שם הם יצרו את הקבצים החלופיים לבדיקה ב-⁠After Effects). סקריפט ההחלפה רץ ב-⁠After Effects 26.5.0 על macOS 27.0.1: בהרצה הראשונה התגלה ש-⁠Replace Footage משנה את שם הפריט לשם הקובץ החלופי, ולכן הסקריפט שומר עכשיו את השם; בהרצה השנייה שם הפריט, השכבות, התזמון, הקיפריימים והאפקטים נשארו זהים לאורך ההחלפה והחיבור מחדש. תיעוד: labs/host-tests/results/2026-10-31-mac.

קלט

AE project with selected video footage

פלט

Compact placeholder footage and replacement report

רץ ב

Command line tool for macOS, Linux or Windows with Python 3.9+ and ffmpeg (tested on Linux and macOS), and an After Effects script in the same download that swaps from the manifest (tested in After Effects 26.5.0 on macOS 27.0.1).

מקור

מקורי, נבנה מחדש מאפס

• After Effects
• סקריפט
• אוטומציה
• ניסיוני
• להורדה
• אב-⁠טיפוס
• אינטראקטיבי