MoGRT (in PPro) FR - Edit Original/MoGRT in After Effects

[Roland Kahlenberg]

The current workflow with AeMoGRT Development for use in PPro lacks context. It's not uncommon to test out an AeMoGRT in PPro to realize there are shortcomings/issues/essentially something needs adjustment. 

Current constructs require opening AE separately. Then, one has to search for the specific MoGRT which oftentimes is a PITA. Commit the changes. and then head back to PPro to either replace the updated AeMoGRT if it's got a updated name. 

It's really cumbersome. So, this FR is looking at being able to select an AeMoGRT in a PPro Timeline, right-clicking and selecting an option to Edit MoGRT in After Effects. When the user returns to PPro and PPro recognizes the AeMoGRT has been updated, PPro prompts the user if they want to replace the AeMoGRT in the Timeline with the updated AeMoGRT; including an option to replace all instances in the Timeline or Project.

This will help speed up AeMoGRT DEV while also allowing Power Users in both apps to better leverage the seamless workflow between the two Apps in non-DEV use-cases, aka while actually editing in PPro.


PS - the Reveal In Explorer feature in PPro reveals the aegraphic file BUT I want to edit the *.mogrt file - this keeps the DEV files in the same place.

[Rick Gerard]

I'm with you 100% on this. I have created a specific naming convention and file folder structure to keep things straight on my systems, but this ultimately falls apart when I deliver MOGRTs to clients. I don't have a single client who maintains the folder structure, so when they want to modify the tools I have created, I almost always get an email requesting that I make the changes. While I appreciate the work, I cannot just do it because I'm usually booked a few days or even weeks out.

It just makes sense to be able to right-click on one of the Essential Graphics you have added to Premiere Pro and select "Edit Original."

Let's get this on the to-do list.

[Shebbe]

When I realized MoGRTs were not fully open and editable on the fly I immediately dropped interest in the whole mechanism for Premiere Pro. There is zero efficiency and adaptability. I don't understand the whole idea that they should be separate enteties from actual AE project files and be managed in an entirely different way. 

Maybe I don't see the full picture but to me MoGRT should just be the upgraded version of a Dynamic Link where only text fields were editable of your comps. If different mechanisms are required to make it work, it should be implemented directly into AE. The need to build a separate .mogrt file which has to be imported into the Graphic Template library in Premiere but then becomes yet another file (.aegraphic) when imported in the Premiere project itself, but then needs to be re-converted back to .ae file to adjust is so alien to me...

[Roland Kahlenberg]

MoGRT is a File Format. What you do with it depends on specific use-cases/solution at play. It can be a way of bringing an AE Composition with tons of layer and nested compositions or a Composition with a Single Layer. From a general POV, MoGRTs allow for improved interoperability between AE and PPro. From an end-user's POV, it allows a PPro Editor access to edit AE Assets/Properties. This alone speeds up workflows. 

All File Formats have limitations and it goes with the MoGRT File Format. File Formats are designed as a conduit to meet the needs of a large set of solutions. MoGRTs actually work exceptionally well in most areas except for the really horrid bugs that have lingered for ages - most if not all have been fixed quite recently. However, that not-made-for-human Text Input Box still bothers me.

If you're a seasoned AE user and working mostly alone then using Dynamic Link between AE and PPro is actually a better option under most circumstances except when you're using a MoGRT for access to a template in its file format. For large setups, with lots of editors-only at work, MoGRTs provide exceptional productivity gains and with a very high probability of improvement in output quality if implemented well.

I can playback AeMoGRTs in real time in PPro but not so in AE. Of course, this depends on a lot of factors and unique cases but this opens up a lot of possibilities to using AeMoGRTs in PPro.

I am in the midst of developing a set of AeMoGRTs that take advantage of this realtime playback capability in PPro. Lots of opportunities/possibilities.