# Your first import
A five-minute walk-through: open the plugin, sign in, find an animation in the LottieFiles library, and import it into your After Effects composition.

{/* This page is a stub for the AE pilot. Full content will be drafted after Interface and Installation are reviewed. */}

## Before you start

- The plugin is installed and visible under **Window > Extensions > LottieFiles**. See [Installation](/en/integrations/after-effects/01_quickstart/installation).
- After Effects has at least one composition open. Create one with **Composition > New Composition** if needed.
- You have a free LottieFiles account.

> **Note** — If you skip sign-in, you can still preview and insert up to 3 animations as a guest. Beyond that the plugin asks you to sign in.

## Steps

### 1. Open the plugin and sign in

{/* [stub] expand with screenshots: opening Window > Extensions, the sign-in flow via browser */}

### 2. Find an animation in Explore

{/* [stub] expand with the Explore tab, search, filter, hover-to-preview */}

### 3. Import into your composition

{/* [stub] expand with the import action — selecting the active composition, choosing how the animation lands */}

## Verifying the result

You should see a new layer in your After Effects composition containing the imported Lottie animation, playing on the timeline.

{
  // TEMP_IMAGE_HIDDEN: Hidden for interim release. Restore this image in this same source location during visual QA.
  false ? (

  <Image
        src="/images/screenshots/ae-quickstart-first-import-result.webp"
        alt="After Effects composition after inserting a Lottie animation, with the visible animation and the new timeline layer highlighted"
        caption="The inserted animation appears in the composition and timeline"
        zoom
        variant="default"
      />
  ) : null
}

## Related

- [Explore](/en/integrations/after-effects/02_explore) — full reference for finding animations.
- [Import](/en/integrations/after-effects/03_import) — reference for importing existing dotLottie files.