After Effects Error: Keylight out of memory (4)

[ConanO4E]

After Effects CS4 keeps crapping out on me, and won't allow me to render my projects. I keep getting the message, "After Effects Error: Keylight out of memory (4)"

I'm running a brand new IMac 3.4 GHz Intel Core I7 (which I understand gives me virtually 8 cores), and I have 8 GB of Ram.

I've tried with multi-frame processing enabled, and dissabled and the same thing. When I tried with the mulit-frame enabled I selected allow 4 CPU's Free and allow 6CPU's free, and still the same results. Any help would be greatly apprecicated.

Thanks!

[Mylenium]

Yes, Keylight is an evil little toad... Have you downloaded the latest version/ updates from the The Foundry website? What kind of footage are you working with and what are your project settings?

Mylenium

[ConanO4E]

I am updated on AE updates... What's the foundry website? I'm using Apple Pro Res HQ for my footage. What specifically about the settings? It's a 1920 X1080 project with 23.98 frame rate.  Thanks so much for your help

[Dave_LaRonde]

Unfortunately, 8 gigs isn't exactly tons of RAM anymore.  I have a dual quad-core Mac Pro with 8 gigs at work, and I don't even bother using multiprocessing. 

It could also be that you're trying to use Open GL acceleration for rendering, which is something Adobe employees don't even use... and you shouldn't, either.

A final thing:  DO NOT make your comp's frame rate 23.98!  That's just Final Cut Pro-Speak for the actual frame rate, which is 23.976.  Use 23.976 in AE and things will look good in FCP.  Use 23.98 in AE and things will look screwy in FCP.

[ConanO4E]

Thanks for all your help. What's Open GL acceleration? How would I know if I'm doing that?

[Dave_LaRonde]

AE Preferences.

[ConanO4E]

Thanks, I unsellected that, and nothing. I just tried rendering out the same project with my 4 year old Mac Book pro 2.4 Ghz intel core duo with 4 GB or Ram and the project rendered without issue. I have no idea what's going on with the IMac.

[Dave_LaRonde]

It could be an issue with AE 9 and Lion; I presume that's OS on your brand-new machine.  AE 9 doesn't know about Lion.

[Dave_LaRonde]

Since you run AE 9, it's probably your footage.  Okay, it's the most likely cause, at least.  Here's a copy 'n paste response I used to use a LOT  on the Creative COW:

Dave's Stock Answer #1:

If the footage you imported into AE is  any  kind of the following -- footage in an HDV acquisition codec, MPEG1, MPEG2, AVCHD, mp4, mts, m2t, H.261 or H.264 -- you need to convert it to a different codec.

These kinds of footage use temporal, or interframe compression. They have keyframes at regular intervals, containing complete frame information.  However, the frames in between do NOT have complete information.  Interframe codecs toss out duplicated information.

In order to maintain peak rendering efficiency, AE needs complete information for each and every frame. But because these kinds of footage contain only partial information, AE freaks out, resulting in a wide variety of problems.

I'm a Mac guy, so I like to convert to Quicktime movies in the Animation or PNG codecs; both are lossless.  I'll

[ConanO4E]

I'm using Apple Pro Res HQ. Is there anything wrong with that codec? Thanks so much for your help.

[Dave_LaRonde]

Oh, there's nothing wrong with ProRes HQ.  It gives you fine-looking images. 

You also get the added benefit of much larger file sizes for no increase in image quality over regular ProRes 422.

It's just that many people try using long-gop footage in AE 9, causing all sorts of problems.

[Amin Akbarinakhjavani]

I'm having the same problem but the format of the files that I'm working with is MOV and I'm working on a PC. What would you suggest I should use to encode my footage in to then use in AE. I'm pretty new to this so sorry if I ask stupid questions! Thanks.

[austinw40106298]

Just clear your cache.

[Alexander_Pashkov]

This does not always work for everyone.

[Alexander_Pashkov]

Same problem here, latest version of AE, HP Z-640 (16 GB ram, SSD+1TB+10GBE (Stornext / SMB or DLC), Nvidia Quadro K5000, Win7 Pro).

We work mainly with MOV and MXF OP-1A, Full-HD.

The problem is shown even in simple projects - 4 minutes movie in one layer and nothing else: when rendering the preview time line, AE takes 8 GB ram and at some point it crashing. Or the same thing will happen only when you try to play the timeline.

[austinw40106298]

Hey Alexander, looks like were having similar problems. This may be a long shot but I also found that if your using RSMB (reel smart motion blur), make sure the any layer below it that is affected takes up the whole timeline (eg, if your rsmb adjustment layer is longer than your footage layer, it seems to cause problems).

[Alexander_Pashkov]

Thank you, Austin, I'll check this nuance and write on the results.

[nicholasw52485545 · Accepted solution]

I know this is a 6 year old question, but I got this error, found this forum and have fixed the issue, so I thought I'd share my solution.

I'm working on a project, been on it for 2 days and the error popped up in the middle. There are MP4's, mov's and png's. After aching a new frame I got the error - frustrating.

SOLUTION:

In the preferences/memory and cache panel there are two caches. One is for conformed media. Cleaned this cache and the problem stopped.

I guess when it was keying the mp4's it conformed the footage and became full.

Have a good day.

[Tubu22769964s6xd]

thank youuuuu for answer 

[defaultqfb2l8g5155g]

Oh my God!! and it takes a smart member of the community to solve a tech/programming issue that adobe staff is still not offering instructions for: roaming around in the darkness of their own softwares with candel lights! Bless you nicholasw!!

[hellopaul4]

Funny that I've also just come here with the same error - in 2022, a decade after the first post in this thread! But things have moved on a bit in that time: My current PC has 128GB RAM and 24GB VRAM, so Keylighting some 4K footage in a 1920x10180 comp shouldn't be too taxing! (I think it might have been a one-off kinda glitch...Keylight now seems to be rendering OK as I type this).

[aron28767273rc1d]

i can confirm your solution worked for me aswell