Un Precompose After Effects Plugin Free Download

Option 1: GitHub (Open Source) The most modern free fork of the Un-Precompose script lives on GitHub. Search for "aescripts-unprecompose" or "UnPrecompose-master". It is open-source and verified.

Option 2: Creative Cow Forums (Legacy but Safe) User Roland R. Kahlenberg published a free modification called "Un-Precompose V1.2" on the Creative Cow forums. The download link is still active and clean.

Option 3: Mr. Horse’s Website Paul Conigliaro (creator of "Flow" and "Overlord") once hosted a free script called "Un-Precompose." Visit his archive or GitHub.

Crucial Safety Tip: Never download a .exe file. The plugin should be a .jsx or .jsxbin file. If a site asks you to disable your antivirus or install a "download manager," close the tab immediately.

If you can describe exactly what task you're trying to accomplish ("I want to take layers from a pre-comp and move them to the main comp without losing effects"), I can give you a step-by-step manual workflow or point you to the exact free tool.

The Un-PreCompose plugin for Adobe After Effects is a popular utility that automates the process of extracting layers from a nested composition and placing them back into the parent composition. Plugin Availability & Pricing

Pay-What-You-Want: The official Un-PreCompose plugin by BatchFrame is available as a "pay-what-you-want" tool. You can legally enter $0 to download it for free.

Official Downloads: You can find the most recent version (compatible with the latest After Effects versions and Apple Silicon) on aescripts + aeplugins or directly from BatchFrame. Key Features

Layer Extraction: Quickly pulls all layers out of a pre-comp into the root timeline with one click.

Property Retention: It preserves keyframes, effects, and expressions during the transfer. Un Precompose After Effects Plugin Free Download

Batch Processing: Version 1.1.0 and later allow you to un-precompose multiple pre-comps simultaneously.

Organization: Offers options to prepend extracted layers with the name of the original pre-comp for easier tracking. How to Install & Use

Install: Download the file and move it into your After Effects "Plugins" folder.

Select: Highlight the pre-composition you want to break apart in your main timeline.

Run: Navigate to Layer > Un-PreCompose (located just below the standard "Pre-compose" option).

Configure: A dialog will appear asking if you want to delete the original pre-comp or keep it as a reference. Alternative Free Methods

If you don't want to install a plugin, you can "un-precompose" manually: Un-PreCompose - aescripts.com

The Un-PreCompose plugin for Adobe After Effects is a highly regarded utility that reverses the standard "Pre-compose" action by extracting all layers from a nested composition back into the parent composition. Core Features & Benefits

One-Click Extraction: Move all internal layers into the parent timeline with a single command, avoiding the manual process of opening pre-comps and copy-pasting layers. Option 1: GitHub (Open Source) The most modern

Maintain Effects & Properties: The plugin works to preserve the appearance of your content by copying over effects, keyframes, and expressions to the extracted layers.

Batch Processing: Version 1.1.0 and later allow users to unprecompose multiple pre-comps simultaneously to speed up organization tasks.

Smart Naming: You can choose to prepend the name of the original pre-comp to the extracted layers for better organization.

Expression Correction: Includes options to attempt correcting the placement of layers that contain randomized expressions, though some complex 3D or particle simulations may still require manual adjustment. Download & Availability

The official and most reliable source for this tool is aescripts + aeplugins, where it is offered as a "Pay-What-You-Want" download.

Individual Users: You can enter $0.00 to download it for free, though a small donation is often suggested to support the developer.

Official Link: You can find it on the Un-PreCompose page at aescripts.com or through the developer's site at BatchFrame.com. How to Use It

Selection: Choose one or more pre-compositions in your timeline.

Activation: Navigate to the Layer menu at the bottom and select Un-PreCompose. Crucial Safety Tip: Never download a

Dialog Options: A dialog box will appear allowing you to set preferences like layer naming or expression handling before finalizing the extraction. Un-PreCompose Plugin for After Effects

This is a secondary but highly useful mode. It allows you to extract a pre-comp to the main timeline while keeping the pre-comp intact but turning it off (shy). This is excellent for organizing without destroying the original structure, allowing you to reference the original easily.

The Un Precompose After Effects Plugin is not a luxury—it is a necessity for anyone who builds complex motion graphics. And the good news is that a free, safe download exists. You do not need to pay $40 for a script that simply collapses timelines, provided you know where to look.

Final Checklist:

Have a different workflow tip? Let us know in the comments below. And if you found this article helpful, share it with a colleague who is still manually cutting and pasting out of precomps.

Download Safely. Animate Efficiently.

If you want to "un-precompose" (i.e., move layers from a pre-comp back into the main comp while preserving properties), After Effects has a native feature:

That’s the manual method. No plugin required.

This report highlights why a perfect "Free Un Precompose" tool is difficult to find. The operation is not a simple reversal due to After Effects' rendering architecture.

The "Collapse Transform" Issue: If a precomp has "Collapse Transformations" enabled, the boundaries of that composition are ignored. If you "Un Precompose" such a layer, the plugin must mathematically recalculate the position of every layer to simulate the collapsed state within the main comp coordinates. Most free tools fail at this step, resulting in layers shifting position visually.

Most free scripts only work one level at a time. Run the script repeatedly (once for the child precomp, then for the parent) until your timeline is flat.