> Yes. Shorty can build an edit from footage you upload, guided by a brief or reference. Make the source rule explicit: use the supplied clips, and leave out stock or invented scenes. Source: https://shortyedit.com/guides/ai-editing-your-footage-not-stock --- # You filmed it yourself. Your AI editor should use it. Yes. Shorty can build an edit from footage you upload, guided by a brief or reference. Make the source rule explicit: use the supplied clips, and leave out stock or invented scenes. The Shorty team · Updated 24 September 2026 ## Why the source matters You have a video of your own bakery at six in the morning: flour on the bench, a tray coming out, the first customer waiting outside. A polished stock shot of a different bakery would tell a different story. The details you filmed are often the reason someone should watch. “AI video” covers several jobs. Some products create new scenes, some assemble library clips, and some edit material you bring. An upload button alone does not tell you which workflow you are getting. Check what the tool will use to fill a gap. ## Give the editor a usable selection Keep the original files, then choose the clips that belong in this particular video. Include an opening, the important action, and a clear ending. If a detail must appear, name it in the brief. If a customer cannot appear, remove that shot from the selection rather than hoping the editor will infer it. In Shorty, supply your clips and describe the result. A reference is optional. It can communicate pacing or visual treatment, but it should not silently replace your source material. Check every shot in the output, especially quick cutaways that are easy to miss on the first viewing. ## Try a strict source brief Here is an example for that bakery shoot. Change the action and ending to match what you actually recorded. The instruction is useful because it says what to do when a shot is missing, instead of leaving the gap open. After the first cut, check whether the bread, people, and location remain yours. Then look at the story: does the viewer understand what happened without a long explanation? If the video needs a shot you never filmed, simplify the idea or pick up that shot. ## A brief to adapt to your footage Example direction. Replace the subject, shots, and wording with your own. Make a 20-second vertical bakery video using only these uploaded clips. Open with the tray leaving the oven, show the bread being placed on the counter, and end on the storefront. Do not add stock footage or invent missing scenes. Use only audio I supply or approve. ## Keep the ideas coming ### Better B-roll is probably already in your camera roll An AI editor can help select supporting shots from your clips. The useful part is matching each shot to the point being made, so the viewer sees evidence instead of a random montage. ### Hours of footage, no time: make the first selection smaller First separate long recordings from loose clips and choose the kind of short video you need. Highlight extraction can suit a long conversation; a directed assembly can suit selected shots. A huge archive still needs a clear assignment. ### More ways to finish your footage Practical answers for the part after the shoot: find the story, choose an editor, write a useful brief, and get the finished video out the door. ### Shorty product facts and limits Shorty turns your own video clips and photos into an edited MP4 from a written brief or optional reference. You can review the result and request revisions. This page collects current product facts, fit, limitations and canonical sources. ### Current plans and allowances Explore this editing workflow in Shorty. ## Your next video starts here. Bring the footage. Tell us the idea. Shape the edit. --- Published by Tools Products FZ-LLC. Canonical HTML: https://shortyedit.com/guides/ai-editing-your-footage-not-stock