Subtasks

Last updated 7 days ago

Subtasks

Subtasks are lightweight work items that live within a main task. They are designed to provide small, actionable checkpoints without the complexity of creating full tasks, which can lead to app bloat and production tracking confusion.

Subtasks require the Planner Addon, a premium addon included with the Studio subscription, or as an extra with a Pro subscription.

Key Components

A subtask is composed of four primary fields:

  • Label (Required): The display name of the subtask (e.g., "Roto"). Multiple subtasks can share the same label.

  • Completion: A simple checkbox to track the "is done" state (True/False).

  • Assignees: The specific users responsible for the subtask.

  • Dates: Start and end dates for scheduling purposes.

For developers and technical directors, every subtask has a system-generated ID and a unique name. While labels are flexible, names must follow strict naming standards as they are utilized for future pipeline integrations.

Accessing Subtasks

Subtasks are integrated into two main areas of the AYON interface:

1. The Details Panel

When you double-click any task to open its details, a dedicated Subtasks tab is available alongside the Activity Feed and Details tabs.

2. Overview and Lists

A Subtasks column is available within the tasks data table on both the Project Overview Page and Lists . You can interact with subtasks directly from this table view.

Management and Productivity

Creation and Batch Workflow

  • Quick Create: While editing a label, hold Ctrl/Cmd + Enter to automatically save the current subtask and start creating another.

  • Batch Ingest: Use the comma operator in the label field to create multiple subtasks at once. For example, entering Roto, Cleanup, Grading and hitting Enter will create three distinct subtasks.

Organization

  • Reordering: You can explicitly reorder subtasks to prioritize work.

  • Multi-Selection: Hold Ctrl/Cmd while clicking to select multiple items for bulk deletion or copying.

  • Quick Delete: Hold Ctrl/Cmd while hovering over a subtask to transform the "More Options" icon into a delete icon for faster removal.

Copy and Paste

Subtasks use a spreadsheet-compatible format, allowing you to move data between AYON and external tools like Excel.

  • Standard Paste (Ctrl/Cmd + V): Replaces all existing subtasks on the target task with the clipboard data.

  • Additive Paste (Shift + Ctrl/Cmd + V): Adds the clipboard data on top of current subtasks without removing existing ones.

Filtering and Searching

The subtask header provides several options to refine your view:

  • Search by Name: Supports the comma syntax for matching multiple subtasks (e.g., searching Roto, Grading matches both).

  • Assignee Filter: Filter the list to show only items assigned to specific users.

  • Status Filter: Toggle to view only "Done" subtasks.

  • Global Actions: The "More Options" menu in the header allows for bulk actions like Copy All, Paste, or Delete All.

Integration with Planning

Subtasks are fully schedulable within the Scheduler tab. For detailed information on incorporating subtasks into your production timeline, refer to the Planner Addon documentation.