adobe-animate-mcp-server

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Overview

adobe-animate-mcp-server is a local Model Context Protocol server that lets an AI assistant control Adobe Animate through JSFL, Adobe Animate's scripting system.

Instead of manually writing and running JSFL scripts, you can ask your assistant to create documents, draw shapes, manage timelines, add ActionScript, inspect symbols and layers, read compiler output, and export/publish work. The server translates those requests into JSFL, runs them in Adobe Animate, and returns structured results back to the assistant.

This is especially useful for animation prototyping, Flash/Animate game workflows, repetitive authoring tasks, and debugging timeline or ActionScript projects.

Highlights

• Create new Animate documents with custom dimensions and frame rates.
• Draw rectangles, ovals, text, and imported image assets.
• Add layers, keyframes, classic tweens, and symbols.
• Add ActionScript 2.0 or 3.0 to frames, instances, and named symbols.
• Inspect the current project name, file path, save state, layers, and library items.
• Run custom JSFL and return structured JSON back to the AI assistant.
• Check compiler/debug output and trigger test movie workflows.
• Export or publish Animate projects from natural language commands.

Requirements

• Adobe Animate 2020 or later.
• Node.js 18 or later.
• An MCP-compatible client, such as Cursor, Claude Desktop, or another MCP host.
• Windows or macOS. The current executor includes Windows-oriented Animate paths, but the JSFL concepts are cross-platform.

Quick Start

Install dependencies and build the server:

npm install
npm run build

Start the server locally:

npm start

For development, rebuild and start in one command:

npm run dev

MCP Client Setup

Add the server to your MCP client configuration. Replace the example path with the absolute path to your local dist/index.js.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "adobe-animate": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": [
        "C:/path/to/adobe-animate-mcp-server/dist/index.js"
      ]
    }
  }
}

On Windows, forward slashes are recommended inside JSON paths:

C:/Users/YourName/projects/adobe-animate-mcp-server/dist/index.js

After saving the config, restart your MCP client so it reloads the server.

How It Works

flowchart LR
  userPrompt["Natural language request"] --> mcpClient["MCP client"]
  mcpClient --> server["Adobe Animate MCP Server"]
  server --> toolRouter["Tool router"]
  toolRouter --> jsflGenerator["JSFL generator"]
  jsflGenerator --> animate["Adobe Animate"]
  animate --> outputFile["Structured output file"]
  outputFile --> server
  server --> mcpClient

1. You ask your assistant to do something in Adobe Animate.
2. The MCP client sends a tool call to this server.
3. The server chooses the matching tool and generates JSFL.
4. The JSFL runs in Adobe Animate.
5. Results are written to a temporary output file and returned to the assistant.

Example Prompts

Create a document:

Create a new Adobe Animate document that's 1280x720 at 30fps.

Draw artwork:

Draw a dark blue rectangle that fills the background, then add white title text in the center.

Set up a game scene:

Create layers named Background, Player, Enemies, UI, and Actions.

Organize the timeline:

Create a clean game timeline folder structure with Actions, UI, Player, Enemies, World, Background, and Audio folders.

Inspect the current project:

What is the current Animate project name and where is the FLA saved?

Debug ActionScript:

Test my movie and show me any compiler errors or warnings.

Run custom JSFL and return data:

Run custom JSFL that returns the current document name and layer count.

Tool Reference

Document And Drawing

Tool	What It Does
create_new_document	Creates a new Animate document with dimensions and frame rate.
save_document	Saves the current .fla file to a specific path.
add_layer	Adds a new timeline layer.
draw_rectangle	Draws a rectangle on the stage.
draw_oval	Draws an oval or ellipse on the stage.
add_text	Adds editable text to the stage.
import_image	Imports an image to the stage or library.
export_movie	Publishes or exports the current animation.

Animation

Tool	What It Does
create_keyframe	Inserts a keyframe at a specific frame.
create_motion_tween	Creates a classic motion tween between frames.
convert_to_symbol	Converts selected artwork into a movie clip, button, or graphic symbol.

ActionScript 2.0 And 3.0

Tool	What It Does
get_actionscript_info	Reports document ActionScript version, document class, source/class paths, publish profile data, and AS2/AS3 capability warnings.
set_actionscript_version	Attempts to set the document ActionScript version through safe JSFL properties and reports if the host blocks it.
add_actionscript_to_frame	Adds AS2, AS3, or auto-detected ActionScript to a specific timeline frame.
add_actionscript_to_instance	Adds AS2, AS3, or auto-detected ActionScript to the selected instance.
add_actionscript_to_symbol_by_name	Finds a named symbol instance and adds AS2, AS3, or auto-detected ActionScript.
set_document_class	Sets the AS3 document class. AS2 does not use AS3 document classes.
add_stop_action	Adds stop(); to a frame.
add_gotoAndPlay_action	Adds gotoAndPlay(...) frame navigation.
add_gotoAndStop_action	Adds gotoAndStop(...) frame navigation.
add_as2_keyboard_controls	Adds AS2 Key.isDown(...) movement controls for a player instance.
add_as2_button_handler	Adds an AS2 button handler such as onRelease.
add_as2_frame_loop	Adds an AS2 onEnterFrame loop.
add_as3_keyboard_controls	Adds AS3 KeyboardEvent.KEY_DOWN movement controls for a player instance.
add_as3_button_handler	Adds an AS3 MouseEvent.CLICK button handler.
add_as3_document_class_stub	Creates an AS3 Main.as-style class file and sets it as the document class.
create_actionscript_file	Creates an external AS2 or AS3 .as file beside the .fla or in a provided folder.
scan_actionscript_usage	Scans frame and instance scripts and classifies likely AS2 vs AS3 syntax.
test_movie_and_report	Starts Test Movie and returns ActionScript/project metadata plus compiler-output guidance.

Inspection And Debugging

Tool	What It Does
get_document_info	Returns document dimensions, timeline state, layers, and project name fields.
get_project_info	Returns project name, file path, save state, document class, timeline summary, and library summary.
get_compiler_errors	Reads document/debug status or starts a test movie compile check.
clear_output_panel	Clears the Adobe Animate output panel.
get_library_items	Lists symbols, bitmaps, sounds, fonts, and other library items.
get_layers_info	Returns detailed layer information.
get_timeline_tree	Returns the timeline as folder/layer metadata.
select_layer_by_name	Selects a layer by name.

Utilities

Tool	What It Does
select_all	Selects all elements on the current frame.
delete_selection	Deletes the current selection.
run_custom_jsfl	Runs custom JSFL for advanced workflows.

ActionScript 2.0 And 3.0 Support

This MCP has version-aware ActionScript tooling. It can insert, inspect, template, scan, and manage both AS2-style and AS3-style code.

There is one important product limitation: modern Adobe Animate supports AS3, while AS2 is legacy/deprecated and may require an older Flash/Animate host to compile. The MCP does not hide that limitation. When you request AS2, tools return capability warnings if the current document/app does not report AS2 support.

Use get_actionscript_info before adding larger scripts:

Check the current ActionScript version and tell me whether this FLA can compile AS2 or AS3.

Add AS2 frame code:

Add AS2 keyboard controls for the player instance named player.

Add AS3 frame code:

Add AS3 keyboard controls for the player instance named player.

Create an external AS3 document class:

Create an AS3 document class stub named Main and set it as the document class.

Create an external AS2 class/helper file:

Create an AS2 ActionScript file named GameController beside the FLA.

Scan for mixed script styles:

Scan this FLA for ActionScript and tell me whether it looks like AS2, AS3, or mixed.

Supported version modes:

as2   Legacy ActionScript 2.0 code and templates.
as3   Modern ActionScript 3.0 code and templates.
auto  Infer the likely version from the code and document metadata.

Timeline Folder Organization

Tool	What It Does
create_layer_folder	Creates a timeline folder layer with optional placement, visibility, and lock settings.
create_timeline_folder_structure	Creates a reusable folder/layer structure for game projects.
move_layer_to_folder	Moves a layer into a folder block using Animate's timeline ordering APIs.
set_folder_expanded	Expands or collapses one folder, or all folders with folderName: "*"
rename_layer_or_folder	Renames an existing layer or folder by name.
delete_layer_or_folder	Deletes a layer or folder, optionally including the folder's child layer block.

Timeline Folder Workflow

Timeline folders help keep a Flash or Animate game project readable. A clean game timeline might look like this:

Actions
  Frame Scripts
  Labels
UI
  HUD
  Menus
  Text
Player
  Player Art
  Player Hitbox
  Player Effects
Enemies
  Enemy Art
  Enemy Hitboxes
  Enemy Effects
World
  Platforms
  Pickups
  Triggers
Background
  Sky
  Backdrop
  Parallax
Audio
  Music
  SFX

You can ask the assistant to create that structure in one request:

Create the default game timeline folder structure.

Then inspect it:

Show me the timeline tree and tell me which layers have ActionScript.

The timeline tree response includes folder layers, child layers, visibility, lock state, frame counts, and whether each layer contains ActionScript.

Note: Adobe Animate's JSFL API exposes timeline layers mostly as a flat list. The MCP interprets folder membership as a folder block: the folder layer plus the following non-folder layers until the next folder. This matches the way the new folder tools create and organize game timelines.

Project Metadata Capture

The get_project_info tool is designed for workflows where the assistant needs to understand the active Animate file before making changes.

Typical response fields include:

{
  "projectName": "GLING DING HORROR GAME",
  "documentName": "GLING DING HORROR GAME.fla",
  "fileName": "GLING DING HORROR GAME.fla",
  "path": "C:\\Users\\You\\Documents\\GLING DING HORROR GAME.fla",
  "saved": true,
  "modified": false,
  "dimensions": {
    "width": 640,
    "height": 480,
    "frameRate": 30
  }
}

This helps the assistant avoid guessing which project is open and makes it easier to build game-specific workflows around the active .fla.

Custom JSFL Output

run_custom_jsfl supports structured output. Inside your JSFL, assign a value to __mcpResult and the server will return it to the MCP client:

var doc = fl.getDocumentDOM();

__mcpResult = {
  documentName: doc ? doc.name : null,
  layerCount: doc ? doc.getTimeline().layerCount : 0
};

If custom JSFL throws an error, the MCP response includes the error instead of only saying the script executed.

Example Scripts

The examples/ directory contains standalone JSFL scripts that can be run manually from Adobe Animate:

• examples/create_bouncing_ball.jsfl
• examples/create_text_animation.jsfl
• examples/draw_shapes.jsfl

To run one manually, open Adobe Animate and choose Commands > Run Command..., then select the .jsfl file.

Project Structure

adobe-animate-mcp-server/
├── src/
│   ├── index.ts
│   ├── tools.ts
│   └── jsfl-executor.ts
├── examples/
├── dist/
├── adobe-animate-logo.png
├── package.json
├── tsconfig.json
└── README.md

Key files:

• src/index.ts starts the MCP server and registers tool handlers.
• src/tools.ts defines tool schemas and generates JSFL scripts.
• src/jsfl-executor.ts writes JSFL to disk, launches Animate, captures structured output, and returns it to the MCP client.

Development

Build the TypeScript project:

npm run build

Run the compiled server:

npm start

Run a development cycle:

npm run dev

Troubleshooting

Adobe Animate Must Be Running

Adobe Animate needs to be installed and available for JSFL execution. Some workflows work best when Animate is already open with a document loaded.

Restart Your MCP Client After Changes

If you add a new tool or rebuild the server, restart your MCP client so it reloads the tool list.

Use Forward Slashes In Config Paths

Use this in MCP JSON config:

C:/Users/YourName/projects/adobe-animate-mcp-server/dist/index.js

Avoid unescaped backslashes in JSON:

C:\Users\YourName\projects\adobe-animate-mcp-server\dist\index.js

Manual JSFL Fallback

If automatic execution fails, you can still run generated JSFL manually:

1. Copy the JSFL script.
2. Open Adobe Animate.
3. Choose Commands > Run Command....
4. Paste or select the script and run it.

You can also place reusable .jsfl commands in:

C:\Users\[YourUsername]\AppData\Local\Adobe\Animate [Version]\en_US\Configuration\Commands\

Resources

• Model Context Protocol
• Adobe Animate JSFL Reference
• MCP TypeScript SDK

Contributing

Contributions are welcome. Good areas to improve include:

• More game-development helper tools.
• Better export/publish profile control.
• More robust cross-platform Animate executable discovery.
• Additional JSFL examples and templates.
• End-to-end tests for generated JSFL snippets.

License

MIT License. See LICENSE for details.

Disclaimer

This is an unofficial community project. It is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by Adobe. Adobe Animate is a trademark of Adobe Inc.