Appearance
Keyboard Shortcuts
Complete reference for all EmberBoard keyboard shortcuts.
Playback
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| Spacebar | Play / Pause timeline |
| Home | Jump to start of timeline |
| End | Jump to end of timeline |
| J | Play backward |
| K | Pause |
| L | Play forward |
Beat Editing
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| B | Quick create beat after current beat (script auto-focused) ⚡ |
| Double-click (Node View) | Create new beat at cursor (script auto-focused) |
| Double-click (beat) | Move beat to/from shelf |
| Alt + Drag | Duplicate beat |
| Delete or Backspace | Delete selected beat(s) / audio track(s) |
| Shift + Click | Add/remove beat from selection |
| Shift + Drag box | Multi-select beats (box selection) |
| C | Create comment box around selected beats |
Auto-Focus Feature
When creating beats with B key, double-click, drag & drop images, or paste images, the script input field is automatically focused so you can start typing immediately!
Audio Track Editing
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| + Audio button | Import MP3/WAV at playhead position |
| Drag | Move audio track to new position |
| Drag left/right edge | Trim audio start/end |
| Delete or Backspace | Delete selected audio track |
Image Management
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| Ctrl + V | Paste image from clipboard onto selected beat |
| Drag & Drop | Add image to beat |
| Scroll wheel (Output Window) | Zoom image (1x to 3x) |
| Click & Drag (Output Window) | Pan zoomed image |
Reference Library
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| N | Create new note node at center ⚡ |
| Double-click (References canvas) | Create empty reference |
| Ctrl + V | Paste image as new reference |
| Drag & Drop | Create reference(s) from image(s) |
| Delete | Delete selected node(s) |
| Shift + Click | Multi-select nodes |
| Shift + Drag box | Box select nodes |
| Alt + Drag | Duplicate node |
| Right-click | Open context menu |
Note Nodes
Press N to create text notes with markdown support - perfect for character bios, scene notes, and organizing references!
Adaptive Sizing
Reference nodes automatically match their image's aspect ratio - square images create square nodes, wide images create wide nodes!
Navigation
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| Click (Timeline) | Jump to that time |
| Ctrl + Scroll wheel | Zoom in/out (Node View and References) |
| Middle mouse button | Pan around (Node View and References) |
| Scroll wheel | Scroll vertically (Node View) |
| F | Frame the currently playing beat node |
| Shift + F | Frame the currently selected beat node |
Project Management
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| File menu → Save | Download project file |
| File menu → Open | Load project file |
| File menu → New | Start new project |
TIP
Browser shortcuts (Ctrl+S, Ctrl+O) trigger browser defaults. Use the menu buttons for file operations.
Text Editing
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| Ctrl + Z | Undo last action |
| Ctrl + Shift + Z | Redo |
| Ctrl + C | Copy (in text fields) |
| Ctrl + V | Paste (in text fields or images) |
Scene Heading Autocomplete
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| Double-click (Scene Heading field) | Show all presets and history |
| Start typing | Show fuzzy-matched suggestions |
| ↑ / ↓ | Navigate suggestions |
| Enter | Select highlighted suggestion |
| Escape | Close suggestions |
Smart Suggestions
EmberBoard learns from your scene headings and suggests them in future projects. The fuzzy search means typing "int k" will match "INT. KITCHEN - DAY"!
Help
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| ? | Show keyboard shortcuts overlay |
| Esc | Close dialogs/modals |
Tips for Efficient Workflow
Learn These First
Master these 7 shortcuts and you'll be 10x faster:
- B key - Fastest way to create beats (script auto-focused!)
- Double-click - Create beats at specific locations
- Alt + Drag - Duplicate for variations
- Spacebar - Quick preview
- Ctrl + Z - Fearlessly experiment
- Shift + Click - Multi-select for batch operations
- ? - When you forget a shortcut
Power User Combo: JKL Editing
Borrowed from professional editing software:
- J - Play backward (tap to start, hold to scrub)
- K - Pause (instant stop)
- L - Play forward (tap to start, hold to scrub)
- Press J/L multiple times - Increase playback speed (1x → 2x → 3x → 4x)
- Speed resets when pausing (K) or changing direction
Multi-Select Workflow
- Shift + drag box around beats
- Delete to remove all
- Or drag together to reposition
- Or change colors in bulk
Customization
Currently shortcuts are fixed, but planned for future release:
- Custom keyboard shortcuts
- Import/export shortcut profiles
- Context-aware shortcuts
Printable Cheat Sheet
Coming soon: Downloadable PDF cheat sheet for quick reference.
Platform Differences
EmberBoard uses standard shortcuts across platforms:
- Windows/Linux: Ctrl + Key
- Mac: Cmd + Key (in Electron version)
The web version uses Ctrl on all platforms for consistency.