- Opens where you lookCtrl + Space puts the search bar at your mouse, on screen within a few hundredths of a second.
- Finds what you meanType letters in order, initials or any part of a name. It learns what you use and puts it first.
- Everything selected, one stepAn effect goes on every selected layer or clip. In After Effects that is a single undo.
Why OTCU Console
- Opens where you look
Ctrl + Space puts the search bar at your mouse, on screen within a few hundredths of a second.
- Finds what you mean
Type letters in order, initials or any part of a name. It learns what you use and puts it first.
- Everything selected, one step
An effect goes on every selected layer or clip. In After Effects that is a single undo.
- More than effects
Presets, transitions, scripts, menu commands, new layers, shape and text tools.
- Yours to shape
Favorites, hidden items, aliases, a shortcut for any item, effects replaced by your own presets.
- Snapshots and compare
Keep frames and compare them side by side, with a wipe, or as a difference.
About OTCU Console
Find it, apply it, keep working
Press Ctrl + Space and the search bar opens right at your mouse, in After Effects and in Premiere Pro. Type a few letters - "gb" finds Gaussian Blur, "cur" finds Curves - and press Enter. The effect lands on everything you have selected, and you never left the keyboard.
The bar learns what you use: the things you pick most come first, and the same letters find the same item next time.
One search bar for both apps
After Effects - every installed effect (third-party plug-ins too), animation presets, scripts, the commands of the menu bar, and quick actions: new solid, adjustment layer, null, camera, light, text and shape layers, shape modifiers such as Trim Paths and Repeater, and text animators.
Premiere Pro - video and audio effects, video and audio transitions, your effect presets and Premiere's own, Lumetri looks, scripts, and every menu command, so you don't need to open another dropdown menu.
Presets with their keyframes
In Premiere Pro a preset goes on through Premiere's own Paste Attributes, so it arrives exactly as you saved it: keyframes with their curves and ease handles, masks and settings. We compared 29 presets applied by OTCU Console with the same presets dragged from Premiere's Effects panel: 0 differences.
Make it yours
Press Ctrl + K on any result: make it a favorite, hide it, give it a short alias of your own, give it its own keyboard shortcut, or (in After Effects) replace an effect with one of your presets, so it always applies with your settings.
Snapshots
Keep the frame you are looking at, then compare later: side by side, with a wipe you drag across the picture, or as a difference image. Zoom in, read the color under the cursor, copy a frame to the clipboard, or add it to your project. In After Effects a snapshot looks like the viewer, also in linear and 32-bit projects.
Free
No license, no account, no trial clock and no subscription, for personal and commercial work. When a new version is out, a download button appears at the top of the bar; it never interrupts you with a pop-up.
Requirements
- Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit
- After Effects or Premiere Pro - made for and tested with the 2026 versions
- Premiere Pro: the installer switches on Adobe's setting for extensions without a paid signature (for your Windows user)
- No internet connection needed (it only asks otcu.app whether a newer version exists)
Questions
Is it really free?
Yes. No license, no account and no trial period, for personal and commercial work.
Another program already uses Ctrl + Space on my computer. Is that a problem?
No. OTCU Console takes those keys only while After Effects or Premiere Pro is in front; everywhere else your other program keeps them. You can also choose different keys in Settings.
Why does Windows warn me when I start the installer?
The installer has no paid signature, so Windows shows "Windows protected your PC". Click "More info", then "Run anyway".
What does it install for Premiere Pro?
A small extension and a helper program that draws the search bar. Premiere Pro only loads extensions without a paid signature when one Adobe setting is on for your Windows user; the installer turns it on, and it stays on if you uninstall, because other extensions may rely on it.
Does it work with third-party effects?
Yes. It lists what After Effects and Premiere Pro themselves list, whoever made it.
Does it send anything about me or my projects?
No. To tell you about new versions it asks otcu.app for the newest version number, and sends only the product name and your version number. You can switch that off in Settings.
Is there a Mac version?
Not yet. OTCU Console is for Windows.
How does undo work?
In After Effects one undo removes what the bar just did, on every layer. In Premiere Pro an effect takes one undo step per clip, and a preset pasted onto several clips takes one step for all of them.
Does it work in both After Effects and Premiere Pro?
Yes. One install adds the search bar to both. Ctrl + Space opens it in whichever app is in front, with that app's effects, presets, transitions and commands.
Which versions of After Effects and Premiere Pro does it support?
It is made for and tested with the 2026 versions (After Effects 26.5 and Premiere Pro 26.5.1) on Windows 10 and 11. Older versions have not been tested.
Can I apply Premiere Pro presets with keyframes?
Yes. Premiere puts the preset on itself, so keyframes keep their curves and ease handles exactly as you saved them.
How do I change the shortcut?
Open the bar, click the gear and choose new keys under Shortcuts. Any single effect, preset or command can get a shortcut of its own too: press Ctrl + K on it in the bar.
How do I uninstall it?
Windows Settings -> Apps -> Installed apps -> OTCU Console -> Uninstall. Your settings stay in your user folder, in case you install it again.