Shot Switch¶
What is Shot Switch?¶
Shot Switch lets you redirect a footage item to the same render pass in a different shot, while keeping the identifier and AOV intact. HelixAE automatically picks the latest available version in the target shot.
This is different from Change Shot — here's the distinction:
| Shot Switch | Change Shot | |
|---|---|---|
| Use case | Flip between shot variants (e.g. hero vs VFX shot) | Point footage at a completely different shot |
| Identifier/AOV | Preserved automatically | You choose manually |
| Version | Auto-selects latest | You choose manually |
When Would You Use This?¶
Common scenarios:
- A shot has a hero version and a VFX variant (e.g.
sh010andsh010_vfx) and you need to switch between them for a review - You're building a comp template that needs to work across multiple shots — switch the shot to test it
- A shot was renamed or split and you need to redirect your existing comp to the new shot
How to Use It¶
- Right-click the footage item in the Footage Tracker
- Hover over Shot Switch
- The submenu lists all available alternative shots
- Click the target shot — HelixAE updates the footage path to the latest version of the same identifier/AOV in that shot
Notes¶
Info
Shot Switch only appears if HelixAE detects alternative shots with matching renders. If the submenu is empty or missing, no matching renders were found in other shots.
If you need to switch to a shot with a different identifier or AOV, use Change Shot instead (right-click → Change Shot), which gives you full manual control.