How to Use the Video Editor

Click on the project title at the top of the editor to rename your project. Keeping your projects clearly named is essential for organization, especially when you are working on multiple videos simultaneously.

The toolbar provides essential tools for adding content and managing your workspace:

• Select Tool: Use this to select, move, and resize elements on the canvas.
• Add Solid: Insert rectangle solid shapes. These are useful for creating backgrounds, overlays, or text backdrops to improve readability.
• Add Text: Create text layers to add titles, captions, or annotations to your video.
• Upload Media: Upload your own files directly from your computer: Add photos or graphics, video clips, or audio tracks. Assets are uploaded and processed when dropped into the editor. Upload progress is shown with indicators, and assets are stored for use across browser sessions. Multiple file formats are supported.
• Add Generated Assets: Access your library of AI-generated content. Quickly insert images or videos you've created within aicut.
• Zoom Controls: Adjust the canvas view. Click the percentage or "Fit" button to automatically scale the canvas to fit your screen.
• Undo / Redo: Easily correct mistakes or revert changes with these standard editing controls.

The main preview area where you arrange your visual elements.

• Click to select: Clicking on items in the canvas selects them. Selected items show a blue outline and can be edited via the inspector. Clicking on empty space deselects all items.
• Move and resize: Selected items can be dragged to move their position on the canvas. Resize handles appear on selected items allowing for width and height adjustment by dragging the corners or edges.
• Multiple selection: Multiple items can be selected using Cmd/Ctrl+click (alternatively Shift+click) to add items to the selection, or so called Marquee selection to create a selection rectangle that selects all items within its bounds. Selected items can be moved, deleted, or edited together.
• Drag and drop: Assets can be dropped directly onto the canvas from the file system. The item is automatically positioned to start at the current time and at the position in the canvas where it was dropped.
• Context Menu: Right-clicking on an item shows a menu with options to bring the item to front or send it to back.
• Crop Mode: By double-clicking an item that is croppable on the canvas, Crop Mode is activated, replacing resize handles with crop handles. When in Crop Mode, the full uncropped item is shown in the background with reduced opacity, to help the user visualize the cutout area.
• Paste from Clipboard: When pasting and there is text in the clipboard, the text is pasted as a text item. When pasting and there is an asset in the clipboard, the asset is pasted as a new item (due to browser support, this may only work with images).

The timeline allows you to see a overview of the content and to scrub through the video. Items are organized in "tracks", allowing multiple items to be placed at the same time and to allow for controlling how they overlap.

• Draggable playhead: Pressing and dragging on the time ticks allows you to move the playhead and therefore the position of the video. If you drag the playhead to the edge of the timeline, the timeline will scroll.
• Import assets: An asset (image, video, audio, GIF) can be dropped on the timeline to import it and add a new layer.
• Drag and drop items: Items can be dragged and repositioned on the timeline. Multi-select is supported, allowing you to drag multiple items at once. A shadow overlay shows where the moving item is being placed when dragging.
• Extend handles: You can drag on either side of an item to extend or shrink the item. When extending an item, the maximum trim position is shown with a white outline of the selected item.
• Volume control: Audio and video items display a draggable volume line on the timeline waveform. Dragging vertically adjusts the volume in decibels with a visual indicator showing the current level.
• Fades: Items support opacity fade in and fade out effects. Audio and video items support fades as well. Draggable handles appear on hover at the start and end of items to adjust fade duration, with visual curves showing the fade effect.
• Split tool: Items can be split at the current playhead position using the scissors tool. The split creates two separate items, properly handling fade effects and media start times for the new segments.
• Multiple selection: Multiple items can be selected using Cmd/Ctrl+click (alternatively Shift+click) to add items to the selection, or so called Marquee selection to create a selection rectangle that selects all items within its bounds. Selected items can be moved, deleted, or edited together.
• Hide track: The eye icon on the left allows hiding a specific track on the timeline.
• Mute track: The volume icon on the left allows muting a specific track on the timeline.

On the right side of the screen, an inspector is displayed which allows for editing the properties of the selected item.

Play, pause, and seek through your video preview.

• Play / Pause: A central play/pause button that starts or stops the video playback. It can also be controlled using the Space bar on the keyboard.
• 00:00
  Current time indicator: Displays the current playhead position in timecode format (MM:SS.FF, where FF is the frame number).
• Jump to start / end: Buttons to jump to the start or end of the video.
• Fullscreen: Allows entering fullscreen mode for the video player (exiting with Esc).
• Mute: Global mute/unmute switcher for the entire timeline audio.
• Loop: Switcher button to enable or disable looping of the entire timeline.
• Zoom slider: Displays a slider at the right-side, just above the timeline, allowing to zoom in and out of the timeline.
• Timeline Snapping: Enables snapping on the timeline, allowing items to align with other items, the playhead, or grid positions when dragged. This simplifies positioning and transitions. Activate snapping by clicking the magnet icon.
• Splitting items: Items can be split at the current playhead position using the scissors tool. The split creates two separate items, properly handling fade effects and media start times for the new segments.

When your video is ready, click the Export button to render the final file. The rendering process will start immediately. Once finished, the video will automatically download to your device.