Lesson · Edit
The whole thing — cuts, captions, motion graphics — edited like a professional. Here's the exact free setup, step by step.
Before you start
The editor runs on two free tools. Here's what they are — and two ways to install them, pick whichever feels like you.
the ears
A free AI from OpenAI that listens to your video and writes down every word you said with the exact second you said it. That timestamped transcript is the magic: it's how the editor knows where your pauses are and how the captions land perfectly on every word.
the knife
The free tool that does the actual video work — cutting, joining, burning captions into the picture. Practically every video app you've ever used has FFmpeg somewhere inside it.
You don't install anything yourself. Once you have Claude from Step 1, you just type this to it.
Install Whisper and FFmpeg on my computer so we can edit videos.Check they work when you're done.It downloads them, installs them, handles anything that's missing (like Python, which Whisper needs), and tells you when it's ready. This is the whole philosophy of the setup: you don't do the technical part. You ask.
These commands go in your computer's command window — NOT in the Claude chat. On Windows: press the Windows key, type powershell, press Enter. A blue/black text window opens. Paste each line and press Enter, one at a time, letting each finish:
winget install ffmpegwinget install Python.Python.3.12pip install -U openai-whisperOn Mac: press Cmd+Space, type terminal, press Enter. Then:
brew install ffmpegpip3 install -U openai-whisper(the brew command needs Homebrew — if your Mac says "command not found: brew", get it at brew.sh first. Or scroll back up and use Path A.)
Path A and Path B end in the same place. There's no wrong door.
Step 1
We're using Claude for this (claude.com — the desktop app) (also possible with Codex and the other AI tools that can use your computer). Why do I like Claude better? That's a whole video by itself — follow and you'll see it. 😉 The point: Claude is your editor. You never touch Whisper or FFmpeg yourself. You talk; it works.
Step 2
Phone footage is fine. Don't worry about pauses, don't worry about messing up a line and restarting. That's the machine's problem now. Make a folder, name it something simple, drop the clips in order.
Step 3
This is the prompt that works for me every time. People sell prompt packs — this one's free. Copy it, change the two [BRACKETS], paste it to Claude, and watch it work:
You're my video editor. In the folder [MY FOLDER] are my rawclips, numbered in order.1. Transcribe every clip with Whisper, word-level timestamps.2. Cut every pause longer than 0.8 seconds and every false start. Join everything smoothly with tiny audio fades so there are no clicks between cuts.3. Alternate a subtle 10% punch-in on every cut so the video never feels static.4. Burn bold ALL-CAPS captions synced word by word, bottom third, white with a thick dark outline — and highlight the key words in [MY BRAND COLOR].5. Open with a hook title card over the first 2 seconds using my opening line.6. Close with an end card: dark background, my handle, "Follow for more."7. Motion graphics: listen to what I'm SAYING. Every time I name a step, a tool, a number, or a price, put an animated text card on screen in the top third — the word appears with a quick fade-and- rise, holds while I talk about it, and exits clean. Keep every card in the same style: bold type, [MY BRAND COLOR] accent, dark translucent panel. The cards should feel like one system, not random pop-ups.8. Normalize the audio to -16 LUFS so it's loud and clean.9. Export vertical 1080x1920, then show me 8 frames from across the video so I can check the result before I even press play.If Whisper or FFmpeg aren't installed, install them first.Then just talk to it: "captions bigger." "That cut felt harsh." "Leave the pause after the joke — that one's on purpose." Every revision is a sentence, not a software skill.
Real talk: this prompt edits your footage — cuts, captions, punch-ins, and animated info cards that fire when you name things. The 3D scenes and holograms you see in some of my videos come from a different machine (my AI avatar setup). That's its own lesson — it's coming. Follow so you're there when it drops.
Follow
@carlosg.ai on Instagram/TikTok — I post what I learn every day.
Want the next lesson DM'd to you? Comment the keyword on any of my posts and my robot sends it. This page was "EDIT". More keywords coming.
built by Carlos + his AI teammate.