TVPaint Animation Shortcuts: The Complete Windows & Mac List
TVPaint Animation has 90+ built-in keyboard shortcuts covering drawing tools, timeline navigation, XSheet control, and file commands. On Windows, most shortcuts use Ctrl; on Mac, substitute Cmd for the same result. This guide organizes every shortcut by function, notes the Mac equivalent, and shows you how to customize any of them.
TVPaint Animation is a pixel-based 2D animation and paint program used by animation studios, freelancers, game designers, and VFX teams worldwide. Because it’s built for frame-by-frame, paperless animation work, speed matters every shortcut you memorize is time you get back on the timeline instead of hunting through menus.
What Are TVPaint Shortcuts?
A TVPaint shortcut is a single key or key combination that instantly triggers a tool, panel, or command instead of navigating the menu bar. For example, pressing U performs Last Action/Undo, and Ctrl+K opens the shortcut configuration panel itself. Shortcuts are grouped into a few functional areas: drawing tools, timeline/XSheet, view/navigation, and file/edit/layer commands.
TVPaint Shortcuts: Windows vs Mac
TVPaint’s shortcut layout is nearly identical across platforms. The only change you need to remember:
| Windows Key | Mac Equivalent |
| Ctrl | Cmd |
| Alt | Option |
| All single-letter and number-key shortcuts (A, B, C… 0–9) | Unchanged — no modifier swap needed |
So Ctrl+C (Copy) on Windows is Cmd+C on Mac, but a single-key shortcut like U (Undo) or Z (Resize) works exactly the same on both.
Most-Used TVPaint Shortcuts
These are the commands animators reach for constantly worth memorizing first.
| Action | Windows | Mac |
| Last Action / Undo | U | U |
| Copy | Ctrl + C | Cmd + C |
| Paste | Ctrl + V | Cmd + V |
| Cut | Ctrl + X | Cmd + X |
| Save | Shift + S | Shift + S |
| Flood Fill | F | F |
| Freehand (brush) | D | D |
| FlipBook (playback) | W | W |
| Light Table Mode | Ctrl + L | Cmd + L |
| Configure Keyboard | Ctrl + K | Cmd + K |
| Select All | Ctrl + A | Cmd + A |
| Full Screen | V | V |
Drawing & Tool Shortcuts
TVPaint assigns most of its core drawing and painting tools to single letter keys no modifier needed.
| Action | Windows | Mac |
| Shake | A | A |
| Toggle CutBrush | B | B |
| Rotate | C | C |
| Freehand | D | D |
| Next | E | E |
| Flood Fill | F | F |
| Toggle | G | G |
| Halve Size | H | H |
| Append Images | I | I |
| Exchange | J | J |
| Line | L | L |
| New Zoom Window | M | M |
| Invert A/B | N | N |
| Outline | O | O |
| Toggle Palette Panel | P | P |
| Spline | Q | Q |
| Rectangle | R | R |
| Freehand Dot | S | S |
| Text | T | T |
| Last Action / Undo | U | U |
| Full Screen | V | V |
| FlipBook | W | W |
| Flip Horizontally | X | X |
| Flip Vertically | Y | Y |
| Resize | Z | Z |
| Drawing Mode 01–06 | F2 … F7 | F2 … F7 |
Brush Size & Color Shortcuts
| Action | Windows | Mac |
| Brush Increase Size | + | + |
| Brush Decrease Size | – | – |
| Brush Increase Size (alt) | * | * |
| Brush Decrease Size (alt) | / | / |
| Brush Reset | : | : |
| Color Pick | ; | ; |
| Pick Layer | , | , |
| Zoom In | > | < |
| Zoom Out | < | < |
Timeline, XSheet & Project Panel Shortcuts
These control how you view and navigate your animation’s frames and layers.
| Action | Windows | Mac |
| Show Timeline Tab | Ctrl + 1 | Cmd + 1 |
| Show XSheet Tab | Ctrl + 2 | Cmd + 2 |
| Show Project Tab | Ctrl + 3 | Cmd + 3 |
| Open Timeline Panel | Ctrl + Numpad 1 | Cmd + Numpad 1 |
| Open XSheet Panel | Ctrl + Numpad 2 | Cmd + Numpad 2 |
| Open Project Panel | Ctrl + Numpad 3 | Cmd + Numpad 3 |
| Select Image from Keys | Ctrl + S | Cmd + S |
| Previous | Ctrl + E | Cmd + E |
| Slide To | Ctrl + F | Cmd + F |
| Magic Number | Ctrl + D | Cmd + D |
| Layer: Goto Image | Shift + F | Shift + F |
| Toggle Layer Panel | 0 | 0 |
View, Zoom & Navigation Shortcuts
Numpad-style keys let you scroll and pan the canvas without touching your mouse.
| Action | Windows | Mac |
| Scroll Down Left | 1 | 1 |
| Scroll Down | 2 | 2 |
| Scroll Down Right | 3 | 3 |
| Scroll Left | 4 | 4 |
| Center | 5 | 5 |
| Scroll Right | 6 | 6 |
| Scroll Up Left | 7 | 7 |
| Scroll Up | 8 | 8 |
| Scroll Up Right | 9 | 9 |
| Rotate Workspace | Ctrl + Shift + Page Up / Page Down | Cmd + Shift + Page Up / Page Down |
| Show Full Page | Shift + V | Shift + V |
| Double Size | Shift + H | Shift + H |
| Double Width | Shift + X | Shift + X |
| Rotate 90° | Shift + Z | Shift + Z |
File, Edit & Layer Shortcuts
| Action | Windows | Mac |
| Hide Other Projects | Ctrl + O | Cmd + O |
| Show All Projects | Ctrl + P | Cmd + P |
| Save | Shift + S | Shift + S |
| Load | Shift + L | Shift + L |
| New | Shift + N | Shift + N |
| Close | Shift + W | Shift + W |
| Quit | Shift + Q | Shift + Q |
| Clear | Shift + K | Shift + K |
| Insert Images | Shift + I | Shift + I |
| Copy To | Shift + J | Shift + J |
| Multi Redo | Shift + Y | Shift + Y |
| Open Preferences Panel | Shift + D | Shift + D |
| Toggle Tools Panel | Shift + A | Shift + A |
| Toggle Background Panel | Shift + B | Shift + B |
| Open Grid Panel | Shift + G | Shift + G |
| Toggle Handler Corner | Shift + O | Shift + O |
| Select All | Ctrl + A | Cmd + A |
| Flip Vertically (canvas) | Ctrl + Y | Cmd + Y |
| Help | F1 | F1 |
How to Customize TVPaint Shortcuts
Almost every function in TVPaint can be reassigned to a key of your choice. Here’s how:
- Open Edit > Preferences from the menu bar (or press Ctrl+K / Cmd+K as a shortcut to the keyboard settings directly).
- In the General tab, find the Keyboard Shorts section.
- Click Configure to open the shortcut editor.
- Select a function from the list on the right, then click Assign and press your desired key combination.
- To combine multiple functions under one shortcut, hold Ctrl while clicking Assign on a second function TVPaint will trigger both when you press that key.
Note: the Left/Right mouse buttons and the Alt key cannot be reassigned Alt is permanently reserved for canvas panning.
Download the Free TVPaint Shortcuts PDF
Download TVPaint Animation Shortcuts PDF — save or print the full list for quick reference at your desk.
TVPaint Shortcuts FAQ
How many keyboard shortcuts does TVPaint Animation have?
TVPaint Animation includes 90+ default shortcuts covering drawing tools, timeline/XSheet navigation, view controls, and file/layer commands.
Are TVPaint shortcuts the same on Mac and Windows?
Yes nearly identical. Replace Ctrl with Cmd for combination shortcuts; single-key shortcuts (like U for Undo) are unchanged on both platforms.
How do I customize shortcuts in TVPaint?
Go to Edit > Preferences > General > Keyboard Shorts, then click Configure to reassign any function to a new key.
What is the shortcut to undo in TVPaint?
Press U for Last Action/Undo.
What is the shortcut for Light Table Mode in TVPaint?
Ctrl+L (Windows) or Cmd+L (Mac) toggles Light Table Mode.
Can I combine two functions under one shortcut key?
Yes in the shortcut editor, hold Ctrl while clicking Assign on a second function to stack it onto the same key.
Which key can’t be reassigned in TVPaint?
The Alt key is permanently reserved for canvas panning and cannot be remapped, along with the left/right mouse buttons.
Conclusion
Learning TVPaint’s shortcuts isn’t about memorizing all 90+ at once start with the most-used group (Undo, Save, Flood Fill, FlipBook, Light Table Mode) and let the rest become second nature as you work. Because almost every key is remappable, the fastest animators eventually build a custom layout that matches how they actually draw, not just the defaults. Bookmark this page or grab the PDF, and revisit the customization steps above whenever you want to fine-tune your setup.
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