---
title: Burlap
description: Burlap, the native Mac app Sarth Calhoun made at Third Wall Studio: an infinite canvas for visual creation and context management, connected to models from OpenAI, Google, Runway and ByteDance.
url: https://www.sarth.net/conspiracies/burlap/
published: 2026-09-23
facet: machine
credit: Burlap is made by Sarth Calhoun at Third Wall Studio. He started it after Runway’s 48-hour film competition in the spring of 2025.
author: Sarth Calhoun
---
[Conspiracies](/conspiracies/) / Burlap

Conspiracy · Machine

# Burlap

Burlap is a native Mac app for visual creation and context management, made by [Third Wall Studio](/conspiracies/third-wall-studio/). It is an infinite canvas with asset management and connections to AI models built in, so the images, the videos and the workflow live in one place. It connects to the latest models from OpenAI, Google, Runway, ByteDance and more, and when a user brings their own API keys, their data never touches Burlap’s server. It is at [burlap.app](https://burlap.app).

It is the tool the studio works in. The 2026 shorts and *Through the Brambles* were made in it.

![Burlap, infinite canvas for visual reference prompting.](/images/burlap.jpg)

Burlap. Download at [burlap.app](https://burlap.app/download).

## What it does

From burlap.app. Burlap takes your creative process out of little GenAI cubicles and lets you roam free. Burlap isn’t just an infinite canvas. Asset management and connections to AI are included under the hood. This allows you to see the images and videos and manage the workflow all in one place.

- **More freedom, less downtime.** Run multiple prompts at the same time and keep building while the AI generates results in the background.
- **Flexible multi-model workflow.** Use Runway and OpenAI side-by-side in the same project. Mix text, images, and video generation, and fine tune the style and composition with reference-based prompting.
- **Visual reference prompting.** Steer AI outputs with sketches, imported images, or captured canvas elements.

This is a creative production tool, and it is also a context engineering tool. We are empowering users to provide context to LLMs to shape their results.

Two walkthroughs on YouTube: [Introducing Burlap](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CP8939UdzSo) and [The AI canvas](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYN5ijezg3k).

## How it started

Burlap is made by Third Wall Studio as our workflow tool for animation and visual design. It is available now for Mac, and it is the canvas underneath [visual reference prompting](/transmissions/visual-reference-prompting/).

The credit: Burlap is made by Sarth Calhoun at Third Wall Studio. He started it after Runway’s 48-hour film competition in the spring of 2025.

I made Burlap after entering the runway 48 hours sprint competition, you're supposed to make a short film in 48 hours, like Saturday morning to Monday morning, Saturday morning at 9:00 a.m. to Monday to be mighty, but uh... it was brutal. I realized the models had arrived this was like April of 2025, but the toolchain was just unworkable, just completely unworked for anything I wanted to do or how I thought a professional workspace should be.

## Conspiracies

[Third Wall Studio](/conspiracies/third-wall-studio/) builds it and makes its films in it; they are on [Work](/work/). [Visual Reference Prompting](/transmissions/visual-reference-prompting/) is the method the canvas is built around. [DuckDB, where have you been all my life](/transmissions/duckdb-where-have-you-been-all-my-life/) is Claude driving DuckDB over Burlap’s JSON records of every genAI call. The small tools at [Contraptions](https://contraptions.bookofsarth.com) sit beside it: Burlap is the main machine; these are the odd little ones beside it.

[Burlap on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/burlapapp/) · [Burlap on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/@burlap_app)

Burlap’s copy is from [burlap.app](https://burlap.app) and the sarth.net homepage.