Colurvist › Learn › How to split and trim a video
How to split and trim a video
Open the clip in the editor, put the playhead where the cut goes and press S. Drag a block’s edge to trim it, or press Q / W to trim its start or end to the playhead. Shift+Delete removes a piece and closes the hole. Nothing is re-encoded until you export.
- Import the clip. Press Media on the library bar, then + Import — or drop the file onto the picture. Every clip you import becomes a block on the track; the whole clip plays until you cut it.
- Find the moment. Scrub the orange line under the picture, press Space to play, or click the time readout and type a time (
1:30,+10,40f). ↑ and ↓ jump between cuts, ← and → step a frame. - Split with S. Press S (or the ✂ on the track line). The block divides at the playhead into two cuts that still play seamlessly — split as often as you like.
- Trim an edge. Drag either edge of a block, or press Q to trim its start to the playhead and W its end. Alt-drag an edge rolls the join with its neighbour (the total stays), and Alt-drag the middle of a block slips the picture inside the cut without moving it. T enters a trim mode where J / L shuttle and K lands the edge on the playhead.
- Remove and close. Click a piece and press Delete to remove it, or Shift+Delete to remove it and slide everything after it left (a ripple delete). Close gaps in the right-click menu tidies the lane.
- Move pieces. Drag a block along its lane or up onto another lane; it snaps to other edges, markers and the playhead (N turns snapping off). Shift-click selects several, Ctrl+G groups them so they move together, Alt+←/→ nudges a frame.
Three-point editing
Double-click a clip in the Media drawer to open the source monitor: mark an in and an out point there, then press , to insert that piece at the playhead (what follows slides right) or . to overwrite (what follows stays put). It is the quickest way to build a sequence from long takes.
Linked sound
A video’s sound sits on its own lane under the picture. With Link on (the track toolbar) a cut, trim or move on one carries the other; Unlink in the right-click menu frees them when you want a J- or L-cut.
Undo is Ctrl+Z, and one history covers the whole project — a split, a trim or a ripple delete all come back.
Questions
Does splitting lose quality?
No. Cuts are instructions on the timeline; the file is only re-encoded when you export, once, at the quality you choose.
How do I trim exactly to a frame?
Step the playhead with ← and → (one frame) and press Q or W, or type a time with frames into the readout, such as 0:45:15.
Can I split several clips at once?
Shift-click the blocks (or Ctrl+G to group them) and press S — every selected block under the playhead divides.
Is it free?
Yes. Importing, cutting, trimming and exporting up to 1080p are free. Nothing is uploaded.
Last reviewed 3 October 2026.