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Keyboard shortcuts#

Fly through formatting without reaching for the mouse.

Nabu's editor uses Final Draft keyboard conventions by default. On Mac, use Cmd. On Windows or Linux, use Ctrl everywhere Cmd is shown.

Picking and changing element types#

Shortcut What it does
Cmd+1 Make the current line a Scene Heading
Cmd+2 Make the current line Action
Cmd+3 Make the current line a Character cue
Cmd+4 Make the current line a Parenthetical
Cmd+5 Make the current line Dialogue
Cmd+6 Make the current line a Transition
Tab Move forward through the natural element types for where you are
Shift+Tab Move backward through element types
Cmd+D Set the current character's dialogue side by side with the speaker before it (dual dialogue), or undo it

Tip: Tab is smart about context. On an Action line it offers a Character cue; on a Character cue it offers a Parenthetical; on Dialogue it moves to a Parenthetical. On a blank Character line, Tab turns it into a Transition.

Note: Tab behaves differently on a scene heading — it walks you through small menus to finish the heading (the INT./EXT. prefix, then the location, then the time of day). See Screenplay formatting.

The element picker#

There is no "/" slash menu in Nabu. Press Enter on any blank line — a popup appears showing seven elements with their letter keys and Cmd+number shortcuts. (The exception: inside dual dialogue, Enter follows the normal flow instead of opening the picker.) Press a letter:

Key Inserts
s Scene Heading
a Action
c Character
p Parenthetical
d Dialogue
t Transition
n Note (a non-printing annotation)

You can also use ↑ / ↓ to highlight a choice and Enter to pick it, or press Esc to dismiss the popup. The Cmd+1 through Cmd+6 shortcuts also work while the picker is open.

In a TV script, a blank line at the end of a scene also offers e — End of Act.

Script notes#

Shortcut What it does
Cmd+Shift+K Insert a Script Note (a non-printing annotation)
Ctrl+J Same as above (alternate chord)
Backspace or Delete Clear a whole selected note or all its words; remove an empty note in one press. A note on the first line leaves an Action line.

Script notes are comments to yourself or collaborators — they never print in a PDF, but a Fountain export includes them as [[notes]].

Capitalization and naming#

Shortcut What it does
Cmd+K Toggle the selected text (or the current line) between ALL CAPS and lowercase

Character cues and location names capitalize themselves automatically.

Note: Nabu does not do "smart quotes" or other typographic auto-replacement — what you type is what you get, apart from the automatic uppercasing of cues and locations.

When you change an existing character's name in a cue, a small popup asks what you meant: press 1 to change just that one cue, or 2 to rename that character everywhere in the script. Press Esc to dismiss it.

Formatting text#

Shortcut What it does
Cmd+B Toggle bold
Cmd+I Toggle italic
Cmd+U Toggle underline

Undo and redo#

Shortcut What it does
Cmd+Z Undo your last edit
Cmd+Shift+Z Redo
Cmd+Y Redo (alternate)

Undo takes back your typing first, then your last change anywhere in the script — even one from an earlier session. For a fuller view, open History from the project sidebar.

Saving#

Your work saves itself as you type — there is no Save button.

Shortcut What it does
Cmd+S Save right now and write a checkpoint to History

When you press Cmd+S, Nabu saves immediately and drops a named checkpoint in your History. Saved and the time appear briefly above your script.

Find and replace#

Shortcut What it does
Cmd+F Open Find — selected text fills it in
Cmd+Shift+F Open Find with Replace showing

Exporting#

Shortcut What it does
Cmd+P Export a PDF
Cmd+Shift+P Export a PDF (alternate)
Shortcut What it does
Cmd+G Open Go To Page — type a page number and press Enter to jump there
Cmd+= or Cmd++ Zoom in
Cmd+- Zoom out
Cmd+0 Reset zoom to 100%

Vomit draft#

Shortcut What it does
Cmd+Shift+E Toggle Vomit draft mode on or off

Vomit draft lets you type freely — nothing formats and no AI runs.

Inside an AI suggestion#

When Nisaba proposes an edit, it appears underlined in your script. Click it to open the review popup, then:

Key What it does
A Accept the suggestion
D Dismiss it
Tab Cycle between alternative suggestions (A, B, …) when more than one is offered
Esc Close the popup without deciding

Note: Note-type suggestions are advisory — there's nothing to accept, so they have no A action.

Good to know#

  • The toolbar mirrors the keyboard. Every element type also has a button at the top of the editor, and so do undo and redo. See The editor.