Color Management still completely broken sending AE project to Media Encoder (AE 25.5 and up)

[UON VISUALS]

For the past few months I've been trying to talk to support about this issue because I'm unable to use any version of AE past 2025.1

Something is really wrong with the color management for HDR projects when sending them to Media encoder. I've had tech support remotely connect to my computer to try and figure out (like disabling all my plugins which of course didn't work, the issue is internal to AE/ME themselves). Every time the beta versions get updated I download them and check to see if it's finally fixed and nope. I am still waiting for responses from higher levels of support and honestly this is pretty frustrating.

Even 2025.1 isn't working 100% like when I import h.265 HLG project the image is interpreted way brighter than it should be. Can you please stop focusing 100% of your time on the AI features and get the color management fixed? 

-UON

PS I posted this directly from Media Encoder beta "Report a bug" and it says it copied my system info, but it didn't paste and I don't see it as an attatchment so here:
MSI Raider A18 HX A9W
Amd 9950X3D AI processor

64GB Ram

RTX 5090 mobile 24gb Vram

Windows 11 

Note, this same bug happens on my other computers I've installed the software on too, in the same way.

[UON VISUALS]

Also before anyone asks, I've tried every combination of tweaking every color management setting mentioned in my previous threads plus what tech support tried and it happens consistently. My default projects settings for all my workflows are 32bpc Rec2100PQ with Mercury hardware acceleration (CUDA). I've tried full re-installs and different Nvidia drivers.

If you want to recreate the issue, follow those project settings and import an HDR file, then export it straight to ME and you'll see the colors messed up. Premiere pro doesn't have this problem at all when exporting to ME, only AE

[EckiAME]

Moving to After Effects Team because the rendering of after Effects comps in AME is still managed by After Effects components.

[AidanEdits]

In after effects, I can see you have Display Color Management enabled. This means that the color's you are seeing at in AE have been temporarily converted to match your monitors color space for previewing purposes only. DCM does not actually change the color space of your project, it only shows you what it could look like if viewed in a certain color space, which is helpful if you are, say, working with Log footage in a project that will be exported in Rec 709. Unfortunately, if you have been color correcting on a Rec 2100 clip while viewing it in Rec709, you will only be able to export your colors accurately if you export in Rec 709. 

[jefubbudu]

@EckiAME 

Tell me it's spaghetti code without saying "spaghetti code"

[UON VISUALS]

That's not the problem though, the problem is that After Effects isn't sending a rec2100 project to media encoder in any of the new versions, despite the source saying it's rec2100 in the Export settings it looks like an absolute mess.

From adobe premiere pro I send a rec2100 project to media encoder and it looks fine both in the export preview and the export itself. So does After Effects 2025.1, that's why I'm stuck on that version till this glitch gets figured out

[AidanEdits]

Uon, if you are working in Rec2100PQ and then exporting in Rec2100PQ, can you explain why you have Display Color Management enabled? DCM in AE is likely doing a HDR>SDR preview transform, which does not transfer to ME.

Display Color Management enabled: colours in ME look different 

Display Color Management disabled: colours in ME look the same