[Brendon Murphy]

The newer Javascript expression engine is more strict than the legacy extendscript engine. if/else statements cannot be on a single line. Try this instead:

if(thisComp.layer("Audio Amplitude").effect("Both Channels")("Slider") ==  5) {
100;
} else {
50;
};

I’ll note that you can change the expression engine you’re using by going to File>Project Settings and then picking the “Expressions” tab.

[Brendon Murphy]

Was there any helpful info in the bug report? Maybe an error code?

[Brendon Murphy]

It’s worth browsing stock image websites like istock, shutterstock, etc. If you don’t find what you need, turbosquid also has 3D stock of wrecked cars.

[Brendon Murphy]

There’s also this tool from AE scripts that might help out: https://aescripts.com/automatic-whiteboard/

[Brendon Murphy]

Mocha AE is built into after effects… that should do the trick for tracking the plate for replacement. I also posted a free AE script that helps make tracking even more precise: https://www.thepixeldump.com/single-post/pd-hipass

[Brendon Murphy]

I’ve not used Motion Array, but Digital Juice has a large library of templates, stock footage, fx elements, music, etc. They have a $299 “standard” lifetime membership, and $499 “pro” lifetime membership. It’s basically lifetime unlimited access to everything they have, and I’ve used it a million times over the years when I need a random element or piece of footage.

[Brendon Murphy]

You could certainly do that if your video will only ever be in an 8 bit environment (or if the source material is all 8 bit).

In general, I tend to work in 16 unless there’s a specific reason to do 32. High end footage is usually 10bit or 12bit, and AE was not really designed for a 32 bit workflow, so many features work differently or not at all. You will get better blending and color adjustments in 16bpc than in 8bpc. An 8 bit export will not look QUITE as good as your 16 bit comp, but should not feel drastically different.

[Brendon Murphy]

Exr and tiff can be used to export 32 bit image sequences with alpha. When you import to premiere, just pick the first image in the sequence and make sure the image sequence box is checked. It will come in just like any other video clip.

I will note that if you are displaying this on the web, your resulting format will inevitably be 8bits, and look more like the pngs in the end.

[Brendon Murphy]

What’s your working color space in AE? Pngs are 8 bit, so if your AE work is being done in 16 or 32, you will lose info no matter what. Try exporting with higher quality formats that support alpha channels and more than 8 bpc. For instance, tiff, exr, prores 4444, etc.

Also, if your shadows in-comp have blending modes, you will need to export them separately with the blending mode set to “normal”, and then adjust the blending mode within premiere

[Brendon Murphy]

Your documents will need to be in RGB space, not CMYK.