Help · Editor & scenes

How to use the timeline

The story edits words; the Timeline edits time. Scenes, B-roll, text overlays and sounds each get a track, and the app's own hint is the cheat sheet: click clip = select, drag edges = trim, S = split, Del = delete.

  1. 1

    Select and play

    Click a clip to select it; the playhead follows your clicks. Keyboard playback controls (play/pause, nudge, jump, frame steps) are all in the shortcuts legend under Ctrl+/.

  2. 2

    Trim by dragging edges

    Drag a clip's edge to trim it. Splits and trims snap to legal boundaries so words never get chopped mid-syllable.

  3. 3

    Split at the playhead

    Press S or use Split here. If the app refuses ("Too short to split here"), each piece needs to keep at least 0.2 seconds.

  4. 4

    Reorder scenes

    Drag a scene to reorder it; the handle is labelled Drag to reorder scene. Play the joints afterwards: a reordered argument needs its context to still arrive first.

  5. 5

    Time the layers

    B-roll, text and sound clips move and trim like everything else. Split at playhead cuts a B-roll clip in two; copy and paste work across the timeline.

  6. 6

    Zoom the view

    Zoom in for frame work, out for structure. Zooming changes the view, never the video.

If something looks off

  • A split only cut some layers. The app reports it ("2 layers not cut"): clips that would become shorter than 0.2 seconds are left alone. Trim or move those first.
  • Dragging while playing feels off. Finish dragging first; the app lands the cut exactly where you see it once you let go.

Related: Cuts and transitions · B-roll, zooms and text · Understand the editor

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