# Layers and keyframes, by hand or by chat

Canonical URL: https://getvidiyo.app/features/layers-and-keyframes
Last updated: 2026-10-08

> TL;DR: Everything in a Vidiyo video is a layer on a real timeline: clips, text, shapes, captions and motion scenes. Animate any layer with In and Out presets or with keyframes on position, scale, rotation and opacity, each with its own easing. The AI edits the same layers you do, so its work is never locked.

Image: Vidiyo inspector for a text layer with Animate presets and Transform keyframes, and keyframe lanes open under the layer on the timeline.

Vidiyo isn't a prompt box that hands you a finished file. It's a timeline editor with layers and keyframes, and the AI is one way to drive it. Whatever the assistant adds, you can open, adjust and animate by hand, and whatever you build by hand, the assistant can see and change.

## How do layers work in Vidiyo?

Every visual element is a layer: video and image clips, text, shapes, captions and motion scenes. The timeline lists picture layers with the top of the stack first, so a higher row draws on top. A video track is one row holding its clips. Audio tracks sit below.

A bar floating over the preview adds layers at the playhead:

| Tool | Key | Adds |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Text | T | A text layer |
| Rectangle | R | A shape with solid or gradient fill, border, corners and shadow |
| Ellipse | O | A circle or oval |
| Line | L | A straight line |
| Arrow | | An arrow |

Click a layer on the preview to select it, drag to move it, and drag a corner to scale it. Bring forward and Send backward sit at the top of its inspector.

## How do I animate a layer with keyframes?

Every visual layer's inspector has two sections. **Animate** gives In and Out presets. **Transform** gives X, Y, Scale, Rotation and Opacity, each with a ‹ ◇ › control:

- ◇ adds a key at the playhead with the current value, or removes the key that's there.
- ‹ and › jump to the previous and next key.
- Once a property has a key, changing it anywhere (in the inspector or by dragging on the preview) adds a key there.
- A gold label means the property is animated. A filled ◆ means the playhead is on a key.

The selected layer opens a lane for each animated property under its timeline row. Click a key to set its easing (linear, ease, ease in, ease out, overshoot, hold) or drag it to move it in time. Clips take keyframes too, which is how [punch-ins](https://getvidiyo.app/glossary/punch-in-zoom) and slow pushes work.

## Can I ask the AI to do it instead?

Yes, and it uses the same model. The assistant has intent operations for animating a layer, setting a key and restacking, and it can write keys, easing, gradients and shadows directly. Anything it makes this way stays editable by hand.

Things you can type:

- "Add a title that slides up when I say \"three things\"."
- "Fade the logo out over the last second."
- "Push in slowly on me during the story."
- "Put a rounded yellow box behind the price and pop it in."
- "Move the title above the captions."

Each request becomes one undo step. If you grab a layer while the assistant is working, your manual edit stops its request, so you never fight over the same clip.

## Where do captions and graphics sit in the stack?

Captions and motion scenes are layers too, with fixed places that keep video readable. A motion scene can sit under the speaker (between the background and you) or over the speaker. Captions sit above both, so a graphic never hides the words. Text and shapes stack wherever you put them. If a title ends up behind something, use Bring forward, or ask the assistant to restack it.

## How does the brand panel connect to layers?

The Brand panel holds the project's look: a palette or custom primary, secondary, text and background colours, heading and body fonts, the subtitle style and a motif for motion scenes. Text and shapes remember which of their values follow the brand. Change the brand and every linked value, the captions and every motion scene update together in one undo step.

## What doesn't the layer editor do?

It doesn't do masking, speed changes or advanced grading. Colour is basic: per-clip sliders plus preset looks such as Warm daylight or Teal & orange. Brand looks live in each project, so a second project starts with its own. And while the editor snaps clips to the playhead, comments and every edge, manual edits don't ripple: ripple delete is an explicit action.

## Who is it for?

People who want AI speed without losing control. Designers and agencies who care where a title sits to the pixel. Founders who let the assistant do the first pass and then nudge the last details. If you've used a traditional editor, the timeline, inspector and keyboard shortcuts (Space, B to split, ⌫ to delete, ⌘Z to undo) will feel familiar.

## Honest limits

- Brand looks are per project. There's no shared brand kit across projects yet.
- Colour tools are basic: exposure, contrast, highlights, shadows, temperature, tint, saturation, vibrance and preset looks.
- No masking and no speed control.
- Timelines max out at 5 minutes, and export is 1080p at 30 fps.

## Frequently asked questions

### Does Vidiyo have layers and keyframes?

Yes. Clips, text, shapes, captions and motion scenes are layers stacked on the timeline, with the top row drawn on top. Every visual layer can be keyframed on X, Y, scale, rotation and opacity, with per-key easing.

### Can I edit what the AI made by hand?

Yes. The assistant creates ordinary layers and keyframes through the same model as the inspector. You can select anything it added, drag it on the preview, change its keys or delete it.

### What easing options do keyframes have?

Each key can be linear, ease, ease in, ease out, overshoot or hold. Click a key in the timeline lane to pick it and set its easing, or drag it to move it in time.

### How do I animate text in Vidiyo?

Select the text and pick an In and an Out preset (fade, slide, pop or zoom in; fade, slide, shrink or zoom out), or press the diamond next to a Transform property to set keys yourself. Presets write ordinary keys you can adjust.

### Can text and shapes follow my brand colours?

Yes. The Brand panel holds the project's colours and fonts. Text and shapes linked to it update when you change the brand, in one undo step. Setting a linked value by hand unlinks just that value.

## Related

- [Motion graphics without After Effects](https://getvidiyo.app/features/motion-graphics)
- [Edit video by chatting](https://getvidiyo.app/features/chat-video-editing)
- [Keyframe](https://getvidiyo.app/glossary/keyframe)
- [Easing](https://getvidiyo.app/glossary/easing)
- [Timeline](https://getvidiyo.app/glossary/timeline)
- [How do motion graphics and layers work in Vidiyo?](https://getvidiyo.app/docs/motion-and-layers)

Download Vidiyo for Mac (free during the beta): https://getvidiyo.app/download