Plain English guide · Oct 2026

Edit video with Claude Code

What Claude Code, skills, CLAUDE.md, MCP and Claude Motion actually do for an editor, how to start this week, and which tools to use for Remotion, FFmpeg, Resolve, Premiere and After Effects

Start in 6 stepsGrab the Claude Code prompts

The 5 pieces, in plain words

You don't need all of them. Most people start with Claude Code plus one skill

  1. 01

    Claude Code

    Anthropic's AI agent that works inside a folder on your computer. It reads files, runs commands like FFmpeg and writes code, and it asks before it does anything risky

    For youYour assistant editor in the terminal or the desktop app. You describe the job, it does the tedious steps and shows you what it changed

    Needs a Claude Pro, Max, Team or Enterprise plan or a Console account. Quickstart

  2. 02

    CLAUDE.md

    A plain text file in your project folder that Claude reads at the start of every session

    For youYour house rules written once. Frame rate, folder names, never touch the raw footage, always show me the plan first

    How Claude remembers your project

  3. 03

    Skills

    A SKILL.md file with a recipe Claude can follow, called with a slash like /captions or loaded automatically when it fits

    For youYour favorite workflows turned into one command. Cut silences, make captions, export shorts, check a render

    Extend Claude with skills

  4. 04

    MCP servers

    Small connectors that let Claude control another app through the Model Context Protocol

    For youHow Claude reaches into Resolve, Premiere, After Effects or CapCut and edits the real timeline or comp you have open

    Connect Claude Code to tools via MCP

  5. 05

    Claude Motion

    A beta feature in the Claude app that turns your script, numbers or slides into a short animation built from code, exported as MP4. No AI footage or AI people

    For youFast explainers and animated charts you finish in your editor, on Team and Enterprise plans only for now

    Claude Help Center

Who it's for

If one of these sounds like you, it's worth an afternoon

  • YouTubers and talking head creators

    You record a lot and hate cutting pauses, writing captions and chopping Shorts by hand

  • Motion designers

    You want titles, lower thirds and explainers built as code or straight inside After Effects, with every value still editable

  • Editors in Premiere or Resolve

    You want help with the boring timeline work like markers, organizing bins, relinking and render queues

  • Small studios and agencies

    You deliver the same edit in five formats or need hundreds of versions from one template

Get started in 6 steps

About an hour the first time

  1. Get a plan that includes Claude Code

    Pro is enough to start. Claude Motion is separate and only on Team and Enterprise

  2. Install it

    Mac, Linux or WSL: curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash. Windows and other options are in the quickstart. There's also a desktop app if you don't like terminals

  3. Make one folder per project

    Put a raw folder for footage, a work folder and an out folder in it, then open Claude Code in that folder

  4. Drop in a CLAUDE.md

    Grab the CLAUDE.md for an FFmpeg editing folder or the CLAUDE.md for a Remotion motion graphics project and fill in your details

  5. Add one skill or one connector

    For file based edits add a skill like Claude Code skill: /cut-silences. To edit inside an app, connect an MCP server, like in Connect Claude Code to DaVinci Resolve, step by step

  6. Run your first job on a copy

    Duplicate the project or the clip, ask Claude for its plan first, then let it go. Check the result like you would check an assistant's work

Pick your app

The tools we'd try first, the prompts that go with them, and a real video of someone doing it

01

Motion graphics with Remotion

Claude writes React code and Remotion renders it to MP4. Great for titles, lower thirds, explainers and anything you want to change by editing a value

Remotion keeps official Agent Skills and a Claude Code plugin

Tools to try

Remotion Agent Skills (official)Making ads, explainers and data videos with code that Claude writes for youRemotion MCP AppPreviewing code-made Remotion videos right inside your ChatGPT or Claude chatMotion Graphics Skill PackMaking launch videos, animated charts and reels from a brief without opening After EffectsHyperFrames (HeyGen)Making motion graphics, captions and callouts with AI and rendering them to MP4

Prompts for this

Your first motion graphic with Claude Code and Remotion, step by stepCLAUDE.md for a Remotion motion graphics projectClaude Code skill: /lower-third for RemotionMotion graphics brand system

Snapper AI makes animated videos with Claude Code and the official Remotion agent skill Snapper AI · 9:48 Source: Snapper AI on YouTube

02

Edits from files with FFmpeg

No editing app at all. Claude runs FFmpeg and Whisper on your footage to cut silences, add captions, reframe to vertical and check exports

The easiest place to start because nothing can break your NLE project

Tools to try

ffmpeg-skillCaptions, 9:16 crops, silence removal and exports done on your own computer by an AIKinocut (formerly mcp-video)Repurposing long videos into Shorts and Reels with quality checks before exportClaude Video VisionLetting Claude actually watch a video so it can find moments and review cutspodcliTurning a long podcast episode into vertical clips with face tracking and captions

Prompts for this

CLAUDE.md for an FFmpeg editing folderClaude Code skill: /cut-silencesClaude Code skill: /captionsClaude Code skill: /shorts from a long videoClaude Code skill: /qa-render before you deliver

AI with Janek builds a small editor with Claude Code that cuts silences on its own AI with Janek · 9:46 Source: AI with Janek on YouTube

03

DaVinci Resolve

MCP servers drive Resolve's scripting API so Claude can read the timeline, add markers, build node trees and set up renders

Heads up: since Resolve 21.1, Python scripting and the built in MCP server are Studio only, per CineD. Free users need a tool that says it works on Free

Tools to try

DaVinci Resolve MCP Server (samuelgursky)Doing Resolve busywork by asking: sorting the media pool, render setup, markers and timeline cleanupResolve MCP Server (guycochran)Asking Resolve Studio to swap B-roll, add captions and tighten silences on your timelineWasserman's Unofficial DaVinci MCPCutting to the beat, tightening dialogue and hitting loudness specs in Resolve, even on the free versionDaVinci Resolve MCP — Works in Resolve FreeLetting Claude edit in Resolve Free, with optional transcription

Prompts for this

Connect Claude Code to DaVinci Resolve, step by stepCLAUDE.md for editing in Resolve, Premiere or After Effects through MCPFilm emulation grade in DaVinci ResolveBatch export every deliverable from one timeline

Jason Cooperson lets Claude edit a whole video in DaVinci Resolve with samuelgursky's MCP server Jason Cooperson · 19:02 Source: Jason Cooperson on YouTube

04

Premiere Pro

Community MCP bridges talk to Premiere through a panel, so Claude can cut, add captions, organize bins and queue exports in your open project

Adobe also has an official Adobe for Claude connector that covers Premiere (plus Photoshop, Illustrator, Firefly and more) and works in Claude Code. It doesn't include every Premiere feature

Tools to try

MCP Bridge for Adobe Premiere ProCutting pauses, building rough cuts and doing timeline busywork in Premiere by asking an AIPremiere Pro MCP (PPMCP)Making real timeline, audio and export changes in Premiere from Claude or CursorMCP for Adobe Premiere Pro (leancoderkavy)Automating Premiere edits locally, from rough cuts to exports, with AI helpAuto Cut for Premiere ProCutting dead air in Premiere on every track at once, with a preview before anything changes

Prompts for this

CLAUDE.md for editing in Resolve, Premiere or After Effects through MCPCut silences on a timeline, with markers firstAuto captions onto the timeline in a house styleOrganize and rename footage into bins

Jason Cooperson sets up the Premiere Pro MCP Bridge and lets Claude edit in Premiere Jason Cooperson · 20:58 Source: Jason Cooperson on YouTube

05

After Effects

MCP servers let Claude build comps, layers, keyframes and expressions in the project you have open, and render a frame to check its own work

There's no official Adobe or Anthropic connector for After Effects. Every AE connector is third party, so read its safety notes

Tools to try

AE MCP BridgeLetting AI look at your rendered frames and fix keyframes and expressions until the shot looks rightAfter Effects MCP (Engine Room)Making lower thirds, logo reveals and counters from a one line description, as editable layersmcp-aftereffects (Kumo Productions)Checking and changing an open After Effects project, then kicking off renders, with one undo for each changePlainly Videos MCP (official)Rendering lots of versions of your After Effects templates in the cloud without opening AE

Prompts for this

CLAUDE.md for editing in Resolve, Premiere or After Effects through MCPBuild a lower third in After EffectsTurn a comp into a reusable motion templateTitles and lower thirds system for interviews

Luke Byrne makes editable After Effects animations with Claude and the Engine Room MCP Luke Byrne (AI Luke) · 12:15 Source: Luke Byrne (AI Luke) on YouTube

06

CapCut

CapCut has no official API, so these tools edit draft files or go through VectCutAPI. Close CapCut before letting an agent touch a draft

Unofficial, so expect things to break after CapCut updates

Tools to try

SmartCut MCP (CapCut talking-head)Cutting silences and repeated takes out of talking head videos in CapCutVectCutAPI (CapCut/Jianying API)Making lots of CapCut videos with subtitles, voiceover and effects without editing each one by handcapcut-mcp (JmsLdrn)Adding, trimming and arranging clips, text and audio in CapCut drafts from AI

Prompts for this

Cut silences on a timeline, with markers firstBold word by word captions (the Hormozi look)Social shorts template system (9:16)

Matt Loui lets Claude edit a whole CapCut video without touching the timeline Matt Loui · 10:01 Source: Matt Loui on YouTube

Claude Motion or Remotion?

Both make motion graphics from code. They're not the same thing

Anthropic launched Claude Motion in beta on October 8, 2026 for Team and Enterprise plans. You start it from Output, then Motion in the Claude app, describe the animation, tweak it and export an MP4. It doesn't generate footage or people, it animates your own text, charts, shapes and images. Sources: Anthropic announcement and Claude Help Center

Claude MotionClaude Code + Remotion
What it isA feature in the Claude appA code framework for video that you run with Claude Code
PlansTeam and Enterprise only, betaAny Claude Code plan. Remotion is free for individuals and small teams, bigger companies need a Remotion license
OutputMP4 exportMP4, transparent ProRes or WebM, stills
EditingChat or the built in editorEdit the code or props in Remotion Studio
Best forQuick explainers from a report or slidesReusable templates, brand systems, lots of versions

Try it: Claude Motion prompt for a 30 second explainer or Your first motion graphic with Claude Code and Remotion, step by step

Real people doing this

Public posts, repos and videos, linked to the source. Summaries are ours

Tella uses Claude Code to turn a long video into social clips Tella · 2:28 Source: Tella on YouTube
Jason Cooperson shows how he automated most of his editing with Claude Code Jason Cooperson · 22:31 Source: Jason Cooperson on YouTube
MrRaoAI has Claude Code cut and caption Reels MrRaoAI · 1:35 Source: MrRaoAI on YouTube

Videos load from YouTube only when you press play. All visuals are credited on the media credits page. Know a good example? Send it

Four rules that save projects

  1. Work on a duplicate project, timeline or clip. Always
  2. Ask for the plan first and say go only when it makes sense
  3. Never let it delete media. Moving things to a "to delete" bin is fine
  4. Be extra careful with tools that can run any script, read what the script does

The CLAUDE.md for editing through MCP bakes these in

Questions

Do I need to know how to code?

No, but you need to be OK opening a terminal or the desktop app and reading what Claude plans to do. The prompts here are written for editors, not developers

Which Claude plan do I need?

Claude Code works with Pro, Max, Team or Enterprise, or a Console account. Claude Motion is a different thing, in beta on Team and Enterprise plans only

Is Claude Motion the same as Claude Code with Remotion?

No. Claude Motion lives in the Claude app and exports MP4. Remotion is a code framework you run yourself with Claude Code, with more control and any plan

Is there an official Claude connector for Premiere or After Effects?

Adobe's official Adobe for Claude connector covers Premiere, Photoshop, Illustrator, Firefly, Express and more, but not After Effects. For AE you use a third party MCP server

Does it work with DaVinci Resolve Free?

Partly. Resolve 21.1 moved Python scripting and the built in MCP server to Studio, so many Free workarounds stopped working. Check the edition notes on each Resolve tool

Is it safe to let Claude edit my project?

Treat it like a new assistant. Work on a duplicate, read its plan, never let it delete media, and be careful with tools that can run any script

The AgentCut weekly

New AI connectors for After Effects, Premiere, Resolve and CapCut, tested setup notes, and what broke after app updates. One email a week.