What a short form video editor does
- Watches the whole recording and marks the moments. Stories with a payoff, strong opinions, a number that lands. This is the skill, and it is the part most tools skip.
- Cuts each moment so it stands alone. Starts on the line that earns attention, ends on the payoff, removes dead air and filler.
- Reframes to vertical 9:16. Keeps the speaker in frame, follows whoever is talking on a two-person show.
- Adds captions word by word. Many people watch with the sound off. Captions are placed clear of each platform's buttons.
- Brands it. Your fonts, colors and logo, so the clip is recognisably yours in any feed.
- Writes the title and description. One clip, exported for Shorts, Reels, TikTok and LinkedIn.
One clip, four platforms
Shorts, Reels, TikTok and LinkedIn all accept vertical 1080 by 1920 video, so one well-cut clip posts on all four. What changes is small: where the on-screen buttons sit, so captions move; and who is watching, so the title changes. A good short form editor delivers one master clip and checks it against each platform rather than cutting four times.
| Platform | Format | Typical clip length | What to adjust |
|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube Shorts | 9:16 vertical | 30 to 60 seconds | Captions above the title area |
| Instagram Reels | 9:16 vertical | 30 to 60 seconds | Keep text clear of the right-side buttons |
| TikTok | 9:16 vertical | 30 to 60 seconds | Hook in the first second |
| 9:16 or 4:5 | 30 to 90 seconds | Captions on, business-first title |
Lengths are what works for most podcast clips, not platform limits. For Shorts-specific editing see YouTube Shorts editor; for LinkedIn see podcast clips for LinkedIn.
Freelancer, service or in-house
| Cost | Your time | Consistency | Best when | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freelance editor | $25 to $150 per clip | Hiring, briefing, reviewing | Depends on one person | You want one editor and can manage them |
| PromptPlay | $1,000 to $3,000 a month, 20 to 90 clips | About an hour a week | Style locked once, every clip | You want volume without the work |
| In-house editor | $3,000+ a month plus software | Managing an employee | Good until they leave | You post daily across several shows |
Freelance and in-house figures are typical US ranges as of November 2026; quotes vary by editor and city. For the full cost breakdown see how much podcast clipping costs.
What to look for in a short form video editor
They pick moments, not just cut them
Ask who finds the clip. An editor who needs your timestamps is a different, cheaper hire from one who reads the episode.
A sample from your footage
A showreel shows their best client. A free clip from your own last episode shows what you would get.
Captions that are read, not generated
Names, numbers and jargon should be right the first time. Ask how captions are checked.
Turnaround in writing
Two to three days is normal. A clip that arrives ten days after the episode has missed its moment.
Platform awareness
Captions placed under the Shorts title or behind the Reels buttons get hidden. The editor should know where the interface sits.
Who owns the files
The clips should be yours to post anywhere, now and after you stop working together.
What to give a short form video editor
Whoever you choose, the brief is the same, and a good one saves a round of revisions on every clip.
- The footage, at full quality. A link to the channel, the raw recording, or the separate camera files if you have them. A compressed export limits how clean the reframe can be.
- Your brand kit. Logo, fonts, colors, and two or three clips you like from any channel. "Make it look like this" is a better brief than a page of notes.
- Who the clip is for. A founder audience and a consumer audience want different moments from the same episode.
- What a clip is for. New viewers, episode listens, or guests to share. The editor picks differently for each.
- Where it will be posted. So captions land clear of each platform's buttons and the title suits the feed.
With a freelancer you write this once and repeat parts of it every episode. With PromptPlay you share it once, we lock your style, and it is applied to every clip after that.
When a freelancer or an in-house editor fits better
A service is not always the right answer. Hire a freelancer if you want clips that are heavy on motion graphics, b-roll and custom animation, or if you only need a handful of clips a month and enjoy directing the edit. Hire in-house if you publish every day across several channels, film on site, and need someone in the room for thumbnails, livestreams and everything else video. Those jobs need a person on your team, not a service.
PromptPlay fits the show that records long episodes, wants 20 to 90 clean, captioned, branded clips a month on Shorts, Reels, TikTok and LinkedIn, and does not want to spend its week on them.
How working with us goes
Share your footage and style
Give us access to your episodes and show us what your channel looks like: colors, fonts, clips you love. We lock your style from that.
We do the whole job
A human editor picks the moments, cuts, reframes, captions, brands and titles every clip, sized for Shorts, Reels and TikTok.
You review and post
Approve the clips you like, flag the ones you do not. That is the whole job on your side.
Clips come back within 72 hours of the episode, 48 hours on Scale. Posting stays with you, so your accounts and audience stay yours. Every clip is yours to keep.
Starter
- 20 finished clips a month
- Sized for Shorts, Reels and TikTok
- Captions and your branding
- 72 hour turnaround
- Titles and descriptions
Growth (most popular)
- 50 finished clips a month
- Audio-only episodes covered
- Back catalogue clipped too
- 72 hour turnaround
- Titles and descriptions
Scale
- 90 finished clips a month
- Multiple shows on one plan
- Custom motion graphics
- 48 hour priority turnaround
- Titles and descriptions
Month to month, no contract. Your first clip is free. Every clip stays yours, even if you stop.