Claude Code Video Editing: Cut Clips From Your Terminal
Claude Code video editing works once you connect a video MCP server to Claude Code. With Cut Express, you add the connector with one command and a key from your account. Claude Code then uploads your local files, reads the footage and writes the edit, and Cut Express renders the MP4.
This guide is for developers who’d rather stay in the terminal than open a timeline app.
How does video editing in Claude Code work?
Claude Code doesn’t render video itself. The Cut Express MCP server gives it the tools it needs:
- Upload. Claude Code sends your local files and folders to your Cut Express account from the terminal.
- Inspect. For each clip, Claude Code gets contact sheets (frames labelled with source time) and, if you ask, a timestamped transcript.
- Render. Claude Code writes a small JSON timeline and calls render. Cut Express renders the MP4 on its own servers.
The thinking runs on your own Claude plan. Rendering runs on Cut Express servers, not on your laptop.
How do I set up Cut Express in Claude Code?
- Start a trial and get a key from your Cut Express account.
- Run the one command that adds Cut Express, with that key. The exact line is in the setup guide.
- Open Claude Code in the folder with your footage.
- Ask for an edit. Claude Code uploads the clips it needs and inspects them before it renders.
- Revise in plain words. Each change edits the same timeline and renders a new version.
Files can be up to 2 GB each on Pro and 4 GB on Ultra. For more on upload options, see how to upload footage.
Can Claude Code batch a folder of clips into reels?
Yes. Because Claude Code can read your file system, you can point it at a folder and describe the batch.
Go through ./raw/october. For each talking-head clip longer than a minute, make a 30-second 9:16 reel. Start on the strongest line, cut pauses, add bold word-by-word captions. Name each render after the source file.
Claude Code uploads each file, reads its transcript, picks a hook and renders one reel per clip. A 30-second reel at 1080p is usually ready in well under a minute. On Ultra, three renders run at once.
Render minutes count the length of what you render. Thirty 30-second reels use 15 render minutes, out of 60 a month on Pro. Re-renders count too, so a revision pass adds to the total.
What does the JSON timeline look like?
Every Cut Express edit is a small JSON timeline. It holds scenes with in and out points, plus text, captions, audio tracks and the color grade. A trimmed, illustrative example of its shape:
{
"title": "october-reel-03",
"format": "9:16",
"scenes": [
{ "media": "m_…", "in": 12.4, "out": 19.8 },
{ "media": "m_…", "in": 41.0, "out": 47.2 }
],
"captions": { "source": "auto", "style": { "preset": "bold" } }
}
You can download the timeline and keep it in your repo. That gives you a diffable record of each edit. Every version is also kept in your account, so “go back to v2” works from the chat.
Download the timeline for the last render to ./timelines, then make a 16:9 version for YouTube from the same cuts.
Should I use Remotion or Cut Express with Claude Code?
They solve different problems.
Remotion is an open-source framework for making videos in React. With Claude Code you run npx create-video, add Remotion’s agent skills and prompt. You render on your machine or your own infrastructure. It’s free for individuals and companies up to 3 people. Companies of 4 or more need a company license, from $25/month per seat (as of October 2026, check their pricing page). Remotion is the better pick for video generated from data, or for custom motion you design in React.
Cut Express is built for cutting camera footage. You don’t keep a codebase or a render server. Claude makes edit decisions from what it sees in your clips, and you get an MP4 back.
For a longer comparison, read Remotion + Claude vs Cut Express.
What about an ffmpeg MCP server?
Open-source ffmpeg MCP servers are free and local. Your files never leave your machine. For example, ffmpeg-mcp-lite has 8 tools including trim, merge, compress and burn subtitles.
They don’t include word-timed caption styles, AI voice and sound, or a render cloud. Claude also can’t see the footage unless you set that up yourself, for example by extracting frames.
How do the developer options compare?
| Cut Express | Remotion | ffmpeg MCP | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Input | Your camera footage | React code and data | Your local files |
| Claude reviews footage | Contact sheets + transcript | Not its focus; Claude writes code | Only if you set it up |
| Where it renders | Cut Express servers | Your machine or infra | Your machine |
| Captions | Word-by-word styles | You build them in code | Burn in a subtitle file |
| Output | Finished MP4 | MP4 from your render | Processed file |
| Cost | Pro $19/month after trial | Free under 4 people, then a license (as of October 2026) | Free |
Pick Remotion for templated video from data. For free, private file jobs, an ffmpeg MCP is enough. Choose Cut Express when you want finished reels from real footage and don’t want to run your own render setup.
FAQ
Is there a CLI for Cut Express?
You connect it to Claude Code with one command and a key. After that, you work through Claude Code. The exact command is in the setup guide.
Can Claude Code upload a whole folder?
Yes. Claude Code uploads local files and folders to your Cut Express account.
Where are my files stored?
Privately in your account, used only to render. Delete them from the Media page or by asking Claude.
Can I version-control my edits?
Yes. Download the JSON timeline and commit it. Every version also stays in your account.
Edit from your terminal
Connect Cut Express to Claude Code and point it at a folder.
Free for 14 days, and nothing is charged if you cancel before it ends. Pro is $19/month after the trial, cancel any time.