# Build your own AI video editor

A free guide to editing Reels with Claude Code. You approve every scene on a storyboard before anything gets rendered.

## What you are building

A folder on your computer that Claude Code uses as an editing studio. You drop in a rough cut. Claude adds titles, captions and animations in your style, then shows you a storyboard in your browser. You comment, it fixes, you watch a quick low-quality preview, and only then does it render the final video.

**You need**

- A Claude account with access to Claude Code (the Code tab in the Claude desktop app, or Claude Code in your terminal)
- A Mac or Windows computer with free disk space for video files
- One rough cut: a talking-head video with the mistakes and long pauses already trimmed
- 2 to 5 Reels you like, or your own best ones
- Your brand basics: colors, fonts, logo

You don't need to code, and you don't need Premiere, CapCut or After Effects. Setup takes about an hour. After that, each new video is: drop the file, paste one prompt, review, export.

**How each step works.** Every step has a prompt to paste into Claude Code. Anything in [brackets] is yours to fill in. Each step also lists what you need to give Claude, so it doesn't have to stop and ask. Claude will ask permission before installing things or changing files. Say yes when the request matches what you asked for.

## Before you start: your info sheet

Claude edits well when it knows your details and badly when it guesses. Fill this in once in a note or doc. You'll paste it into Claude in step 3.

| What | Example |
|---|---|
| Name and handle | Studio Name, @yourhandle |
| Brand colors (hex) | Main #ef8142, dark #2d2d2d, light #f0f1ed. Say which one highlights text |
| Fonts | Main font and backup font. Install the font on your computer and keep the file in References |
| Logo | PNG with a transparent background, saved in References |
| Video format | Vertical 9:16, 1080 x 1920, 30 fps, 30 to 60 seconds |
| Where you post | Instagram Reels, TikTok, YouTube Shorts. Each covers a different part of the screen with its buttons, so Claude keeps text clear of them |
| Language | English, and whether you want UK or US spelling |
| Caption style | 1 to 3 words at a time, white, lowercase, bottom third, active word in brand color |
| Animations you like | Punch-in zoom at the start, numbered step cards, screenshots popping in, big keyword words |
| Music and sound | None, or a file you own the license for. Volume under your voice |
| Things to avoid | Emojis, stock footage, text covering your face |
| Ending / call to action | "Comment GUIDE and I'll send it" |
| Reference Reels | A file or link for each, plus one line on what you like in it |

No brand yet? Tell Claude: "I don't have brand colors or fonts. Propose three options based on my reference Reels and let me choose."

Use reference Reels only to study style. Edit only footage you have the right to use.

## Step 1: Set up your folders (5 minutes)

![Step 1](images/step-1.png)

Create one main folder anywhere on your computer. Inside it, make three folders:

```
AI Video Editor/
  Raw Footage/   your rough cuts
  References/    inspiration Reels, logo, font files, screenshots, clips
  Exports/       storyboards, previews and finished videos
```

Open the AI Video Editor folder in Claude Code. In the desktop app, pick the folder when you start a session. In the terminal, go into the folder and run `claude`.

**Optional but worth it: house rules.** Claude reads this file at the start of every session, so you never repeat yourself.

```
Create a file called CLAUDE.md in this folder with these rules:
- Raw Footage holds my rough cuts, References holds inspiration and brand files, Exports holds storyboards, previews and final videos.
- Always read STYLE-GUIDE.md before editing any video.
- Never render a final video until I have approved the storyboard and the preview and said "export".
- Never overwrite my original files in Raw Footage.
- If you are missing information, ask me before guessing.
```

## Step 2: Give your editor its tools (10 to 20 minutes)

![Step 2](images/step-2.png)

Claude edits video by running free programs on your computer. Screenshot this list, paste the screenshot into Claude Code, and send the prompt below it.

| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
| Node.js | Runs the animation and storyboard code |
| FFmpeg | Cuts, converts and exports video, grabs still frames |
| Python 3 | Runs helper scripts for audio and analysis |
| Whisper | Turns your speech into text with a time for every word, which powers the captions |
| Remotion | Builds titles, captions and animations as code and renders them to MP4 |
| Google Chrome | Opens your storyboard |

```
Install these tools, test each one, and let me know when you're ready.
```

**You should see** a message listing each tool with a version number and "tested OK". If one fails, paste the error back and ask Claude to fix it.

## Step 3: Teach it your style (15 minutes)

![Step 3](images/step-3.png)

This is what makes the edit look like you. Claude studies your reference Reels and writes what it learns into one brand style guide.

**You give Claude**

- [ ] 2 to 5 reference Reels in the References folder (screen-record on your phone if you can't download one)
- [ ] One line per Reel on what you like in it: the captions, the zoom at the start, the pacing
- [ ] Your logo and font files in the same folder
- [ ] Your info sheet, pasted into the prompt

```
Study every video in the References folder. Extract the editing style into one brand style guide: fonts, colors, caption style (size, position, case, how the active word is highlighted), animations and their timing, transitions, pacing (average seconds per scene, how often it zooms or changes), and sound.

Combine it with my brand details below. Save the result as STYLE-GUIDE.md in the main folder, using exact values wherever you can (hex codes, pixel sizes, seconds). Show me a short summary, and ask me about anything you cannot tell from the videos.

[Paste your info sheet here]
[What I like in each reference: "reel1.mp4 - the captions; reel2.mp4 - the pacing"]
```

### Prefer a conversation? Let Claude interview you

Have brand notes in a file like BRAND.md, or nothing written down? Ask Claude to interview you. It only does this when asked.

```
Read BRAND.md (if I have one) and the videos in References. Then interview me about my brand, one question at a time: colors, fonts, caption style, animations, tone, what to avoid, and where I post. Skip anything BRAND.md already answers. When you are done, write everything into STYLE-GUIDE.md and show me a summary.
```

### Check the result

Read `STYLE-GUIDE.md` and correct anything off in plain words ("the captions should be smaller"). Then ask for a proof:

```
Make a 5 second test clip that shows my caption style, title style and one animation from STYLE-GUIDE.md on a plain background. Save it in Exports.
```

**You should see** a STYLE-GUIDE.md with exact values (hex codes, pixel sizes, seconds), and a test clip in Exports that looks like your brand. If not, tell Claude what is wrong.

## Step 4: Build the storyboard (once, about 10 minutes)

![Step 4](images/step-4.png)

This part saves you the most time. The storyboard is a web page that opens in your browser and shows the whole edit as scene cards. You build it once and reuse it for every video.

Each card shows the scene number and time range, a still frame with the planned title and captions on top, the spoken line, the planned animation, an Approved / Needs change switch and a comment box. The top bar shows the video title, duration, scene count and a counter like "5 of 8 approved".

**You give Claude**

- [ ] What you want to see on each card (the prompt covers the basics)
- [ ] Anything extra you want to review: a "replace this image" note, a timing field, a music choice

```
Build me a storyboard as a single local web page that opens in my browser. Put the page and its data file in Exports/storyboard/, and make the page read its scenes from the data file, so you can regenerate the data for each new video without rebuilding the page.

For every scene, show a card with:
- scene number, start and end time
- a still frame from the footage, shown in the video's real 9:16 vertical shape (not cropped to landscape), with the planned title and captions drawn on top, in my real fonts and colors from STYLE-GUIDE.md
- the spoken line from the transcript
- the animation planned for the scene, and any asset it needs (screenshot, logo, B-roll)
- a switch: Approved / Needs change, and a comment box

At the top: video title, total duration, scene count, and a counter "x of y approved". Add a "Copy feedback" button that collects every scene marked Needs change, with my comments, as plain text I can paste to you, plus a "Download feedback.json" button. Add an indicator that turns on only when every scene is approved.

Style the page with my brand. Make it work on a laptop and on a phone. When it is done, open it in my browser and tell me how to use it.
```

**You should see** the page open in your browser with your brand colors and font. If something looks wrong, say what in plain words and Claude will fix it. A web page can't write to your folders on its own, which is why feedback leaves it through the copy button or a downloaded file.

## Step 5: Edit a video (10 to 30 minutes per video)

![Step 5](images/step-5.png)

**You give Claude**

- [ ] The rough cut in Raw Footage, trimmed of mistakes and long pauses, as one file
- [ ] The topic in one sentence, so titles use the right words
- [ ] Any screenshots, logos or video clips you want shown, saved in References, with a note on which scene each belongs to
- [ ] The call to action for the ending
- [ ] Answers to Claude's questions, such as which parts need a title and where a screenshot goes

```
Read STYLE-GUIDE.md. Take [filename] from Raw Footage. Transcribe it, split it into scenes, and add titles, captions and animations in my style. Show me a storyboard before exporting.

The video is about: [one sentence]. Assets to use: [screenshots or clips, or "none"]. The ending should say: [call to action].

Do not render the final video yet. Ask me if anything is unclear.
```

### Adding images, screenshots and video clips

- **Your own files.** Save them in References, or drag a screenshot into the chat. For each one, tell Claude what it is and where it belongs, for example "pricing.png, show it in scene 4" or "demo.mov, use as B-roll in scene 6". Screen recordings and short clips work the same way. Claude can trim a clip, resize it and place it over your footage.
- **Files in Google Drive or on a website.** Claude can fetch them only if you have connected a Drive connector or a browser tool. Ask "Find [file] in my Drive". It will ask before downloading anything. A browser tool can also take a screenshot of a web page for you.
- **Stock images or clips from the web.** Ask for free-to-use sources only, with the license and source listed for each file. Do not use footage from social media or video sites that you do not own.

The storyboard shows which asset each scene uses, so you can spot a missing one before you approve.

Claude then transcribes, plans the scenes, fills the storyboard data and opens the storyboard in your browser.

## Step 6: Review, fix, preview, export

![Step 6](images/step-6.png)

### Review the storyboard

Go through the cards from top to bottom and read the titles out loud. Check the spelling of names and numbers, whether a caption sits too low, and whether any scene runs long. Mark each scene Approved or Needs change, write what you want in the comment box, then press Copy feedback.

```
Here is my storyboard feedback. Change only the scenes I marked, rebuild the storyboard, and list what you changed.

[Paste the copied feedback]
```

Repeat until every scene is approved. A few rounds is normal.

### Watch a low-quality preview

Stills can't show timing. Before the final render, ask for a fast, small version of the whole video and watch it from start to finish. It renders in a fraction of the time, so a wrong caption or a late animation costs almost nothing to fix.

```
All scenes are approved. Before the final export, render a low-quality preview: 540 x 960, fast settings, no final polish. Save it as preview.mp4 in Exports and tell me when it is ready. I will watch it and give feedback. Do not render the final until I say "export".
```

Watch it with sound on. Note the time of anything that looks wrong ("0:14, caption arrives late") and send the notes to Claude. It fixes them and re-renders the preview. Repeat until you have nothing left to change.

### Export

```
The preview is approved. Export the final video to Exports as an MP4, 1080 x 1920. Then check it: look at frames from the start, middle and end, confirm the captions are in sync and inside the safe zone, and tell me anything that looks off.
```

**You should see** a preview.mp4 first, then a finished MP4 in Exports and a short check report from Claude. Watch the final once on your phone before posting.

### After every video

```
Add what we learned in this edit to STYLE-GUIDE.md so the next video starts better.
```

## When something goes wrong

| Problem | What to tell Claude |
|---|---|
| An install fails | Paste the error and say: "Fix this, then re-test the tool." |
| Captions are out of sync or misspelled | "Re-transcribe with word-level timestamps. Names to spell correctly: [list]." |
| My font doesn't show | "Use the font file in References. If it still doesn't load, tell me which font was used instead." Install the font on your computer first |
| Claude ignores my style | "Read STYLE-GUIDE.md again and list the rules you applied to this video." Check that CLAUDE.md points to the style guide |
| The export or preview takes too long | "Render only scene [number] as a 10 second low-quality preview so I can check it." |
| Text is hidden behind the app buttons | "Move titles and captions inside the safe zone for [platform] and update STYLE-GUIDE.md." |
| The storyboard looks empty | "Regenerate the storyboard data for [filename] and reopen the storyboard." |
| I don't like the whole look | Add a new reference Reel and say: "Update STYLE-GUIDE.md to move closer to this one. Show me what changed." |

## Habits that keep results good and costs low

- Trim the rough cut before you hand it over. Fewer messy parts means fewer scenes to fix.
- Approve on the storyboard, then the preview, before the final render. Every full re-render costs time and tokens.
- Review every scene, then send one batch of feedback instead of ten messages.
- Be specific. "Scene 3 should say 5 steps, not 3" works better than "fix the titles".
- Update the style guide after each video.
- Never overwrite Raw Footage, so you can always start again.

## Checklist

1. Folders created and opened in Claude Code
2. Tools installed and tested
3. STYLE-GUIDE.md written and checked with a test clip
4. Storyboard built and opening in your browser
5. Rough cut dropped in, storyboard generated
6. Feedback given, all scenes approved, preview watched, video exported