The command bar

The command bar sits under the preview in the editor, labeled Ask DemoTake to edit…. It is the fastest way to make edits you can describe but would rather not hunt for in the inspector. Press ⌘L to jump into it, type a command and press Return.

Click into the empty bar and a short Try list appears with examples such as "Hold the result 2 seconds longer" and "Hide my email". Pick one to fill in the bar.

#What a command does

A command never renders anything by itself and never touches the recording. DemoTake reads the sentence, turns it into the same edit operations the timeline and inspector make (a target length, a hold, a speed range, a camera change) and applies them. So:

• You see the result right away. The preview, timeline and inspector update like after any other edit.
• It is one undoable step. A line under the bar says what changed and how many edits were applied, with an Undo button. ⌘Z works too; the Edit menu calls it Undo Edit Command.
• You can fine-tune it. A hold the command added is an ordinary hold, and a target length shows up in the inspector's Effects tab, ready to adjust.

#Commands that work offline

DemoTake understands common phrasings on your Mac without sending anything anywhere. No account, no AI provider key, no network. This covers most everyday edits:

Name a scene by its title ("the checkout scene") or its number ("scene 2"). For idle time you can also use a common word that appears in the scene's title or intent: login, log in, sign in, onboarding, dashboard, checkout, export or settings. Numbers work as digits, or as common words like "two", "thirty" or "ninety". One sentence can carry several commands joined with "and".

#Free-form commands with DemoTake AI

When the offline interpreter can't map a sentence to an edit, DemoTake can hand it to AI:

• DemoTake AI, hosted by us, is included with a Director, Team or Enterprise subscription. See Editions and plans.
• Your own AI provider key: add it in Settings › AI under Bring Your Own Key. It is stored in the macOS Keychain, on your Mac only.

The AI Director switch in Settings › AI must be on for free-form edits. The offline interpreter always runs first, so common commands never use AI. When AI does run, it gets a text outline of the take's timeline with secrets redacted by Secret Guard. Video and screenshots are never sent.

Without DemoTake AI or a key, a command DemoTake can't parse shows a short hint with phrasings that do work. DemoTake Web includes hosted DemoTake AI (a small allowance with the free take) and runs the same offline interpreter first.

#When a command needs a re-recorded scene

Some changes can't be edited in, like "redo the login scene". DemoTake doesn't fake it. It marks that scene for a retake, keeps every other scene and all your edits, and says so: "Scene “Login” will be re-recorded; everything else is kept." Click Back to Take, record that one scene again and return to the editor. See Retakes and checkpoints.

In DemoTake Web, the result line tells you the scene needs a new Web Recorder session.

#For agents: edit_command

Coding agents get the same command bar through the edit_command MCP tool. It returns what was applied, a message, which interpreter handled it (local or ai) and any scenes that need re-recording:

{
  "take_id": "<take id>",
  "text": "make it 30 seconds and don't zoom on typing"
}

{
  "applied": ["Target length 30s", "Rule: make it 30 seconds and don't zoom on typing"],
  "message": "Target length 30 s — sped up low-importance moments first. Won't zoom for typing. Saved as a rule.",
  "interpreter": "local",
  "retry_scenes": []
}

Edits made by edit_command don't appear in edit_history. When an agent needs an edit it can revert by id, it should use edit_apply or another edit_* tool instead. See Undo and history.

#Where to go next

• Camera and pointer: what "no zoom" and "presenter pointer" change.
• Pacing and waits: target lengths, holds and wait compression in detail.
• Undo and history: how every edit stays reversible.