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Inspiring
September 18, 2026

Custom UI parameters are very slow in AE 26.5

  • September 18, 2026
  • 1 reply
  • 11 views

in After Effects 26.5 custom controls feel a lot slower than the same controls in AE 25.

In After Effects 26.5, PF_Event_DRAW for an effect's custom UI in the Effect Controls panel is delivered at about 10fps for as long as the mouse is captured in a send_drag drag. The same plugin build on AE 25 receives 40fps under identical conditions. Hovering is unaffected — 26.5 delivers 90–130 there, which is faster than AE 25.

You can reproduce the issue with any plugin shipped with AE that features custom parameters, for example “Curves”. I tried to fiddle around with update flags and working around the drag system but was not able to find a solution or any significant improvement.

This is what I’m working with:

  • Windows 11 Pro 26200, NVIDIA GPU.
  • Effect uses PF_OutFlag_CUSTOM_UIPF_OutFlag_SEND_UPDATE_PARAMS_UIPF_OutFlag2_SUPPORTS_SMART_RENDERPF_OutFlag2_SUPPORTS_THREADED_RENDERING.
  • Custom UI drawn via PF_GetDrawingReference + the Drawbot suites, on an arbitrary-data parameter.

Here’s a video showing the difference:

Worth noting that I’m using AE 25 as a comparison because I can have both installed at the same time. But this issue only started when I updated AE 26.3 to 26.5.

    1 reply

    JohnColombo17100380
    Community Manager
    Community Manager
    September 18, 2026

    Thank you for reporting this, ​@octaviosa. We appreciate the detail and comparison. We’ve now got a ticket open to investigate.

    Thanks again,

    - John, After Effects Engineering Team