> Upload your clips, describe the edit in plain words and get a finished MP4 back. Revise it by message. Real briefs, original footage and exports. Source: https://shortyedit.com/text-prompt-video-editor --- # Edit your video with a text prompt: describe it, get the MP4 Yes. Upload your raw clips, write what you want in plain words (length, format, story order, captions, music, pace) and Shorty plans the cut, edits your footage and renders a finished MP4. To change something, say what should change and the rest of the edit stays. You never open a timeline. [The Shorty team](https://shortyedit.com/about#editorial-team) · Updated 26 October 2026 · Published 26 October 2026 ## Key takeaways - Upload your clips, describe the edit in plain words, and Shorty renders a finished MP4. - Name the length, format, order, captions, music and pace; negatives like “no slow motion” are followed. - Revise by message; the parts you did not mention stay. - Shorty edits footage you supply; it does not generate missing shots. ## Brief in, finished video out Three exports from Shorty’s Discovery gallery. Each caption quotes the saved brief; the footage link opens the original clip. Turn the sound on. **The Alps** Brief: “Dynamic fast travel reel in the Alps. Cut on the beat of the clip’s own audio… speed ramps, quick punch-in zooms, flash/whip transitions… text placed behind the man/mountain… never cover faces. Exactly 10s.” [Watch the edit](https://cdn.shortyedit.com/renders/shorty-90988273.mp4?v=20ec81fb) · [Original footage](https://cdn.shortyedit.com/inputs/shorty-90988273/source-01.mp4?v=9ad29d6a) **Vietnam, day to night** Brief: “Dynamic fast Vietnam travel reel, day to night… keep the original soundtrack… max two words on screen at once… text behind the man / cathedral… exactly 12s.” [Watch the edit](https://cdn.shortyedit.com/renders/shorty-e5ed014c.mp4?v=472110b2) · [Original footage](https://cdn.shortyedit.com/inputs/shorty-e5ed014c/source-01.mp4?v=2cf78177) **Fashion recap** Brief: “Calm fashion recap with varied editing techniques and no repeated footage: each of the 9 distinct scenes appears exactly once.” [Watch the edit](https://cdn.shortyedit.com/renders/shorty-3e3c9ba9.mp4?v=12b7494d) · [Original footage](https://cdn.shortyedit.com/inputs/shorty-3e3c9ba9/source-01.mp4?v=2c3ac711) ## What you can ask for in words Write it the way you would brief an editor. Anything you name is followed; anything you leave out, Shorty decides. | Say | What happens | | --- | --- | | “30 seconds, vertical, for Reels” | Length and canvas are set before the cut is planned. | | “Open on the result, then show how it was made” | Shot order follows your story, using the clips you supplied. | | “Cut to the beat” and attach a song | The song becomes the soundtrack and the cuts land on it. | | “Captions in yellow, key words highlighted, off the face” | Captions are styled, placed and timed as asked. | | “Speed ramps on the jumps, titles behind me” | Speed changes and text behind the subject are applied to those shots. | | “No slow motion, don’t repeat clips” | Negatives are followed as written. | Sources: [Shorty News: brief and negatives](https://shortyedit.com/blog/reference-match-2-talking-heads) · [Cut clips to a song](https://shortyedit.com/guides/edit-clips-to-the-beat-of-a-song) · [Revise by chat](https://shortyedit.com/products/video-revisions). Shorty release notes and product pages. ## How it works - Add your clips or photos. One edit takes up to 150 clips and 8 GB in total; each video can be up to 1 GB. - Write the brief: who it is for, the length and format, the opening, what must be shown and how it should end. A reference video is optional. - Check the credit estimate and submit. Shorty selects shots, builds the cut and renders an MP4. - Revise by message: name the moment and the change, or select an editable title in the preview. Shorty renders a new version to compare with the last. Make a 30-second vertical Reel from my clips for people who have never tried our coffee. Open on the latte art pour, then the beans, the grinder and the first sip. Cut to the beat of the song I attached, captions in white with key words in yellow, never over faces. End on the shop sign. No slow motion, don’t repeat clips. ## Revisions are part of the job The first cut is a draft you direct. Ask for “a faster opening”, “hold the product shot two seconds longer” or “change the title to Spring Sale”, and say what should stay the same. Send a review link so a client can comment at exact moments without a Shorty account, then combine their notes into one request. ## Prompt editing, text-to-video and transcript editing are different jobs Text-to-video generators create new footage from a prompt. Transcript editors cut a recording by editing its words. Shorty edits the footage you filmed from a written brief: it chooses shots, orders them, adds captions, titles, music and transitions, and renders the video. Use a generator for scenes you could not film, and a transcript editor for word-level cuts in a long interview. ## What a prompt cannot do A prompt does not create footage you did not shoot; supply every shot the story needs. For frame-exact control of every cut, finish in a timeline editor. Attach your song as an MP3, WAV or M4A file and confirm you have the rights, or ask for music and Shorty finds a library track or creates an original one. It cannot fetch a song by its name. Rendering needs a Shorty account and credits. Plans start at $19 a month; current plans and the estimate for each edit are shown before you submit. ## Keep the ideas coming ### Describe the edit in words and get the video Yes. In Shorty, upload your clips and describe the edit in plain words: length, format, order, captions, music and pace. Shorty edits your footage and renders a finished MP4. To change it, describe the change and the rest stays. ### Write a useful editing prompt Describe the source footage, audience, format, story order and constraints. Tell Shorty what must remain accurate, which shot should lead and what the viewer should understand at the end. A reference video is optional; a clear written brief can supply the direction. ### Revise an edit by chat Shorty is an AI video editor you can revise by chat. Open an existing edit and describe the change in plain language, such as a new opening, different shot timing or corrected title text, or select an editable title or graphic in the preview and say what should change. Shorty renders a new version to compare with the previous cut. ### Change one part of a finished video Yes. Open the edit and describe the change. In supported compositions, select an editable element to attach it to the request. Identify the scene or element, specify the change, and explain which details should stay the same. ### Edit your footage to match a reference video Add your raw clips and the video you want to copy, write “like the reference”, and Shorty edits your footage to match it: where the captions sit and which words light up, how fast it cuts, cuts locked to the beat in music edits, transitions, framing and colour. Ask for a one-to-one recreation and Shorty rebuilds the reference’s opening and titles with your own clips. You get a finished MP4 and revise it by message. ### Direct the edit from ChatGPT Yes, with a video editor connected. Add Shorty to ChatGPT as a custom connection with the endpoint https://mcp.shortyedit.com/mcp, sign in to Shorty in your browser, then ask ChatGPT to open Shorty Studio. The real Shorty editor opens inside the chat with your footage, Discovery references, your edits and the revision box. Pick a reference, add clips and send: ChatGPT builds the edit with Shorty and you watch it render without leaving the conversation. Opening Studio uses no credits; rendering uses your plan’s credits. ## Questions, answered. ### Is there an AI where I can describe the edit in words and it edits my video? Yes. In Shorty, upload your clips, describe the edit in plain words and it renders a finished MP4 from your footage. Revise it by message. ### Can I tell an AI how I want my video edited and get the finished MP4 back? Yes. Shorty takes your clips and a written brief and returns a rendered MP4 you can download, not a project file to finish yourself. ### Does it follow instructions like “cut to the beat, add captions, make it punchy”? Yes. Attach the song for beat cuts, and name the caption style and pace. Specific instructions work better than “make it viral”. ### Can I ask for revisions after the first cut? Yes. Describe the change in the revision chat, or select an editable title in the preview, and Shorty renders a new version. ### Do I need a reference video? No. A written brief is enough. A reference helps when a look is easier to show than describe. ### How much does it cost? Rendering needs a Shorty account and credits. Plans start at $19 a month; current plans and the estimate for each edit are shown before you submit. ## 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/text-prompt-video-editor