Main Panel
Open the panel via Window → Extensions → BatchRender. This page walks through the main screen from top to bottom. Several controls have a ? next to them with a short explanation.
Data Connection
Section titled “Data Connection”The card at the top shows what is connected.
- Local, Sheets and Airtable open the connection page for that source. See Local Files, Google Sheets and Airtable.
- Click the connection name to open the first connected source: a local file is shown in Explorer or Finder, a sheet or view opens in your browser.
- The ? next to the Data Connection heading lists the reserved columns.
Data Preview
Section titled “Data Preview”The Start and End boxes set the row range. Render Batch renders exactly this range, and preview stays inside it. Row numbers follow the source; see Row numbering.
The buttons preview a row: they inject its data into the open project without rendering, so you can check the result in the comp viewer.
| Button | Previews |
|---|---|
| First | The Start row. |
| Previous / Next | The row before or after the current one, wrapping around at the ends of the range. |
| Last | The End row. |
| Reload | The current row again, read fresh from the source. Use it after editing your data. Once a source is connected, the label next to it shows the current row, such as Row 7. |
Preview never switches projects, even when the row has a project value: it
always injects into whatever project is open, and the status line says so.
Open the row’s project yourself first if you want to preview it.
Render Settings and Output Module
Section titled “Render Settings and Output Module”The After Effects templates applied to every render. Columns in your data can override them per row. See Render Settings & Output Modules.
Output Path and Footage Path
Section titled “Output Path and Footage Path”- Output Path (required): the folder renders are written to. See Output filenames.
- Footage Path (optional): the folder that bare filenames in footage columns are looked up in. See Content columns: footage.
Type a path or click Browse. The folder button between the field and Browse opens the folder in your file manager.
User Preset
Section titled “User Preset”Saves and restores the whole panel state. See Presets.
Bottom bar
Section titled “Bottom bar”- Render Batch starts a batch render of the Start to End range. While it runs the button reads Stop Batch.
- Run Agent starts Agent Mode. While it runs the button reads Stop Agent.
- A badge next to these buttons means watchfolder mode is on.
- Settings opens the Settings page, which also holds the License button.
Status bar
Section titled “Status bar”The line at the very bottom shows the latest message, plus progress during a batch or a download. Log reveals the full log file in Explorer or Finder; see Troubleshooting.