Blog

Making short video that cuts on the beat

Practical writing on beat-matched editing, vertical video specs and posting at volume — the things that decide whether footage you already have becomes something worth watching.

  • How-to
  • Explainers
  • Workflow
  1. How-to

    How to cut a video to the beat (without a timeline)

    Beat-matched editing means every clip change lands on a drum. Here is the manual method, why it takes hours, and how to get the same result automatically.

    2 min read
  2. Explainers

    Beat detection: how software finds the beat in a song

    Onset detection, tempo estimation, and why a detector sometimes lands on the off-beat — what happens between uploading a track and getting cut points.

    2 min read
  3. How-to

    How many cuts should a reel have?

    Cut density decides whether a video reads as urgent or as considered. What the numbers actually are, and how to pick one for the footage you have.

    2 min read
  4. Explainers

    How long should a reel be? (and what sets the length)

    Platform maximums, the length that actually holds attention, and why the song — not the footage — is what decides how long a beat-matched video runs.

    2 min read
  5. Explainers

    Vertical video size: 1080×1920, 9:16, and the safe area

    The one resolution that works everywhere, why 9:16 is the native spec, and the margins where the interface covers your text.

    2 min read
  6. Workflow

    How to batch-create reels from one folder of footage

    Posting daily needs a system, not more hours. How to build a month of beat-matched videos from footage you already have, in one sitting.

    2 min read
  7. Workflow

    Text overlays that stay on brand across every video

    Hook, handle and call to action, styled once and reused. Why re-typing text per video is what makes a feed look inconsistent.

    2 min read
  8. Explainers

    Colour grading short video: LUTs, filters and intensity

    What a LUT actually is, why one grade across a whole video beats grading clip by clip, and how much is too much.

    2 min read
  9. Workflow

    How to post reels consistently without burning out

    Consistency is a production problem, not a motivation problem. The batch-and-schedule system that makes daily posting survivable.

    2 min read
  10. Workflow

    Turn old footage into new reels (without it looking recycled)

    Most accounts are sitting on months of unused clips. How to audit what you have, and what makes a re-cut read as new rather than as a repost.

    2 min read
  11. Explainers

    Six reasons a reel looks amateur (and the fix for each)

    Off-beat cuts, drifting typefaces, text under the interface, one long shot. The specific faults that make good footage read as unpolished.

    2 min read