Documentation
Coherence Studio Docs
Everything you need to know about screen recording, AI editing, and AI video creation.
Getting Started
Installation
Download Coherence Studio from the GitHub releases page. Available for macOS (Apple Silicon & Intel), Windows 10+, and Linux (AppImage).
macOS: Unsigned App
Coherence Studio is not currently signed with an Apple Developer certificate. After downloading, you may need to remove the quarantine flag:
xattr -rd com.apple.quarantine /Applications/Coherence\ Studio.app
First Launch
On launch you'll see the project browser where you can start a new recording, open an existing project, or create an AI video (Pro). Recent projects are listed for quick access.
Screen Recording
Starting a Recording
Click "New Recording" to open the source picker. Select a screen or window to capture. You can also record your webcam as a picture-in-picture overlay.
Multi-Window
Open multiple editor windows with Ctrl+Shift+T (or Cmd+Shift+T on macOS). Each window has its own project, recording session, and save state. You can record one Studio window from another using File → Open Window for Recording.
Audio Capture
Capture system audio and/or microphone input. Audio tracks appear in the editor timeline for independent control.
AI Editing (Free)
AI Auto-Captions
Powered by on-device Whisper. Generates perfectly timed subtitles without any cloud upload. Multiple model sizes available (tiny, base, small, medium) — larger models are more accurate but slower.
Smart Trimming
AI analyzes your recording and suggests trims for dead air, loading screens, and silence. Accept or reject each suggestion individually.
Auto-Zoom on Cursor
Cursor telemetry tracks mouse position, clicks, and movement patterns. The editor suggests zoom keyframes that keep viewers focused on the action. Click to accept or manually adjust.
AI Narration
Generate a voiceover for your recording. The AI creates natural-sounding narration based on the on-screen content and any captions.
One-Click Polish
Applies zoom, captions, background, and speed ramps in one operation. Takes a raw recording to professional quality in seconds.
AI Video Creation (Pro)
Overview
Paste a website URL or describe your idea. A 13-agent production team generates a complete motion graphics video with custom scenes, transitions, narration, and music.
Input Methods
- URL mode — paste a website URL. The system crawls the site, extracts brand voice + design references, captures screenshots, and generates a video showcasing the product.
- Research mode — describe any topic. The AI researches it and creates an explainer/documentary-style video without needing a URL.
Video Types
Choose from preset video types that control duration, pacing, and narrative arc:
- Product Teaser — 30-60s high-energy overview
- Explainer — 60-90s deeper walkthrough
- Social Clip — 15-30s for social media
- Documentary — 60-120s editorial style
Custom Briefs
Type a free-form description in the message input alongside any video type selection. The brief drives aesthetic synthesis, voice selection, and narrative tone. Example: "Create a matrix style background, monospace font, and Morpheus as the narrator."
Production Team (Pro)
13 specialized AI agents run sequentially, each shaping a different aspect of the video. Every agent receives the cumulative output of the agents before it.
| Agent | Role |
|---|---|
| Script Doctor | Punches up headlines and subtitles. Tests: "would I screenshot this and tweet it?" |
| Hook Specialist | Reviews scenes 0-1 (the cold open). Replaces or tweaks if the hook doesn't earn a stop-scroll. |
| Story Writer | Drafts per-scene voice-over narration text aligned with the visual narrative. |
| Stylist | Applies the video aesthetic to every scene — backgrounds, fonts, effects, decorations. |
| Test Audience | Simulates a target persona watching the video. Returns a score, arc analysis, and one actionable fix. |
| Director | Generates motion briefs for hero scenes — metaphor, visual style, motion family, energy level, color palette. |
| Composer | Writes custom Remotion TSX code for each hero scene based on the Director's brief. |
| Motion Director | Reviews each scene against 12 animation principles. Scores craft 1-10 and lists specific violations. |
| Animator | Refines scenes that scored below 9/10 — fixes linear easing, missing anticipation, instant stops, etc. |
| Continuity Editor | Reviews the full sequence for rhythm, variety, and unity. Adjusts transitions and durations. |
| Scene Checker | Lints, dry-renders, and AI-repairs each scene. Catches undefined refs, hook violations, broken JSX. |
| Sound Designer | Places SFX cues (whoosh, impact, shimmer, etc.) at scene transitions and key moments. |
| Narrator | Synthesizes TTS audio for each scene using brief-matched or user-selected MiniMax voices. |
Scene Library
179+ pre-built scene components organized by category. The Composer uses these as building blocks, and you can swap types in the Scene Editor.
Categories
- Themed Systems (33) — complete aesthetic treatments: Cyberpunk, Neon, Holographic, Glassmorphism, Art Deco, Bauhaus, Memphis, Japanese, and more.
- Cinematic Presets (10) — genre-specific: Epic, Sci-Fi, Noir, Anime, Documentary, Action, Horror, Romance, Vintage, Minimal End.
- Background Layers (10) — Aurora, Bokeh, Flowing Gradient, Geometric, Grid, Mesh Gradient, Perspective Grid, Radial, Waves, Noise Texture.
- Text Animations (12) — Neon, Kinetic, Explode, 3D Flip, Scramble, Gradient, Wave, Counter, Glitch, Mask Reveal, Split, Typewriter.
- Logo Reveals (10) — 3D Rotate, Stroke, Neon Sign, Particles, Glitch, Mask Reveal, Light Trail, Morph, Split Screen, Stamp.
- Data Visualizations (8) — Bar Chart, Pie, Line, Donut, Progress, Stat Card, Gauge, Sparkline.
- Liquid Effects (10) — Blob, Ink Splash, Fluid Wave, Swirl, Morph Blob, Calligraphy Ink, Oil Spill, Paint Drip, Splatter, Water Drop.
- Shape Animations (10) — Ripples, Hex Grid, Spinning Rings, Morphing, Circular Progress, Explosion, Helix, 3D Cube, Mandala, Particle Field.
- Layouts (11) — Asymmetric, Diagonal, Frame in Frame, Fullscreen Type, Giant Number, Grid Break, Layered, Multi-Column, Off Grid, Split Contrast, Whitespace.
- Particle Effects (13) — Mist, Light Rays, Stars, Fireflies, Sparks, Embers, Bubbles, Snow, Sakura, Confetti, Fireworks, Lightning, Smoke.
- Visual Effects (10) — Film Grain, VHS, Chromatic Aberration, Glow, Light Leak, Duotone, Kaleidoscope, Depth of Field, Matrix, Noise.
Scene Types (37)
High-level scene templates that the plan generator selects from: hero-text, ghost-hook, data-flow-network, metrics-dashboard, stacked-hierarchy, scrolling-list, echo-hero, outline-hero, cinematic-title, radial-vortex, gradient-mesh-hero, contrast-pairs, word-slot-machine, app-icon-cloud, chat-narrative, countdown, impact-word, typewriter-prompt, and more. Each supports variants (e.g. data-flow-network has circles, timeline-arrows, hex-grid, isometric-blocks, orbital-rings).
Scene Editor
Overview
After AI generation, the Scene Editor lets you fine-tune every aspect. The left panel shows the live Remotion preview; the right panel has tabs for Scenes, Tools, Director, Code, and Music.
Scenes Tab
Each scene card has collapsible sections for:
- Style — scene type picker, variant selector, duration (frames)
- Background — color swatches, custom hex, animated background effects with intensity slider
- Pacing — layer gap timing
- AI Video Clip — attach or generate a MiniMax video clip for this scene
- Layers — per-layer editing with timeline controls
Scenes can be reordered, added, deleted, and collapsed. Transitions between scenes are configurable with 23 transition types and color + duration overrides.
Director Tab
Chat with the Creative Director to refine the video plan. You can ask for changes to the narrative arc, swap scene types, adjust pacing, or request a complete rewrite. The Director updates the plan in real-time and the preview reflects changes immediately.
Code Tab
View and edit the compiled Remotion composition code directly. Changes are applied to the preview when you click "Apply Changes".
Aesthetics
Preset Aesthetics
12+ curated visual systems available in the picker:
- Vox Documentary — paper backgrounds, hand-drawn annotations, red callouts
- Premium SaaS Dark — glassmorphism, Inter font, accent gradients
- Cinematic Noir — deep blacks, film grain, dramatic motion
- Retro CRT Terminal — green/amber on black, scanlines, monospace
- Editorial Magazine — cream paper, oversized serif, generous whitespace
- Neon Cyberpunk — cyan/magenta, glitch effects, perspective grids
- Hand-drawn Explainer — whiteboard, sketchy fonts, draw-on animations
- Pop Art — halftone dots, bold outlines, primary colors
- 80s Synthwave — sunset gradients, chrome text, perspective grids
- Anime — speed lines, dramatic zooms, manga-style emphasis
- Notebook Sketch — grid paper, confident ink lines, torn-edge labels
- Crayola Kids — wax crayon textures, wobbly shapes, primary colors
Bespoke Synthesis
When no preset is selected, describe any visual style in the message brief. The AI synthesizes a complete VideoAesthetic object: name, colors (bg, text, accent, secondary), font stacks, PixiJS texture preset, motion feel, decorations, and a strict systemNote that every downstream agent must follow. The brief is the source of truth — no catalog matching.
Narration & Music
Narration Voices
8 MiniMax TTS voices, each suited to different content:
| Voice ID | Character |
|---|---|
| English_expressive_narrator | British male, documentary narrator — Vox / 60 Minutes authority |
| English_WiseScholar | British male, conversational scholar — thoughtful TED talk |
| English_Trustworth_Man | American male, sincere and warm — founder pitch, SaaS explainer |
| English_CaptivatingStoryteller | American senior male, cold detached — noir, Morpheus-like |
| English_PassionateWarrior | American male, energetic and intense — launch hype |
| English_Graceful_Lady | British female, refined and sophisticated — editorial, premium |
| English_CalmWoman | American female, soothing — wellness, meditation |
| English_Upbeat_Woman | American female, energetic — playful, friendly |
Voice selection order: explicit picker → brief-matched AI pick → aesthetic default map → English_expressive_narrator.
Background Music
AI-generated background music via MiniMax. Specify a mood prompt or let the system auto-detect from the video content. Music is generated in parallel with scene compilation so it doesn't add to generation time.
Export
Formats
Export to MP4 (H.264) or GIF. The export pipeline uses Remotion's server-side rendering for frame-accurate output.
Aspect Ratios
5 output formats: 16:9 (landscape), 9:16 (portrait/reels), 1:1 (square), 4:5 (Instagram), 4:3 (classic).
External Assets
During export, external audio files referenced via studio:// protocol URLs are automatically copied into the Remotion bundle and rewritten to relative paths. This ensures the export is self-contained.
Keyboard Shortcuts
Editor Shortcuts
| Action | Default |
|---|---|
| Add Zoom | Z |
| Add Trim | T |
| Add Speed | S |
| Add Annotation | A |
| Add Keyframe | F |
| Delete Selected | Ctrl+D |
| Play / Pause | Space |
| Toggle Play | K |
| Export | Ctrl+Shift+E |
| Toggle Captions | Ctrl+C |
| Toggle Cursor | Ctrl+U |
| Zoom In | Ctrl+= |
| Zoom Out | Ctrl+- |
Fixed Shortcuts
| Action | Key |
|---|---|
| Undo | Ctrl+Z |
| Redo | Ctrl+Shift+Z / Ctrl+Y |
| Cycle Annotations Forward | Tab |
| Cycle Annotations Backward | Shift+Tab |
| Delete Selected (alt) | Del / Backspace |
| Pan Timeline | Shift+Ctrl+Scroll |
| Zoom Timeline | Ctrl+Scroll |
All editor shortcuts are configurable in Settings. On macOS, Ctrl maps to Cmd.
Window Shortcuts
| Action | Key |
|---|---|
| New Window | Ctrl+Shift+T |
| Save Project | Ctrl+S |
| Save As | Ctrl+Shift+S |
| Open Project | Ctrl+O |
Project Files
.lucid Format
Projects are saved as .lucid files (JSON). They contain the full editing state: recording path, timeline edits, annotations, zoom keyframes, speed ramps, captions, and scene plan data. The video file itself is referenced by path, not embedded.
Auto-Save
Projects auto-save after generation and on significant edits. Auto-saved files are stored in ~/AppData/Roaming/coherence-studio/recordings/ (Windows) or the equivalent app data directory on macOS/Linux.
Recent Projects
The project browser tracks recent files with atomic writes (temp file + rename) to prevent corruption from concurrent saves.