Video Editing

What to send a video editor besides the footage

A checklist for YouTube, social, and promotional video editing: selects, references, captions, brand, and platform lengths.

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Published August 28, 2026

Editors spend a surprising amount of time hunting for a line that “was definitely in the interview.” A small package of context turns raw files into a project instead of an archaeology dig.

The story in one paragraph

Who is this for, what should they understand, and what should they do after watching? If you cannot answer that, the cut will wander — and no amount of transitions will hide it.

Selects beat a dump of every take

If you have hours of material, mark the takes you already know you want, even roughly. You do not need timecodes down to the frame. A note like “use the second explanation of pricing, ignore the joke that names a client” saves a full day.

Platforms and lengths

  • YouTube master length versus a 30–45 second vertical cut
  • Whether captions should be burned in or delivered as a sidecar file
  • Lower-third names and titles, spelled as they should appear
  • Music: licensed track you provide, or an instruction to keep the edit dry

Brand colors, a logo animation if you have one, and a previous video you consider “on brand” are more useful than a generic mood board. When you are ready to hand footage off, our video editing service can take it from assembly through platform exports — or request a video quote.

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