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Altar Bridge

Connect Claude Code.

Let Claude Code read and edit your After Effects comps through Altar Bridge.

2 minmacOSAfter Effects with Altar open

Connect

  1. Open a composition

    In After Effects, open the composition you want to work on. The check at the end reads its name.

  2. Connect from Altar Chat

    In After Effects, open Window → Extensions → Altar Chat, choose Connect your AI, pick Claude Code, then press Connect Claude Code. Altar adds itself to Claude Code for you.

    Optional: press Install skills so Claude Code knows how to work with Altar.

    Prefer to set it up from Claude Code?

    Paste this into Claude Code:

    Claude Code

    Add the Altar Bridge MCP server for me. Run: claude mcp add --scope user altar -- "$HOME/Library/Application Support/Adobe/CEP/extensions/com.sidequestplugins.altar.cep/mcp/altar-mcp". Confirm it was added, then stop. I will start a new session to check the connection.

    Or run the command in Terminal yourself:

    TerminalCode
    claude mcp add --scope user altar -- "$HOME/Library/Application Support/Adobe/CEP/extensions/com.sidequestplugins.altar.cep/mcp/altar-mcp"

    Then in Altar Chat, pick Claude Code and press Already installed? to get the check message. Connect Claude Code doesn’t recognise a connection you added yourself.

  3. Copy the check message

    Altar Chat shows a check message. Copy it with Copy check message. It looks like this:

    Claude Code

    Using Altar, can you read my composition?

  4. Paste it into a new Claude Code session

    Start a new session so Claude Code loads Altar, then paste the message. Claude Code replies with the name of your composition, and Altar Chat shows that it is connected.

You don’t need an API key. Claude Code does the thinking, on your own Claude plan.

Try it

Claude Code

Use Altar to describe my active composition and suggest one improvement. Do not change anything yet.

Claude Code

Rename every layer in this comp to describe what it is, then show me the list.

If it didn’t work

“Install Claude Code, then try again.”

Fix. Altar couldn’t find Claude Code. Install it, open it once, then press Connect Claude Code again.

“An Altar connection already exists with different settings.”

Fix. Claude Code already has a server called altar pointing somewhere else. Run claude mcp remove altar --scope user in Terminal, then connect again.

“Altar bridge not running.”

Fix. After Effects is closed or Altar’s connection stopped. Open After Effects; if it stays down, press Reconnect in Altar Chat’s Settings.

More fixes on Troubleshooting.

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