The Editor is the interface where Admins, Broadcasters, and Creators can edit recorded content from the Studio or the Recording Booth. This article will provide best practices and considerations for editing a video using the Editor.
- Presets
- Editing Using the Text editor or the Timeline editor
- Managing the Storyboard
- Start and End Cards
- Managing Sources
- Using Overlays
- Using Layouts
- Branding
Presets
Presets are space-specific and will enable all videos to start the editing workflow with the same intro, outro, and branding elements automatically added.
Using presets when creating content that follows the same structure is recommended. For example, you may have a series of introductory onboarding videos that utilize the same intro, outro, and branding. The only difference is that each video has a speaker who has recorded a short video. To streamline the creation process, a preset can be created for the Space, and then each Contributor records their content in the Recording Booth or Studio. Admins, Broadcasters, and Creators can send a video to the Editor using a preset and save it to the library. The edited video is ready to be shared with its audience within minutes.
To learn more about creating and working with presets within a Space review Creating a Preset in the Socialive Editor.
Editing Using the Text editor or the Timeline editor
When editing content included within a scene, there are two main ways to update the content to achieve the desired outcome. Content within a scene can be edited using the text editor or timeline. Socialive recommends using the text editor to make quick edits and use the timeline for detailed editing, as it can zoom and nudge for accuracy.
Text editor
The text editor allows the editing of videos using the transcript and timeline in parallel. This area can quickly remove unneeded pauses or sections of the recorded video. The text editor highlights unneeded pauses, which can quickly clean up a video.
Show/hide pauses—To view the pauses for editing, this can be used to show or hide them. When highlighting, these pauses can be quickly removed by selecting the cut option.
Expand / contract pauses—This view provides a zoomed view of the pauses, allowing for quick deletion of unnecessary pauses.
Cut - removes selected content from the transcript
Restore - brings back areas of the transcript that may have been previously removed (Any items clipped from the video are not permanently deleted - clips can be quickly restored.)
All edits completed in the text editor can also be viewed on the timeline in real-time.
Timeline
Clip video content and jump to specific areas of the video for playback. Timelines only show for video content; they will not display for any scenes that only include an image. Note that any editing done with the timeline will automatically be reflected in the text-editing tab on the left if it is open. Any editing done within the text-editing tab will be reflected in the timeline.
The waveform and the word ribbon support clipping precision using the audio. These elements may take time to load.
Do you need to remove a section of the video? If you recorded too much or made a few mistakes during recording, you can use the following options to do so.
Cut—Skip a selected portion of the timeline. The removed segments will not be shown in the final video but will remain in the original.
Split—Cut the timeline into several parts. This can be useful for creating multiple videos from one piece of recorded content.
Take out too much of the video? If you need to add anything back to the video, your options include the following:
Create clip - Drag and drop the handles to set the start and end times. Playback and the final video will include any video portions inside the handles. The position of the handles can be updated at any time. Playback will automatically skip the video portions outside the handles, but the content outside is not lost.
Heal - Connect two portions of the video that have been split or if a piece in between was removed.
Zoom - Zoom in or out of your timeline for precise editing.
Seeking - Jumps to the very beginning or end of the video.
Anchoring - Jumps to the beginning/end of the clip segment.
Managing the Storyboard
The scene storyboard at the top of the Editor allows you to view the order of your content and add or update the intro and outro.
Each scene within the storyboard comprises different elements. Once a scene is selected in the Storyboard, it can be managed on the timeline. A scene must be selected to utilize editing capabilities in the left panel or timeline.
Start and End Cards
Start and End Cards can be images or videos played at the start and end of a video. They help establish a stronger brand identity, make videos look professional, maintain consistency with your videos, and serve as a starting and ending point for created content.
Clicking + on the storyboard allows you to select from Media and Recordings previously uploaded to the Space to include as an intro or outro. To replace an intro or outro, navigate to the sources tab in the left panel.
Socialive recommends the use of start and end cards to:
Inform the audience about the start time, topic, or content
Allow for a smooth transition into the content
Communicate the end
Provide additional information or resources that might be useful to the audience after it’s ended
Review Use Start and End Cards to learn how to create and use start/end cards and examples of them.
Managing Sources
Media can be uploaded or selected from existing space recordings for each scene of the storyboard. As best practice, upload all company-approved media to the space to quickly access media (videos or images) as needed.
When opening the Editor, the video used to enter the Editor is automatically loaded as media in this area. Once you have all other elements set up, you can use this capability to create multiple videos in one sitting.
Replace Media - allows for a quick update of an existing source used in a scene
Drag and drop to reorder a PIP
Asset toggles for visibility, audio, and nametag
Using Layouts
Layouts allow Creators to define how sources are displayed.
If editing a recording booth content includes a screen share, a preset layout will be pre-selected for you, but this can easily be changed.
Layout tab
Layout selector
Layout options (only appear for layouts with additional options)
Layout size
See changes to the Layout selector in the preview screen
Using Overlays
Overlays can be images or videos added to scenes to make the video more dynamic. The Overlays tab allows Creators to upload an overlay, making it available for every scene in the video composition. While users can show/hide the overlay per scene, by default, overlays will appear visible in the scene they were added to and be hidden for all other scenes.
Note:
Supported File Formats
Audio:
MP3
Video:
MP4
MOV (without HEVC)
WebM (only file format that supports Alpha Transparency)
Images:
JPG (not JPEG)
PNG
GIF
The maximum file size is 1 gigabyte (GB) and the maximum image/video size is 1920 x 1080p.
Apple ProRes files are not supported. Files uploaded in this format will not appear in the Overlays tab.
HEVC stands for High Efficiency Video Coding.
Alpha Transparency or Alpha Channel is a color component that allows you to adjust an image's opacity levels and make parts of it translucent or see-through.
Branding
The branding tab allows you to increase brand recognition in your videos. You can update background colors and nametags in this area to match company brand guidelines.
Use name tags to include on-screen talent information; these can be enabled or turned off. If you are editing Recording Booth content, the name of the invited user will be included but can be updated or hidden as needed. The following highlights items that can be updated within the branding tab.
Font
Primary color
Secondary color
Background color
Style
Position
Nametag
Toggle on and off
Hover on the nametag and click the pencil icon to edit the contents
Still, looking for an answer?
Contact Socialive Support via live chat, email at support@socialive.us, or submit a support ticket.