• Adobe After Effects Expressions

  Generate Markers from text file

  Posted by Robin Kumar on January 13, 2019 at 10:04 am

  Hello!

  I need your help! I want to generate Markers on a selected layer based on absolute frame numbers from a given text file. Text file has frame numbers like this-

  

  These are absolute frame numbers. I am looking for following workflow-
  1)Select a layer
  2)Run the script
  3)It should prompt for text file
  4)After loading a text file, the script should generate Markers on a respective frames given on frame numbers in text file. Currently I am not looking to generate Marker comments. Just the Markers.

  Thank a lot! Any help is appreciated!! 🙂

  Robin Kumar replied 7 years, 7 months ago 2 Members · 4 Replies
• 4 Replies

• 

  Andrei Popa

  January 14, 2019 at 9:37 am

  You should save all those frame numbers in an array.
  then, to put markers on the layer use this
  var myMarker = new MarkerValue("Insert Comment Here");//leave blank for empty
var frameDuration = app.project.activeItem.frameDuration;
var timeArray = framesToTime(framesArray);//framesArray must be an array with the numbers from your file

  for (var i=0; i < timeArray.length; i++){
  myLayer.property("Marker").setValueAtTime(timeArray[i], myMarker);
  }

  function framesToTime(framesArray){
var timeArray =[];
for (var i=0; i < framesArray.length; i++){
timeArray.push(framesArray[i]*frameDuration);
}
return timeArray;
}

  Andrei
  My Envato portfolio.
• 

  Robin Kumar

  January 15, 2019 at 1:44 am

  Hey Andrei !

  Thanks for the reply, I tried your expression, its giving me a error that “myLayer is undefined”
  Am I doing something wrong? ☹

  Regards.
• 

  Andrei Popa

  January 18, 2019 at 7:08 am

  This should work. Select the layer you want to use the script on and then run it

  var myMarker = new MarkerValue("Insert Comment Here");//leave blank for empty
var frameDuration = app.project.activeItem.frameDuration;
var myFile = File.openDialog("Please select your marker file");
var framesArray = extractDataFromFile(myFile);
var timeArray = (framesArray!=null) ? framesToTime(framesArray) : [];//framesArray must be an array with the numbers from your file
var myLayer = app.project.activeItem.selectedLayers[0];

  for (var i=0; i < timeArray.length; i++){
  myLayer.property("Marker").setValueAtTime(timeArray[i], myMarker);
  }

  function framesToTime(framesArray){
  var timeArray =[];
  for (var i=0; i < framesArray.length; i++){
  timeArray.push(framesArray[i]*frameDuration);
  }
  return timeArray;
  }

  function extractDataFromFile(myFile){
if (!myFile) return;
markerData = [];
if (myFile.open("r")){
while(!myFile.eof){
var frameNumber = parseFloat(myFile.readln());
markerData.push(frameNumber);
}
return markerData;
}else alert("Could not open your file");
}

  Andrei
  My Envato portfolio.
• 

  Robin Kumar

  January 25, 2019 at 2:33 am

  Thank you so much Andrei! It worked as expected!

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