How to Edit a Video Based on Your Script with Claude

The script is approved, but the recordings still need sorting. One file contains three attempts at the opening, another has the clearest explanation halfway through, and the close-up you need starts a few seconds before the action. You need to find complete takes and put them together so the video follows the script naturally.

With a compatible video editor connected through MCP, Claude can search those recordings and assemble an editable cut. The connection gives it the editing controls to turn your instructions into changes on the timeline.

You can choose any editor with a compatible MCP connection, although setup and capabilities differ. The free invideo Editor MCP is a useful option, with a professional-grade, frame-accurate multitrack timeline and a full manual editing suite. You can choose cut frames, adjust framing, animate graphics or shape the mix yourself, then continue with Claude from the updated edit.

To start, connect Claude to invideo Editor so it can work with your footage and make changes on the timeline.

Connect Claude to the Editor

Open invideo’s connection page and select Claude. Choose “Add invideo to Claude” to open the connector details, add it and sign in with your invideo account.

Screenshot: invideo’s Claude connection walkthrough. Complete the connection before giving Claude the editing assignment.

You can also add it manually in Claude under Customize → Connectors → + Add → Add custom connector. Name it “invideo” and enter https://mcp.invideo.io/mcp as the server URL. Complete the sign-in and enable the connector for the editing conversation through the composer’s + menu and Connectors.

For Team and Enterprise accounts, an authorized owner must first configure the connector for the organization. Claude’s current connector instructions explain the account-specific steps. Keep the Editor open alongside Claude so you can play the cut as it develops.

Upload your script and footage and brief Claude

For this walkthrough, imagine you’re editing a foldable desk-lamp demonstration for people working at small desks. You have a script, several presenter takes and recorded close-ups. The goal is a clear, roughly 90-second video in 16:9.

Create a project called “Desk Lamp Demo” and upload the recordings directly to invideo Editor. This works while you use Claude on the web or Desktop. If you want Claude to import local footage for you, use Claude Desktop and identify the destination project. For an existing edit, use its current project and timeline.

Share the project link with Claude and attach your script and approved product notes in the conversation. Then give it the audience, intended result and starting-timeline instruction:

Illustration: the brief gives Claude the purpose and source documents, then asks it to place the recordings on “Lamp Script v1” as separate, untrimmed clips.

The recordings are now on a starting timeline. Next, ask Claude to select the takes and assemble them to match the script.

Assemble the recorded takes around the script

With the recordings on the timeline, ask Claude to build a base cut that follows your script. Have it find complete takes and remove false starts, repeated lines and awkward pauses while keeping the delivery natural.

Follow Lamp-script.pdf and assemble a base cut on “Lamp Script v1.” Select the clearest complete presenter takes. Remove false starts, retakes, repeated lines and awkward pauses while keeping natural delivery and the script’s intended meaning. Use Product-notes.pdf to check factual wording. Aim for about 90 seconds, keeping the complete explanation if it needs longer. Flag any required line or action that was not recorded. Leave B-roll, graphics, subtitles and music for later.

Illustration: the selected takes form the base cut on V1, with presenter dialogue on A1. B-roll, graphics, subtitles and music have not been added.

Play the base cut with the script beside it. Check that each passage is included, each line appears once and the cuts preserve complete words and natural delivery. Keep pauses that help viewers follow the explanation. The rough-cut guide develops take selection and pacing further.

In a separate example, Aaron Randall’s Claude workflow at 13:58 shows generated action shots assembled into an editable sequence, with sound on separate tracks.

Aaron Randall’s generated-shot sequence in invideo Editor.

If a required line or action is missing, check the other recordings, record a pickup or approve a script adjustment. You can also generate a missing line with a voice model and cover it with relevant recorded B-roll.

In Techvid Ai’s built-in-agent example at 4:57, the Editor’s response flags missing script lines for recording beside an assembled timeline.

You can also choose a take or refine a cut manually. Claude reads the updated timeline before continuing, so those creative decisions carry into the next pass.

Add close-ups that show the action

Once the base cut flows, ask Claude to find the recorded close-ups and place them over the matching explanation. In this demonstration, shots of unfolding the arm, tapping the brightness control and positioning the head support the presenter’s continuous narration.

On “Lamp Script v1,” find our recorded close-ups for the actions described in the script and place them on V2 above the matching presenter passages. Keep the dialogue continuous on A1. For brightness, show the finger approaching the base, the tap and the change in light. Use complete action ranges, with the hand and control visible. Mute duplicate camera dialogue in the inserts. Preserve the base-cut duration, approved wording and other selections.

Illustration: the brightness close-up sits above the presenter while the recorded dialogue continues. The inserts remain individually editable.

Review the inserts with the surrounding narration. If the shot begins after the finger taps the brightness control, ask Claude to start it earlier so viewers see the action and change in light. Use the current passage times from your edit:

Illustration: this instruction asks for the complete tap-to-light action while preserving the dialogue, passage duration and other sections.

Play from before the insert through the return to the presenter. Check that the approach, tap and light change are clear. You can trim the source range, choose the return frame or adjust framing manually, then continue with Claude. The timestamped-feedback guide covers revisions across layers; the Claude product-demo guide develops recorded actions and close-ups further.

Create clear step labels and graphics

With the footage in place, ask Claude to add clear step labels and simple visual cues that make the demonstration easier to follow.

In the brightness passage of “Lamp Script v1,” add “Adjust brightness” as a separate editable label. Use white text on a charcoal badge in empty space above the action, with a short fade in and out. Add a small arrow pointing to the base control when it is mentioned, keeping the finger and lamp visible. Keep picture and dialogue timing unchanged. Apply the same label style to “Unfold” and “Fold away,” timed to their own actions. Leave subtitles and music for the next pass.

Illustration: the step label and arrow sit on separate graphics layers above the close-up; dialogue continues below. Subtitles and music come later.

Play through the section to check that labels are readable, callouts appear with the action and neither covers an important detail. Ask Claude to adjust the placement or timing, or refine the type size and animation keyframes yourself. The mixed-media guide explains the editing options for separate text and graphics. Once the labels work with the footage, move on to subtitles and sound.

Add subtitles and finish the sound

Once the graphics are in place, ask Claude to add clear subtitles that follow the dialogue. Use the script and product notes to check the wording and terminology.

Add readable dialogue subtitles to “Lamp Script v1,” matching the actual speech. Check product terms against Product-notes.pdf. Keep subtitles clear of the hand, base control and step labels. Preserve the approved picture, graphics and dialogue timing.

Then finish the sound in a separate pass. Upload your licensed music track and ask Claude to use it:

Balance the presenter dialogue across cuts and smooth abrupt audio joins in “Lamp Script v1.” Reduce distracting room noise without making the voice sound thin. Add the supplied Soft bed.wav quietly beneath the explanation and fade it out at the end. Keep speech clear throughout. Preserve the script, selected takes, picture timing, graphics and subtitles.

Illustration: subtitles accompany the explanation, while presenter dialogue and supplied music remain on separate audio tracks.

Listen through the joins with headphones and at an ordinary speaker volume. Check subtitle timing and wording against the audio. If the music masks a line or cleanup thins the voice, ask for a lighter treatment there, or adjust levels, fades and the mix with the Editor’s audio controls.

Review the finished video and export

Watch the finished video from beginning to end. Check that it follows the script and that the explanation, recorded actions, graphics, subtitles and sound work together. Once you’re happy with it, export that version.

Export the approved “Lamp Script v1” timeline as a finished 16:9 H.264 MP4. Preserve the current picture, dialogue, subtitles, graphics and sound mix. Keep the editable timeline available for future revisions.

Illustration: H.264 MP4 produces the finished video. Editable-project export is a separate option for continuing in another editor.

You can export manually too. Open the rendered file before sharing it and check picture, text, sound and the ending. A finished video and an editable project for Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro or DaVinci Resolve serve different purposes, so request the destination project separately if another editor will continue the work.

This workflow fits a video whose message is already decided and whose recordings need selection and refinement. Claude handles repeated searching and timeline work while you direct the take choices, pacing and final treatment. The complete Claude editing guide covers the wider connection-to-export workflow.

Frequently asked questions

Can Claude assemble recordings in the order of my script?

Yes, through a compatible video editor connected by MCP. Supply the script, recordings and approved factual notes, then ask Claude to select complete takes and assemble them on an editable timeline. With the free invideo Editor MCP, you can review the result and continue through prompts or manual editing.

What if a script line was never recorded?

Check the other takes, record a pickup or approve a script adjustment. You can also generate the missing line with a voice model and place relevant recorded B-roll over it. Audio generation uses invideo credits. If the missing item is a product action, record it or adjust the explanation; a generated illustration does not establish the actual result.

Does assembling the video use invideo credits?

Ordinary editing through invideo MCP, including footage analysis, cuts, subtitles and audio cleanup, does not consume invideo credits. Claude’s subscription and usage allowance apply separately. Generating new images, video or audio uses invideo credits.

Can I keep editing by hand after Claude assembles it?

Yes. Cuts, source ranges, layered footage, text, animation, color and audio remain available in invideo Editor’s full manual suite. Claude reads the current timeline before continuing, including your manual changes. Bring the project link and a handover of approved decisions if you start a new conversation.