Lua Scripting

Lua is Plinken’s universal scripting layer. Like Python in Houdini or ExtendScript in After Effects, Lua gives you programmatic control over every part of the application — the DAW engine, media pipelines, and the 3D scene graph.

Plinky, the built-in AI assistant, uses the same Lua API described here. Anything you script by hand, Plinky can generate and execute.

Three Surfaces

Lua code runs in three contexts, each suited to a different task:

Surface	Purpose	Entry Point
Actions	Immediate scripts — automate the DAW, call commands, run external tools	Action Editor or lua:execute command
Workflows	DAG pipelines — chain nodes for media generation, AI processing, batch export	Workflow Editor or lua-workflow:run command
Scene	3D scene graph — create meshes, lights, cameras, animate characters	pl.scene global

The plinken Global

Every Lua script has access to the plinken global object. This is the root of the entire API.

DAW & Runtime

Function	Returns	Description
pl.cmd(id, payload)	—	Execute any DAW command (deferred to next frame)
pl.log(msg)	—	Output a message to the console
pl.sleep(ms)	—	Yield execution (max 30 000 ms)
pl.get_context()	table	Session context — account, project, space, team, video
pl.get_transport()	table	Transport state — tempo, playing, position, time signature
plinken.list_commands()	table	All registered command IDs
pl.exec(program, args)	string	Run an allowlisted external program
plinken.allowed_programs()	table	List of programs available to exec
print(...)	—	Redirected to the script output buffer

Scene

Property	Type	Description
pl.scene	Scene	Entry point to the 3D Scene API

See the Actions reference for full details on every function, and the Scene API for the 3D subsystem.

Quick Start

Open the Action Editor (from the Action menu) and paste:

-- Log the current session info
local ctx = pl.get_context()
pl.log("Project: " .. ctx.project)

-- Check transport state
local transport = pl.get_transport()
pl.log("Tempo: " .. transport.tempo .. " BPM")

if transport.playing then
  pl.cmd("transport:stop", {})
  pl.log("Stopped playback")
else
  pl.cmd("transport:play", {})
  pl.log("Started playback")
end

Press Run (or execute via lua:execute) to see the output in the console.

Plinky & Lua

Plinky, Plinken’s AI assistant, writes and executes Lua behind the scenes. When you say “mute all drum tracks” or “set up three-point lighting”, Plinky translates that into Lua calls against the same plinken API.

This means:

• Any script you write can be generated by Plinky
• Any Plinky action can be inspected as Lua source
• You can teach Plinky new workflows by writing reusable scripts

API Reference

• Actions — DAW commands, runtime API, external tools
• State Read-Back — Querying tracks, regions, selection, mixer, automation, and plugins
• MIDI Data Access — Read, write, and send MIDI data
• File I/O — Read and write files (sandboxed to project directory)
• HTTP / Network — Make HTTP GET and POST requests
• Events & Callbacks — React to DAW changes with persistent scripts
• Timers & Intervals — Schedule recurring and one-shot callbacks
• Workflows — Lua-driven DAG pipelines for media processing
• Scene (3D) — Full 3D scene graph control
  • Nodes — Hierarchy and transforms
  • Meshes — Geometry and morph targets
  • Materials — PBR metallic-roughness
  • Textures — Image loading
  • Lights — Directional, point, spot, area
  • Cameras — Perspective, orthographic
  • Animation — Playback and timeline sync
  • Skeleton — Joints and skinning
  • Environment — Ambient, HDRI, fog
  • Post-Processing — Bloom, tone mapping, SSAO
  • Shadows — Shadow maps and cascades
  • Render Settings — Anti-aliasing, debug stats
  • Math Helpers — vec3, quat, mat4
  • Raycasting — Picking and queries