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Cutting faster

Hold a key to change the edit

Hold While you You get
Ctrl drag a clip's edge A ripple: every later clip slides to close the gap or make room.
Alt drag a clip's face A slide into the empty space beside it.
Ctrl+Alt drag a shortened clip's face A slip: which part of the shot plays changes, and the clip stays put.
Ctrl drag a clip by its top strip onto another clip A replace: it takes that clip's place and screen time.
Shift drag anything that snaps Snapping reversed for that one drag.

N turns snapping on or off until you press it again. Every one of these is explained in Arrange clips.

A plain tail trim leaves a gap; the same trim with Ctrl held closes it

Select from the keyboard

  • Up and Down step the selection through the reel, and the playhead follows. Click the reel timeline first so it has focus.
  • Del or Backspace removes what is selected: a clip, several clips, a fade, or the template on one shot.
  • Alt+Right and Alt+Left jump from cut to cut.
  • Drag across clip faces to box-select. Ctrl-click and Shift-click add to a selection.
  • Right-click inside a selection and it stays selected, with Remove 3 Items (or however many) at the top of the menu.
Box-selecting clips, Ctrl-clicking one back out, Delete removing the rest as one step, and Undo bringing them back

Add without leaving the strip

  • Right-click empty strip and choose Add a Shot… to append a shot.
  • Right-click a clip and choose Add a Shot After… to insert right after it.
  • Right-click a gap and choose Fill with a Shot….
  • Replace With… on a clip swaps in another shot where it stands.
  • The same menus add cards: Add an Image Card…, Add a Color Card After…, Fill with a Title Card… and so on. See Cards.

Shape music by hand

  • Drag a song bar's body to move it along the reel. Alt-drag it to slide the song underneath instead, which shifts the beats while the bar stays put.
  • Drag the line inside the bar up or down to set its level. A readout shows the level in dB while you drag.
  • Drag a fade handle at the end of the bar to lengthen the fade. A handle appears once that fade is longer than zero, so start a fade in the settings panel.
  • Double-click the bar to mute the song, and again to bring it back.
  • Click the beat lane under the bar to select the song.

See Music.

Right-click menus on the reel tab

Right-click You get
A clip Replace With…, Play in Full, Edit Metadata…, Reveal in File Browser, Remove from Reel, then Add a Shot After… and the Add … Card After… items. An offline clip adds Relink Source… first.
Several selected clips Remove with the count, then the Add … After… items.
A gap Fill with a Shot…, Remove Gap, Fill with an Image Card…, Fill with a Color Card… and Fill with a Title Card….
A card Change Image…, Change Color… or Change Title Card…; a title card also offers Edit “Lower Third” Template… with its own template's name.
The template band over a shot Edit “Lower Third”… with the template's name, the Override Template submenu, and Remove Overlay from Reel.
A song bar Choose a Different Song…, Mute or Unmute, and Remove from Reel.
Empty strip Add a Shot…, Add an Image Card…, Add a Color Card… and Add a Title Card….