Performing simple and advanced video editing tasks for videos that are aimed at publishing in social and digital channels can be done by using the Video Editor in Assets.
These tasks include actions such as transforming (cropping, flipping, and rotating), trimming and splitting, adding text, images, objects, audio, or other videos, and merging videos. Projects can be saved for later use and exported as a new video.
These actions can be performed on existing videos, or a video can be created from scratch.
This article describes how to use the Video Editor.
Note: It is assumed here that users have a general knowledge of video editing.
Requirements
Using the Video Editor requires the latest versions of Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, or other Chromium-based browsers.
Videos versus video projects
Videos that are stored in Assets can be opened for editing and subsequently saved as a new video. Alternatively, changes that are made to a video can be saved as a video project so that it can be worked on later on. It can at any time be exported as a new video.
It is also possible to create a video or video project from scratch.
Quick Start
The use of the Video Editor is straight forward and the tools and options are for the most part self explanatory. Use the following steps if you want to get started quickly. More detailed information is given in the rest of the article.
Step 1. (Optional, but recommended) Create a folder somewhere in Assets that acts as the project folder in which all files that you are going to use are going to be stored. Add those files to the folder.
Tip: This step is recommended because the Assets 10 panel in the Video editor will be the main panel to use files from. It shows all files that are in the same location in which the video or project is stored. By first creating a new folder, you will only see the files in that folder that are related to the project. Additional files can be added to that panel at any time.
Step 2. Do one of the following:
- Create a new video or project from scratch by clicking the Create button in the top right corner and choosing Video.
- Open an existing video or project (a file with a .scene extension) by right-clicking it and from the context menu that appears, choosing Edit > Edit in Video editor.
Note: The Design editor also saves projects as files with a .scene extension. When right-clicking a .scene file that was created in the Design editor therefore, you might see a reference to opening the file in the Design editor instead of in the Video editor.
The Video editor appears, showing a toolbar on the left, and in the middle a preview and a timeline. Depending on what is selected in the editor, additional toolbars and menus appear.
Step 3. Add content to the video by using the options in the toolbar on the left. Add additional videos to the timeline by using the Add clip button in the timeline.
Note: Avoid using the Uploads, Videos, Audio, and Images options in the toolbar on the left. These upload files that are stored locally on your system. It is recommended to only use files that are stored in Assets so that the whole team has access to all files. This can be done by using the Assets 10 icon in the toolbar, see step 4.
Tip: When creating a new project, the canvas and text tool have the same default color (black). When leaving the canvas black and adding text, the text in the text block is invisible. To make it visible, change the color of the text or the canvas.
Step 4. Click the Assets 10 icon in the toolbar on the left to access files that are stored in the same location as the video or project. Add files from other locations in Assets to the panel by clicking the Add files from Assets 10 button in the top right corner.
Step 5. Edit the video as needed by using the many options available from the toolbars and menus in the preview or timeline, depending on the object that is selected.
Step 6. When done, click Save in the top right hand corner and choose one of the following options:
- Save project. This saves the changes as a new project as a file with a .scene extension, or when editing an existing project, saves the changes to that project.
- Save as new. This saves the video or project as a new video.
- Save video. This saves the project as a new video. If it was already saved as a video and the file names of the project and the video match, the changes will be saved to that video.
Supported file types
The following sections show the types of files that can be opened, the types of files that can be imported into a video or video project, and the types of files in which files can be saved.
Video formats for editing
The following video formats can be opened for editing:
- MP4 (H.264/AVC, H.265/HEVC)
- MOV (H.264/AVC, H.265/HEVC)
- WEBM (VP8, VP9, AV1)
File formats for importing
The following file formats can be used in a video or project:
- Images:
- PNG
- JPEG
- JPG
- GIF
- WEBP
- SVG
- BMP
- Video:
- MP4 (H.264/AVC, H.265/HEVC)
- MOV (H.264/AVC, H.265/HEVC)
- WEBM (VP8, VP9, AV1)
- Audio:
- MP3 (AAC or MP3)
- M4A (AAC or MP3)
- MP4 (AAC or MP3)
- MOV (AAC or MP3)
Saving and exporting
A project can be saved in or exported to the following file formats:
- Projects are saved as a file with a .scene extension.
- Projects or videos are exported into videos in .mp4 format.
Limits
The following limits exist in the Video Editor:
- Images with a resolution of up to 4096×4096 pixels can be imported. Images with a higher resolution are resized to this size.
- Videos up to 4K UHD are supported for playback and export (depending on the available GPU resources).
- Stories and reels of up to 2 minutes are fully supported. Longer videos are also supported, but a maximum duration of 10 minutes is found to be a good balance for a smooth editing experience and a pleasant export duration of around one minute on modern hardware.
Accessing the Video editor
The Video editor can be accessed in the following ways:
- To edit an existing video or video project, right-click a video or .scene file and from the context menu that appears, choose Edit in Video editor.
Note: The Design editor also saves projects as files with a .scene extension. When right-clicking a .scene file that was created in the Design editor therefore, you might see a reference to opening the file in the Design editor instead of in the Video editor.
- To create a new video or video project, click Create in the top right corner of Assets and from the menu that appears, choose Video.
The Video editor components
The components of the Video editor are similar to those that can be found in any other video editor. Various toolbars and menus are available (some dependent on selected objects), together with a preview area and a time line.
Most tools, options, and features should be easily findable and familiar and are therefore not discussed here.
The sections below highlight the working of some specific components.
The toolbar on the left
The toolbar on the left side of the screen is used for adding objects and text to the video. Each is described below:
| Tool | Notes |
|---|---|
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Uploads. Upload local files that are stored on your system. Note: These files are only available to you and are not added to Assets. It is recommended to not use this feature but instead add any files to Assets 10 first and to then add them to the project using the Assets 10 button in the toolbar (see below). |
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Videos. Upload local videos that are stored on your system. Note: These files are only available to you and are not added to Assets. It is recommended to not use this feature but instead add any files to Assets 10 first and to then add them to the project using the Assets 10 button in the toolbar (see below). |
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Audio. Upload local audio files that are stored on your system. Note: These files are only available to you and are not added to Assets. It is recommended to not use this feature but add any files to Assets 10 first and to then add them to the project using the Assets 10 button in the toolbar (see below). |
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Images. Upload local images that are stored on your system. Note: These files are only available to you and are not added to Assets. It is recommended to not use this feature but add any files to Assets 10 first and to then add them to the project using the Assets 10 button in the toolbar (see below). |
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| Text. Add a title, header, or paragraph to the video. | |
| Shapes. Add a shape from a default set of basic and abstract shapes. | |
| Stickers. Add a sticker such as an emoji from a default set of stickers. | |
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Assets 10. Add a file that is stored in Assets 10:
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The toolbar at the top
The toolbar in the top right corner of the screen contains the following options:
- Cancel. This closes the Video editor. When any changes have been made, a message appears asking if these changes need to be saved or discarded. When deciding to save the changes, the same options appear as when clicking Save (see below).
- Save. This saves the project or video. The following options are shown:
- Save project. This saves the changes as a new project as a file with a .scene extension, or when editing an existing project, saves the changes to that project.
- Save as new. This saves the video or project as a new video.
- Save project. This saves the project as a new video. If it was already saved as a video and the file names of the project and the video match, the changes will be saved to that video.
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Notes:
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- Add files from Assets 10. This opens a dialog from which files from any location in Assets 10 can be added to the Assets 10 panel in the toolbar on the left (see above). Browse to the location in which the file is located, select one or more files and click Add files from Assets 10.
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