FlashBoards: Your New Visual Workspace Inside After Effects

FlashBoards is here — a visual workspace that lives inside After Effects. Keep references organized, capture screenshots, record comps, manage media, and generate AI variations without switching between apps or browser tabs.

Why this matters

Motion designers juggle Pinterest boards, folder structures, browser tabs, and scattered references while trying to stay in creative flow. FlashBoards eliminates that friction. Everything you need — mood boards, style references, client feedback screenshots, test renders, audio files, and AI-generated variations — lives on infinite boards inside After Effects.

What FlashBoards does

Organize by project, client, or concept Create unlimited boards with grid snapping and alignment tools. Pan and zoom freely across your canvas, duplicate layouts, and move items between boards. When the canvas fills up, grid snap and alignment controls keep everything tidy.

Import anything instantly Drag files from Finder, paste clipboard images or URLs, capture AE screenshots, record MP4 comps, drop in audio, or link heavyweight assets without copying. FlashBoards supports all common formats: png/jpg/webp, gif, mp4, mov, mp3.

Timeline-ready exports Select one or many items and send them straight into After Effects. Fit to comp bounds, stack above selected layers, or spin up new compositions. When nothing on the board is selected, AE automatically captures the viewport.

Saved & shareable libraries Boards, prompts, and media save themselves in the background. Package boards with media into a .refboard archive for sharing with collaborators or reopening later.

Optional AI integration Generate variations of your references using optional AI tools. Create alternative compositions, style variations, or upscaled versions without leaving After Effects. AI features work with RunningHub, Replicate, fal.ai, and local ComfyUI setups.

Latest release highlights (v1.0.2)

The latest update ships serious workflow improvements:

Audio waveform visualization See audio waveforms directly on board items and export audio from video files — essential for music video work and sound design references.

Video memes library Access a curated collection of video memes for quick reference or social media projects. Import instantly to your boards and export to timeline when needed.

Auto video preview on hover Videos now play automatically when you hover over them in file grid and list views. Navigate your reference library faster without opening fullscreen preview.

Enhanced AI workflows New and updated AI workflows include Character Replacement, Face Swap, Outfit Change, Skin Enhancer, Single Image Edit, Video Restoration, Video Upscale, and Emotions Generator. GPU tier selection improvements mean more stable generation for workflows requiring extra processing power.

Estimated duration display The media progress overlay now shows estimated duration for rendering and AI generation tasks — better planning for longer jobs.

See the complete release history for all changes and fixes.

What's coming next

We're actively developing FlashBoards based on early user feedback. Upcoming improvements include:

• Expanded AI workflow library — More specialized workflows for motion design, including style transfer, object removal, and animation-aware processing
• Collaboration features — Direct board sharing, team libraries, and cloud sync options
• Smart collections — Auto-organize media by type, date, project, or custom tags
• Enhanced media browser — Advanced filtering, batch operations, and metadata editing
• Performance optimizations — Faster canvas rendering for boards with hundreds of items

Getting started

Installation FlashBoards installs as a CEP extension. Follow the extension installation guide for step-by-step instructions.

First launch Allow FFmpeg to install automatically on first launch — it's required for recording compositions and video previews. The process takes about a minute.

Interface overview Check out the interface guide to learn about boards, media browser, and core features. The guide includes visual walkthroughs of every panel and control.

AI setup (optional) AI features are completely optional. FlashBoards works as a powerful reference manager without any AI setup. If you want to explore AI generation, see the AI workflows & providers guide for configuration instructions.

Help & troubleshooting Common questions are answered in the help & troubleshooting hub. If you run into issues, check there first or reach out to support.

Join the community

FlashBoards represents a new way of working in After Effects. We're building this tool based on real workflows from the Motion Design School community.

Have ideas for improvements? Found a workflow that could be smoother? Reach out to support@motiondesign.school — we're actively incorporating feedback into every update.

---

Get FlashBoards: motiondesign.school/products/flashboards

Watch the overview tutorial: youtube.com/watch?v=LP43DJtD28g