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What Mako does
Adjustment layers, color mattes, freeze frames, nesting, a QC check before export. In Premiere Pro each of these means a menu, a dialog or dragging something in and trimming it to fit. In Mako it is one button, and the result lands exactly where you need it.
Mako sits right next to your Tools panel and works the way Premiere already does. No new workflow to learn, no account, no license key.
- Adjustment Layer. An adjustment layer over the selected clips, cut to fit.
- Color Matte. Pick a color and the matte drops onto the timeline.
- New Sequence. An empty sequence with the current sequence's settings, opened in its own tab.
- Staircase. Each selected clip steps up a track.
- Unstaircase. Stepped clips drop back onto one track.
- Freeze Frame. A still of the current frame, placed on the track above the clip.
- Fit to Frame. An oversized clip scaled to fit the frame.
- Clear Effects. The video effects stripped off the selected clips.
- QC Check. Empty gaps closed and every problem marked.
- Transparency Grid. The checkerboard in the Program Monitor, on in one click.
- Nest. The selected clips wrapped in a nest, without a dialog.
- Unnest. A nest opened back up onto the timeline, in place.
- Delete Empty Tracks. Every empty track removed at once.
New in Mako 1.2
Mako 1.2 adds seven new buttons: Staircase, Unstaircase, Freeze Frame, Fit to Frame, Clear Effects, Nest and QC Check. Hold Shift or Cmd (Ctrl on Windows) as you click and several buttons do even more.
A new Settings window lets you choose which buttons show, color them and give every button its own shortcut. And Mako now updates itself.
How to use it
Mako is free, so you can be up and running in a couple of minutes.
Step 1: Download and install Mako
Add Mako to your cart and check out. It costs $0, so no card is needed, and your download appears right on the order confirmation page.
On a Mac, open Mako.pkg. On Windows, run MakoSetup.exe from the zip (no administrator needed). Restart Premiere Pro, open Window > Extensions > Mako and dock it wherever you like.
Step 2: Add adjustment layers and color mattes
Select your clips and click Adjustment Layer. One layer covers the whole selection, on the first free, unlocked track above. With nothing selected, it covers five seconds from the playhead.
Shift-click to give each selected clip an adjustment layer of its own. Cmd-click (Ctrl-click on Windows) puts a short layer on every cut, all on one track, ready for a flash or a whip. It is 0.4 seconds by default, and you can change the length in Settings.
Need a solid background? Click Color Matte, pick a color and press OK. The matte lands over your selection with the same rules, and Mako never overwrites a clip.
Step 3: Staircase your clips
Select a row of clips and click Staircase. Each clip steps up one track, ready for overlaps, picture in picture or quick layering.
Done? Click Unstaircase and the selected clips drop back onto one track.
Step 4: Freeze, fit and clean up clips
Park the playhead and click Freeze Frame. Mako places a PNG still of that frame on the track above, held for the whole clip. Shift-click for a 3-second still from the playhead instead.
Fit to Frame scales an oversized clip to fit the frame, and Shift-click fills it. Clear Effects takes a clip back to clean in one click. To check a cutout or a keyed shot, click Transparency Grid.
Step 5: Nest and unnest without dialogs
Select clips and click Nest to wrap them in a sequence of their own. No naming dialog, no extra steps.
Premiere has no unnest command, so Mako adds one. Select a nested sequence and click Unnest. Its clips go back on their tracks, in place, with their effects, keyframes, speed and linked audio.
If a clip can't be rebuilt, the nest stays as it is, and every step can be undone. Use New Sequence for another sequence with the same settings, and Delete Empty Tracks to tidy up at the end.
Step 6: Run a QC Check before export
Click QC Check and Mako closes gaps where nothing is on any track. Then it marks what is left: black gaps in red, offline media in orange, switched-off clips in yellow and tiny one- or two-frame clips in purple.
The playhead jumps to the first problem. Shift-click clears the markers, and if you would rather fix things yourself, turn off Fix problems automatically in Settings.
Step 7: Make the panel yours
Click the gear to open Settings. On the Buttons tab, hide the buttons you don't use, drag them into your own order and turn on Colored buttons, tinted or solid, in any color.
On the Shortcuts tab, click a field and press a modifier and a key, like Option + 1, or an F key on its own. Every button gets one, and so do its Shift-click and Cmd-click versions. You can also right-click any button and choose Keyboard Shortcut.
Who it is for
Mako is for every Premiere Pro editor. Beginners skip the menus they haven't learned yet, and pros stop repeating the same clicks all day.
Works great with BetterFX for effects, EaseFlow for easing and QuickPaste for pasting images.
FAQ
Is Mako really free?
Yes. There is no license key, no account and no trial. Check out for $0, download it and it is yours, updates included.
Which Premiere Pro versions does Mako support?
Mako works with Adobe Premiere Pro 2022 to 2026 on macOS and Windows.
How does Mako update?
By itself. Mako starts at login with a small menu bar or tray icon and installs new versions quietly in the background, even with Premiere open. An open panel switches to the new version the next time it opens.
Where do adjustment layers and color mattes go?
Over the selected clips, on the first free, unlocked track above them. If there is no free track, Mako adds one. Adjustment layers and freeze frames are kept in a Mako bin, so your project stays tidy.
Thirteen everyday jobs, one click each, for free. Get Mako for Premiere Pro.
