What It Does
Primitives was a KBar extension that added basic shape creation buttons to your After Effects toolbar. It let you create paths, rectangles, ellipses, and polygons with a single click, either as parametric shapes (editable parameters) or Bezier shapes (editable paths). The shapes could be added to the active composition or directly into selected shape layers.
This plugin has been discontinued and is no longer available for purchase.
Key Features
Shape options. Create four primitive types: paths, rectangles, ellipses, and polygons. Each can be generated as either a parametric shape (with editable width/height controls) or a Bezier shape (with editable anchor points).
Flexible sizing. Define custom dimensions for each shape, set default sizes, or fit the shape to the shortest side of your composition using the shift key.
KBar integration. The script runs through KBar toolbar buttons. Set up one button per shape type, assign custom icons, and use modifier keys (alt for Bezier mode, shift to fit comp) for different behaviors.
Target control. Add shapes to either the active composition or to currently selected shape layers, making it easy to build complex shape hierarchies.
Who It’s For
This tool was designed for motion designers who worked heavily with shape layers and wanted faster access to primitive creation than After Effects’ built-in menus. The KBar integration made it particularly useful for artists who built custom toolbar layouts.
Pricing
Primitives used a pay-what-you-want pricing model before being discontinued. The final version (1.0.1) was released in April 2018 and supported After Effects versions from CC 2015 through 2025. It required KBar version 1.1.1 or higher to function.
If you need similar functionality, consider alternatives like 3D Primitives Generator 3 or PrayMitive, both available on aescripts.
