Rendering
In Plainly, rendering is the process of generating a final video based on an After Effects project you have setup and data provided at render time. The provided data is defined by render parameters — such as text, images, audio or video URLs — that are replaced into selected layers of your dynamic Plainly project template.
This guide explains how rendering works, what is required beforehand, what are the available options for triggering and customizing renders. We’ll also cover video delivery options once a rendering is complete — including how to access your videos via direct download links, cloud storage (e.g., AWS S3), or automated delivery through integrations and webhooks.
FAQ
What happens between render creation and delivery?
Each render request goes through a defined set of states before the video is ready:
- Pending - All renders start in this state.
- Throttled or Queued - If you’ve hit your concurrent render limit, the render is held throttled until a slot becomes available. Once under the limit, the render enters the queue, waiting for a render node.
- Processing - A render node picks up the job and begins rendering.
- Done or Failed - When rendering completes, the job finishes as success (with a downloadable video) or failed (with error info).
How long does it take to render a video?
The rendering time depends on several factors, including the complexity of the After Effects project, the number of layers, and the amount of data being processed. Generally, rendering times can range from a few seconds to several minutes. As a rule of thumb you can take the following as a reference:
- Simple projects: 2x-3x the length of the video
- Complex projects: 5x-10x the length of the video
How can I speed up rendering?
To speed up rendering, consider the following tips:
- Optimize your After Effects project: Reduce the number of effects, decrease complexity of expressions and pre-render as much as possible.
- Skip encoding: Use encoding type None to skip the encoding step. Note that a video file size could be larger, as encoding helps to compress the video.
- Use draft render: For faster testing iterations, use the Draft render option. This will render a lower quality video, but it will be faster to process.
How many videos can I render at the same time?
This is defined by the concurrent renders limit in
your subscription. Once the limit is reached, any additional renders will be throttled until a slot becomes available.
How long is video available after creation?
Videos are available for download based on the
retention period defined in your subscription. After
that period, they are automatically deleted from our cloud storage.