Video editing is the process of piecing together video clips, images, and sounds to create a movie. Nowadays, this is usually done on a computer with fancy video editing programs called non-linear editors, or NLE’s. All that means is that you can view, cut, and arrange digital video in any order without the need to play through the whole thing. When movies were edited on film, editors had to chop up the film with a razor blade and attach the pieces end to end to make a movie. That’s why editing is sometimes called cutting. In fact, a lot of video editing lingo is carried over from the old film cutting days. For example, the file organization systems in a digital editor are called bins because film canisters were once stored in bins during the editing process. Video editing is also sometimes referred to as post-production. Movie making is typically split into three stages: pre-production, production, and post-production. Pre-production is the beginning phase where the script is written, the crew is established, and the shots are planned. Production involves shooting the video. Finally, post-production is where video editing, sound editing, and special effects happen.
We use a program called Lightworks to edit The Hello World Program. Lightworks is a free and soon to be open source, cross-platform, professional video editor. Like a lot of high-end NLE’s, Lightworks can be very scary for new editors. With some persistence and a little help, you can edit like a pro without buying expensive software. If you have never edited videos before, you could also get started with an easier program like Kdenlive or Openshot. These are great tools for beginners but have a limited feature set.
