After Effects prompts for Claude Code and Codex: 3 practical examples

Turn vague animation requests into Claude Code and Codex prompts that target specific After Effects layers and leave keyframes editable.

Supported AI clients: use Claude Code or Codex with the MotionUI tools connected. The ordinary ChatGPT and Claude chat interfaces do not provide this MotionUI workflow. Claude Code can appear inside the Claude desktop app; choose its Code environment, not a normal chat.

• You will: Write and refine three reusable animation prompts.

• Prerequisites: macOS or Windows, MotionUI, After Effects project, connected Claude Code or Codex, named composition and layers.

How do you prepare an editable animation brief?

Step 1: Connect MotionUI and open the target composition

Start in the MotionUI app, with plugin setup accessed from the app. MotionUI is a desktop app for macOS and Windows by HIVER connecting Figma, After Effects, Claude Code and Codex. It supports Claude Code or Codex control of Figma, direct Figma to After Effects import, and Claude Code or Codex control of After Effects.

Open your After Effects project and the composition you want to animate. Keep the MotionUI panel open and confirm that the MotionUI app shows an active connection. Save the project before larger scene changes.

Expected result: Your target composition is open and MotionUI shows an active connection. Follow Animate in After Effects with Claude Code or Codex for the documented workflow.

Step 2: Establish the targets and editing boundaries

Ask your connected agent to inspect the composition and describe its layers before requesting animation. Copy the exact composition and layer names into your brief. Specify which properties may change and which existing elements must remain unchanged.

Use the inspection to identify existing keyframes that need protection. Request animation on the intended layers with editable keyframes, then review the timeline to confirm the implementation.

Make inspection and editing separate turns: ask your connected agent to propose changes, then wait for your approval before applying them.

Expected result: A verified layer list and a proposed animation plan, with no edits yet.

Which Claude Code and Codex prompts can you reuse?

Use these complete prompts as suggested starting points. Replace the example names with verified composition and layer names. All timing and movement values below are starting points, not product defaults or guarantees of identical output.

Step 3: Prompt a staggered dashboard entrance

For a concrete example, use a dashboard with three card layers. This brief separates the cards' upward movement from their left-to-right reveal order.

Target composition: Dashboard. Target layers: Card left, Card center, Card right.

Before editing, inspect this composition and these layers. Describe their positions and existing position and opacity keyframes. Verify that their names match their left-to-right screen order. Propose the changes and wait for my approval. If a target is missing or ambiguous, ask me to clarify.

After approval, reveal the cards from left to right. Animate each card upward from 24 pixels below its current position to its current position, while opacity rises from 0% to its current value. Starting points: first entrance at 0.5 seconds, duration 0.35 seconds per card, stagger 0.08 seconds.

Use an ease-out that settles without overshoot. Keep the final layout, dimensions, text, colors, parenting, and all other layers unchanged. Preserve unrelated keyframes; flag conflicts before replacing any keys. Use editable position and opacity keyframes on the target layers. After editing, list the changed properties and time ranges.

Expected result: A staggered card entrance ending at the original layout. For preset-based adjustments, see entrances, exits, and sequences.

Step 4: Prompt a cursor move and button response

Use an explicit dependency when one action must finish before another starts.

Target composition: Checkout. Target layers: Cursor and Primary action.

Before editing, inspect both layers, their transforms, anchor points, and existing keyframes. Identify a cursor destination inside Primary action. Explain the proposed motion and wait for approval. Ask about ambiguous targets or conflicting animation before editing.

After approval, move Cursor from its current position to that destination. Starting points: begin at 1 second and move for 0.4 seconds. Ease in and out without overshoot. Once the cursor arrives, scale Primary action from its existing scale to 102% of that scale over 0.12 seconds, then return over 0.18 seconds with a gentle ease-out.

Keep the button's visible center fixed. Preserve its text, colors, final dimensions, and layout. Leave other layers and unrelated keyframes unchanged. Use editable position and scale keyframes. Report the changed properties and timing afterward.

Expected result: Cursor arrival followed by a temporary button emphasis, ready for playback review.

Step 5: Prompt a controlled panel exit

Define an exit relative to the panel's current position, and protect any existing entrance animation.

Target composition: Settings. Target layer: Settings panel.

Before editing, inspect Settings panel and its existing animation. Verify whether position and opacity edits will affect its contents. Describe the proposed exit and any conflicts. Wait for approval before applying changes.

After approval, move the panel 32 pixels to the right from its position at the exit start while fading its opacity to 0%. Starting points: start at 3 seconds and use 0.25 seconds for both properties together. Use ease-in so the exit accelerates, without bounce or reversal.

Preserve all animation before the exit, internal spacing, text, colors, and unrelated layers. Do not delete the panel or change composition settings. Use editable position and opacity keyframes. If preserving existing animation requires a different approach, explain it before editing. Report the resulting keyframe time range.

Expected result: A coordinated slide-and-fade exit with the panel retained for further editing.

How do you troubleshoot the result?

Step 6: Preview and correct one variable at a time

Review playback at the intended frame rate and inspect the changed keyframes. Refine timing, easing, distance, or sequencing in separate requests.

• Wrong layer changes: Pause editing, repeat inspection, and supply exact target names.

• Sequence runs backward: Verify screen positions and specify the intended order explicitly.

• Movement feels slow: Check keyframe spacing before changing the easing curve.

• Manual easing has no effect: Select keyframes, not only layers. Open Easing and click Apply Easing to Keys. See adjust keyframe easing.

Need to set up the app first? Follow the MotionUI setup guide for Mac and Windows.