If you need a clock or countdown timer in your iMovie video, you can create one in Keynote and export it to use in iMovie. You can manually create each second as a slide, or use this simple script to add all of the slides automatically. In iMovie you can adjust the size, color and even reverse the overlay to count down or up.
Check out Building a Clock Overlay For Your iMovie Videos at YouTube for closed captioning and more options.
Here’s the script. Remember when in Script Editor to switch from AppleScript to JavaScript.
var Keynote = Application("Keynote");
var presentation = Keynote.documents[0];
var slideMaster = presentation.masterSlides["Statement"];
for(var i=0;i<=120;i++) {
var m = Math.floor(i/60);
var s = i-m*60;
var newSlide = Keynote.Slide({baseSlide:slideMaster});
presentation.slides.push(newSlide);
newSlide.defaultBodyItem().objectText = m+":"+String(s).padStart(2, '0');
}
Hi Gary, thanks for this VERY helpful post. Can the script be edited to automatically create slides counting down (as opposed to yours that is counting up)? I know you showed how iMovie can reverse the video, but I would like to use the exported timer movie in Keynote alongside of an interactive scoreboard for games. I’m just trying to avoid having to bring the movie file into iMove, reverse the video, export a new video, and then bring it back into Keynote. Thanks!
Jack: You can just change the for loop. It counts from 0 to 120 now, so make it count from 120 to 0, like:
Thanks for your help Gary. When I put that line of code in, I get the following error:
Error on line 5: SyntaxError: Unexpected token ‘)’
Jack: Make sure you get it exactly, Note that it is two minus characters at the end to replace the two plus characters from the original.
That did it! Thank you very much.
Gary, thank you so much for this video. It is so well explained, and the bonus being able to copy and past the script, was a godsend. Once again forever grateful for your videos.
TQVM Gary, for another great and enlightening video.
Thank you so much for the amazing video. I am just wondering what I should change in the coding script to make the video a countdown of 50 minutes?
Thank you once again,
Sumaia
sumaia: 50 minutes is 60 times 50 seconds. So 3000 seconds. So change the 120 in the code to 3000. It will take a while to create, but it should still work.
var Keynote = Application(“Keynote”);
var presentation = Keynote.documents[0];
var slideMaster = presentation.masterSlides[“Title – center”];
for(var i=3000;i>=0;i–) {
var m = Math.floor(i/60);
var s = i-m*60;
var newSlide = Keynote.Slide({baseSlide:slideMaster});
presentation.slides.push(newSlide);
newSlide.defaultBodyItem().objectText = m+”:”+String(s).padStart(2, ‘0’);
}
this is what i have but numbers are for not showing. Also, I used title-center instead of Statement.
I actually got it ! THANK YOU SO MUCH. literally your video was the only helpful video i found!!
Hi, Gary, I have Keynote 10.2 version in Spanish Language but your script doesn’t work in my Mac computer and I received this message: Error: TypeError: undefined is not an object (evaluating ‘presentation.masterSlides’)
Isaac: Just try going through everything step-by-step and setting it up the same way I do.
Hi Gary, is there a way to add a voice or sound to the last seconds of the timer?
Marie: I would just record that yourself as an audio VoiceOver.
This was so INCREDIBLY HELPFUL. Thank you for the simple, easy to follow instructions.
Hello Gary, I keep getting his error message “Error -1728: Can’t get object.” I have copied the code exactly, yet when I try to input it into keynote, it gives me that message.
Alyssa: That error suggests that maybe your open Keynote document isn’t set up the same as what I am showing in the tutorial.
If you get “Error -1728: Can’t get object.”, write name of masterSlide like it named in your localisation.
For example, in Russian version it named “Информационное сообщение”.
Andrew: Not sure. Sounds like an issue with the language settings and just getting everything to match right.
Hi Gary, the script is working creating the slides but not writing in the slide the result. How can i solve that?
Christian: Perhaps an issue with the template’s text boxes? Try another template.
Hi Gary, the coding was succeed until automatically creating the slides. But the time is not showing. How can I solve this?
Risjad: Impossible for me to tell what could be wrong with how you did it. Try again following every step carefully.
Hi Gary, thanks for this javascript – is there something different in Keynote on Big Sur (which I am running)?
The script gives me an Error -2700 TypeError: the undefined is not an object (evaluating ‘presentation.masterSlides’) – note that the ‘ are in the message and not in the script.
The script compiles just fine otherwise.
Any thoughts?
Joss: No, it will work in Big Sur. Be sure your Keynote document looks like mine.
Thanks, Gary, After some tweaking around, I managed to get the Javascript to work. Not sure what I did that was different – but it could have been spinning around in my chair first did the trick. Great script! Thanks1
Hi Garry I got Error- 1700: Can’t convert types?
Jenny: Make sure your script and the Keynote presentation are exactly like I have them.
Thanks – This was just what I needed :-) It’s working perfectly…
For 10mins… would it be this? (var I=600;i>=0;i–)
Thanks In advance!
James: yes. Lowercase i, of course. then a — (two dashes) at the end.
Good afternoon Gary, I understand the java script you use. My question is I want it to go in reverse meaning not counting 0 -2;00 but 2:00 – 0 do you make any change to the script in order for that order to work?
Jose: You can change the for loop in the script to count the other way. But you can also just reverse the video in iMovie.
I confirm that error “Error -1728: Can’t get object.” is due to a localisation problem. You need to change the line 3 of the script (here is an example with French localisation):
var slideMaster = presentation.masterSlides[“Déclaration”];
I’m not familiar with writing script. I tried to copy and paste your script and just changed the seconds to 900 because I need a timer for 15 minutes. It worked but there is no text in the 900 slides it created. What would the script be for 15 minutes? Help please! I also don’t have the slide option for statement in my Keynote. Only “Title – Center”.
Melodie: 900 is 15 times 60, so that is right. Not sure why you aren’t getting text. Maybe you are using a much older version of Keynote? Try it with another template or the exact one I used.
A small update to the javascript code to start at HH:MM:SS and go i seconds
var Keynote = Application(“Keynote”);
var presentation = Keynote.documents[0];
var slideMaster = presentation.masterSlides[“Statement”];
// Define start of clock (Here 07:30:00)
var start_h = 7; // Starting Hour
var start_m = 30; // Starting Minute
var start_s = 0; // Starting Second
var total_s = 120; // Total number of seconds to create
var h = start_h;
var m = start_m;
var s = start_s;
for (var i=start_s; i <= total_s+start_s; i++) {
if (i % 60 === 0) {
m = m + 1
if (m % 60 === 0) {
h = h + 1;
m = 0;
if (h % 13 === 0) h = 1;
}
}
s = i % 60;
clock_str = String(h).padStart(2, '0') + ":" + String(m).padStart(2, '0') + ":" + String(s).padStart(2, '0');
var newSlide = Keynote.Slide({baseSlide:slideMaster});
presentation.slides.push(newSlide);
newSlide.defaultBodyItem().objectText = clock_str;
}