Hayler is a premium creative portfolio WordPress theme built for designers, agencies, photographers, and studios. It is the WordPress edition of the Hayler HTML template: GSAP motion, Lenis smooth scroll, AJAX page transitions, and the same showcase language, now edited in Gutenberg with Hayler Blocks.

Install the theme, switch on the bundled plugins, activate the license, and you are in ClaPat Options. Import the Gutenberg demo if you want the live preview look. Then build pages and projects in the block editor. No Elementor. No third-party page builder.

The front-end is the ClaPat engine used on the Hayler HTML template, rebuilt for modern creative sites after 15 years and 40,000+ sales. Colour, type, header, footer, cursor, and listing defaults live in the admin. Layout on the canvas is Hayler Blocks: Row, Columns Group, Column, then lists, media, and elements.

Who is it for?

Creative agencies that need a premium WordPress portfolio
Freelance designers and photographers building a site they can edit
Studios showing case studies and client work
Developers who want the Hayler HTML front-end with WordPress content

WordPress, not a page builder

Gutenberg + Hayler Blocks — insert Row from Hayler Blocks, not core Columns, and not Elementor
ClaPat Options — site-wide settings: Appearance, Cursor, Preloader, Header, Footer, Typography, Custom Fonts, and Page Templates
Page Options — per-page and per-project metabox (hero, background, listing filters)
Portfolio custom type — items the Grid, Slider, Carousel, and Lists templates display
Child theme — create Hayler Child from ClaPat Options → Setup, or install hayler-child.zip
Gutenberg demo import — ClaPat Options → Demo Importer (license required), or the XML in the full pack
Online HelpCenter — searchable docs, not a PDF in the zip
ClaPat AI Assistant (recommended) — in-admin help from that same HelpCenter; add an AI provider key under Settings → Connectors

Technology

WordPress 6.0 or newer (tested up to 7.1)
PHP 7.4 or newer (use a currently supported PHP on a live host)
GSAP — scroll effects, page transitions, and block motion
Lenis — optional smooth scrolling (ClaPat Options → Settings)
AJAX page transitions — optional; switch on Load Pages With Ajax under Settings. Off is a full load (better for plugins that bind only once)
Compatible browsers: Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge

Page templates

Default — hero + Gutenberg canvas for about, contact, and studio pages
Portfolio Grid — category filters, optional grid/list toggle, thumb-to-fullscreen cover
Portfolio Slider — full-screen showcase slider
Portfolio Carousel — horizontal project carousel
Portfolio Lists — vertical archive-style list
Portfolio Item — the project page; hero, Gutenberg body, credits modal, next-project navigation
Blog — posts with a header-opened sidebar (not a column beside the list)
404 — captions and defaults under Page Templates

Listing captions, slugs, filters, and next-project behaviour are site-wide under ClaPat Options → Page Templates. Assigning a template is still on the page.

Interactions and motion

AJAX page transitions with transition covers (when enabled)
Parallax showcase slider, horizontal carousel, and lists showcase
Content Slider block for a horizontal run of images inside a page or project
Lenis smooth scroll (when enabled)
Parallax on hero media, footer, images, and backgrounds
Scroll animations on enter (including Appear Effect on core Heading and Paragraph)
Pinned Row and Pinned Column
Trail Gallery (images follow the cursor on a Row or Column)

Portfolio

Portfolio Grid with category filters
Grid / list layout switch (can be turned off per site)
Custom portfolio URL slug
Next-project chrome, order, same-category navigation
Auto-navigate to the next project at scroll end (on by default)
Project credits modal (titles, body, live-site button)
Light or dark background type per page and per project (header follows)
Portfolio Grid block for a selected-work band on a Default page

Hayler Blocks

Layout: Row, Columns Group, Column, Footer Row (widgets only)

Lists: Flex Lists, Pinned Lists (six animation modes), Cylinder Lists, List Rotator, Linked List Gallery

Media and motion: Image (lightbox or parallax), Video (local MP4 player, not YouTube/Vimeo), Content Slider, Marquee, Text Rotator, Counter

Elements: Button, Accordion, Clock, Copy Email, Team Member, Clients Slider, Divider, Column Spacer, Sitemap (footer only)

Header, footer, cursor, preloader

Classic or fullscreen menu; dual black/white logos
Custom header button (caption, URL, same tab or new tab)
Header inverts while a dark Row is in view
Slim footer, or a large widget footer (Footer Row, optional parallax, invert-header pair)
Magic cursor with size, colour, and contextual icons (Zoom, Play, Drag, Next…)
Animated preloader (caption, colours; on by default)

Typography and colour

Primary and Secondary colours, gutters, and site colour scheme in Appearance
Light or dark page colour scheme; a page can still disagree in Page Options
Typography slots in ClaPat Options (leave Theme Default to keep Hayler’s fonts)
Custom Fonts: upload licensed files you host, then assign them on Typography
Google Fonts remain available on that same Typography screen

What is in the pack

Installable WordPress file only — hayler.zip (parent theme)
All files & documentation — hayler.zip, hayler-child.zip, demo-data/gutenberg/import.xml

Do not upload the outer pack. WordPress needs hayler.zip.

Bundled (Appearance → Install Plugins):

Hayler Core (required) — portfolio type, slides, templates
ClaPat Framework (required) — ClaPat Options, typography, license, Setup, demo importer
ClaPat Builder (recommended) — Hayler Blocks in the editor
ClaPat AI Assistant (recommended) — in-admin HelpCenter answers; needs an AI connector key

Not bundled (install when you need them):

Contact Form 7 — Hayler styles a form in #contact-formular on a Default page
WPML — the theme ships wpml-config.xml (portfolio type, categories, captions, page fields)

What makes Hayler different

Other WordPress portfolios bolt animations onto a generic theme. Hayler is one front-end: transitions, scroll, hover, and blocks are the same engine as the Hayler HTML template, wired to WordPress templates, metaboxes, and Gutenberg.

You edit content in WordPress. You do not rebuild the motion stack. Child theme for CSS and small PHP. Public filters when you need them. Parent updates stay intact.

Documentation is the online HelpCenter (Getting Started, Hayler Settings, Creating content, Blocks, Customize, Optimize, FAQ). The AI Assistant reads that same corpus.

Support

Six months of item support is included with the licence. Technical questions about Hayler as shipped go through Ticksy. Typical response is within 24–48 hours, Monday to Friday.

Covered: install, ClaPat Options, templates, blocks, and bugs. Not covered: building the whole site, or third-party plugin setup beyond what the HelpCenter already documents. Paid customization is a separate quote; open a ticket with the brief.

If Hayler does not match the HelpCenter, open a ticket and treat that as our error.

Built by ClaPat, Power Elite Author on ThemeForest since 2009, 40,000+ sales, 4.47 average rating.

Requirements

WordPress 6.0+ (tested up to 7.1)
PHP 7.4+ (prefer 8.2+ on a host you will keep)
A clean WordPress install for demo import

Credits

GSAP by GreenSock — gsap.com
Lenis — github.com/darkroomengineering/lenis
Font Awesome — fontawesome.com
Demo images are not included. Sources used on the preview: Unsplash, Pexels

Changelog

v1.0.0 — Initial release. Gutenberg Hayler Blocks, ClaPat Options, portfolio templates (Grid, Slider, Carousel, Lists), HelpCenter, optional AI Assistant.

Hayler WordPress Theme