Workflow

A video editing transport from a game controller

Download InputConfig on the Mac App StoreThe Video Editor Transport layout is built into InputConfig, free on the Mac App Store. You don't have to make an account, there are no subscriptions, and nothing is locked. Optimized for Apple silicon.

On a Mac: Works in editors that use J, K, L and the I and O marks. The two trigger rows need each editor's own blade and selection keys, listed below.

Yes, a game controller can be a video editing controller in any Mac editor that uses J, K, L and the I and O marks. J, K and L sit on the face buttons, a frame step on the stick, a cut on a trigger, marks on the D-pad. The two trigger rows need each editor's own keys, and this page lists them.

The layout, control by control

Click a control. Labels:

How the layout thinks

  • Play. Play and pause (Space) on the bottom face button, L, J and K on the right, left and top.
  • Find the frame. The left stick steps one frame.
  • Mark. Mark in and out (I and O) on the D-pad.
  • Keep your work. Undo and Save on the bumpers, and the right stick scrolls.

Set the triggers for your editor

The right trigger sends B and the left trigger V. What they do depends on the editor:

  • Final Cut Pro. B is the Blade tool. V toggles a selected clip on and off, so change the left trigger to A, Final Cut's Select tool.
  • DaVinci Resolve. B is Blade Edit Mode and A is Selection Mode, so set the left trigger to A.
  • Premiere Pro. The Razor is C and Selection is V, so change the right trigger to C.
  • Split at the playhead. Command B in Final Cut and Resolve, Command K in Premiere. Put it on the touchpad press.

Tick Vibrate under Feedback in the cut row's Options to feel each cut land. Change the left trigger before you edit in Final Cut, or V will switch your clips off.

Get it in two clicks

  1. Get InputConfig free on the Mac App Store, open it, and click Smart Preset Maker on the welcome screen.
  2. Search for Video Editor Transport and pick it. The layout is created as a preset in your sidebar, named and ready.
  3. Press Activate. Every row can be changed afterwards: the editor's Scan button rebinds any control the moment you touch it.

Every binding, as a table

The Video Editor Transport preset in InputConfig, drawn on a DualSense Edge with each control labeled with the key or action it sends.
Figure 1. The Video Editor Transport preset drawn on a DualSense Edge in InputConfig's Live Visualizer. For example, A / Cross is labeled Play / Pause (Space), and B / Circle is labeled Play forward (L). Any other controller shows the same layout on its own drawing.
ControllerSendsWhat it does
A / CrossSpacePlay / Pause (Space)
B / CircleLPlay forward (L)
X / SquareJPlay reverse (J)
Y / TriangleKPause (K)
Left stick leftLeftStep back one frame
Left stick rightRightStep forward one frame
Right triggerBBlade / split (B)
Left triggerVSelection (V)
D-pad leftIMark in (I)
D-pad rightOMark out (O)
LB / L1Command (Left), ZUndo
RB / R1Command (Left), SSave
Right stick downScroll downScroll down
Right stick upScroll upScroll up

Button names follow the Xbox / PlayStation pair shown in the editor, so A / Cross is the bottom face button on either pad. On a Switch Pro Controller the bottom button is labeled B; the mapping still fires on position.

Questions

Does it work in iMovie?

Partly. Space, the frame steps and undo work, but iMovie does not use J, K and L or the B and V tools. Its split is Command B. The iMovie page lists its keys.

Download InputConfig on the Mac App StoreCompletely free. You don't have to make an account, there are no subscriptions, and nothing is locked. Optimized for Apple silicon. Open source on GitHub.

Updated