Talking-head video editing glossary
By Mohamed Mokbel, founder · Last updated:
This glossary defines the terms used when you edit a video of a person talking to camera, from A-roll and assembly cut to retake, jump cut, EDL and SRT. Each definition is one or two sentences, and the terms that describe what Cutora AI does say only what its product facts say.
Terms, A to Z
A-roll
The main footage of a video. In a talking-head video it is the shot of the person speaking to camera.
AI-first video editor
A video editor built around AI from the start, so the AI does the edit and the person reviews it. Cutora AI is one.
AI rough cut
An early draft of an edit made by software, which removes mistakes and dead air and leaves a timeline you keep editing. Cutora AI's removes long pauses, false starts and repeated takes. See what an AI rough cut is.
Assembly cut
The opening stage of an edit: all the usable footage placed in order, long and untidy, before the rough cut chooses and trims.
B-roll
Extra footage that covers or illustrates the main shot, such as a clip of the thing being described. In Cutora AI it is added by hand; the product does not add B-roll on its own.
Breath
The audible intake of air between phrases. Editors usually keep some breath so speech does not sound clipped.
Caption
Text on screen that shows what is being said. Cutora AI makes English captions today; Arabic captions are in Beta.
Chat editing
Changing an edit by typing a request such as "tighten the intro" instead of using the timeline. In Cutora AI it works for many requests and has real limits. See editing a video by chat.
Cutaway
A shot that interrupts the main footage, often B-roll, and returns to it.
Dead air
A stretch of silence in a recording where nothing is said, such as the wait before a speaker starts.
EDL (edit decision list)
A plain-text list of the cuts in an edit, with timecodes. Editors use it to move a cut from one program to another.
False start
A sentence you begin, abandon and start again. A first cut removes the abandoned attempt. See how to cut false starts.
FCPXML
The file format Final Cut Pro uses to describe an edit.
Filler word
A word such as "um" or "uh" that fills a pause in speech. Cutora AI cuts clear “um” and “uh” sounds and keeps words such as “like” and “you know”.
Fine cut
The editing stage after the rough cut, where timing is tightened and cutaways, transitions and pacing are refined.
First cut
The early draft of an edit made in the opening pass. In everyday use it is the same as a rough cut. See how the first cut decides what to remove.
Gap
A stretch between two words or two clips where nothing is spoken. Long gaps are what pause removal cuts.
Highlights
Key words in a caption that are shown in a different style. Cutora AI highlights key words in English captions.
Jump cut
A cut between two moments of the same shot, so the speaker appears to jump forward. It is what you get when you remove pauses from a talking-head recording. See automatic jump cuts and whether jump cuts are bad.
Padding
The small amount of audio kept before and after each cut, so the start and end of words are not clipped.
Pause
A moment in speech with no words. Short pauses are part of natural delivery; long ones are usually cut in a first cut.
Picture lock
The point at which the cuts are final and only audio mix, colour, captions and graphics remain.
Punch-in
A zoom into the frame on a cut, used to make a jump cut look intentional or to add emphasis.
Retake
Saying the same line again after finishing it, usually to get a better delivery. A first cut keeps one take. See how the take to keep is picked.
Ripple delete
Deleting a clip and closing the gap it leaves, so everything after it moves earlier on the timeline.
Room tone
The background sound of the room where you recorded. Editors keep a little under cuts so the audio does not drop to dead silence.
Rough cut
The edit stage where the strongest material is chosen and ordered and mistakes are removed. The story is there; the polish is not.
Silence threshold
The level below which audio counts as silence in a silence remover. Set too high it cuts quiet words; set too low it cuts nothing.
SRT
A plain-text caption file that lists each caption with its start and end time. Cutora AI exports one with the edit.
Take
One recorded attempt at a line or a scene.
Talking-head video
A video in which a person speaks to camera, with little else on screen. Founders, teachers, coaches and creators often make them.
Text-based editing
Editing a video by editing its transcript: deleting words cuts the matching footage. Descript works this way; Cutora AI does not.
Timeline
The strip in a video editor where clips are laid out in order and trimmed. Cutora AI gives you the first cut on an editable timeline with undo.
Transcript
The written text of what was said, with the time of each word. A first cut uses it to find repeated lines and false starts.
Vertical video (9:16)
Video taller than it is wide, used for Reels, TikTok and Shorts. Cutora AI exports 1080×1920 vertical or 1920×1080 horizontal MP4.
Waveform
A picture of the audio level over time. Silence shows as a flat line, which is how editors spot pauses by eye.
Where to go next
FAQ
What is the difference between a rough cut and a first cut?
In everyday use, nothing: both mean the early draft of an edit, with the usable material chosen and the obvious mistakes removed.
What is the difference between a false start and a retake?
A false start is an attempt you abandon part-way through a sentence. A retake is saying a whole line again after you finished it.
What is a jump cut?
A cut between two moments of the same shot, so the speaker appears to jump forward in time.
What is a talking-head video?
A video in which a person speaks to camera, with little else on screen.