Browsing and searching

Workspace content nests four levels deep: workspaces → projects → folders → files. The breadcrumb at the top of every page tells you where you are; the back arrow walks you out one level at a time. Search cuts across all of that when you know the filename or part of it. Use this page as a reference for finding the file you want to share, update, or tag — the collaboration pages explain what to do once you've found it.

How to access this

  1. Open the LottieFiles plugin in After Effects.

  2. Click Workspace in the top tab bar.

The Workspace tab opens at the workspace landing — a grid of your projects.

Switch workspaces

If you belong to multiple workspaces (personal + team, or several teams), switch via the workspace selector at the top of the Workspace tab. Only one workspace is active at a time; everything below the selector reflects the active workspace's content.

The hierarchy

The four levels:

  1. Workspace — the top container (your team or personal account).

  2. Projects — large groupings inside a workspace (one per major piece of work or client).

  3. Folders — subdivisions inside projects, nested up to 6 levels deep.

  4. Files — individual Lottie animations.

Click a project to drill in, then a folder, then a file. Each click drops you one level down; the breadcrumb at the top tracks where you are.

Browsing a project

Clicking a project opens its grid:

  • Folders (with their item count).

  • Files at the project root (not nested in a folder).

The grid is paginated; scroll to load more.

Browsing a folder

Folders behave like projects, one level down. Folders can be nested up to 6 levels deep ().

The breadcrumb at the top of every project/folder/file view lists your path. Click any segment to jump back to that level without re-traversing.

Search the workspace

Use the search bar at the top of the Workspace tab to find files and folders across the entire active workspace.

  • Files — Lottie animations across all projects and folders.

  • Folders — folder names across all projects.

  • Projects — currently excluded from results.

How matching works

Search matches on the file or folder name. Substring matching: "logo" returns "company-logo-v3.lottie" and "Logo Loader". Case-insensitive. Results refresh as you type.

When results are empty

  • Confirm you're in the right workspace (check the workspace selector).

  • Try a shorter substring — partial matches help when names differ slightly from what you remember.

  • The file may be in a workspace you don't have access to.

Drag a file directly into AE

From any browsing or search level, you can drag a file card directly onto your After Effects composition panel. The plugin imports it as a new layer in the active composition (the one currently shown in the Composition panel). Behavior to know:

  • The new layer lands at the current time cursor position in the timeline.

  • The new layer is placed at the top of the layer stack (frontmost).

  • After Effects must have a composition open and selected; otherwise the drop is rejected.

This is the fastest path to insert — no need to open the full file view if you already know the file is right.

Tips for motion/product designers

  • Star or pin frequently-updated files in the LottieFiles web app — the plugin respects that ordering.

  • Name files for searchability, not aesthetics. "loading-spinner-v2.lottie" beats "Spinner FINAL ✨" when you search a year later.

  • Distinguish source AE comps from exported Lotties in naming — ae-checkout-flow-v3 for the AE source vs. lottie-checkout-success for the exported file. When your workspace holds both, search returns just one or the other instead of mixing them.

  • Use prefixes for related sets: icon-success, icon-error, icon-loading — typing icon- shows the family.

  • For client work, prefix with the client/project: acme-checkout-confirm.lottie. Avoids collisions across projects.

Last updated: June 9, 2026 at 8:42 AMEdit this page
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