You can turn Claude Code into a video editor that cuts your raw clips, adds captions and motion graphics, and renders an MP4. This guide sets up a free, open-source editing kit and gives you 20 ready-to-paste edit requests.
What you need
Claude Code with a paid Claude plan. Video editing uses a lot of usage.
Herk Edit Kit: nateherkai/herk-edit-kit on GitHub, by Nate Herk. Free, about 1.9k stars. It is built on HeyGen's HyperFrames (video as HTML) and GSAP animation, with 15 editing skills for Claude Code and Codex.
On your computer: Node.js 22 or newer, Git, FFmpeg (with ffprobe), and Chrome or Chromium.
Transcription: the kit's helper uses ElevenLabs Scribe, which needs your own API key and credits. OpenAI Whisper, local Whisper or an existing word-level transcript also work, with extra setup.
Alternative: browser-use/video-use, MIT licence, about 29.4k stars. Needs FFmpeg, Python and an ElevenLabs API key.
Step by step
Install the kit. In your terminal:
git clone https://github.com/nateherkai/herk-edit-kit.git
cd herk-edit-kit
npm ci
npm run setup
npm test`npm run setup` checks your tools and creates a `.env` file for your keys.
Render the demo to confirm it works.
npm run demo
cd video-projects/demo
npx hyperframes lint
npx hyperframes render --quality draft --output renders/demo.mp4Add your footage. Put your raw clip in the
raw-mediafolder. It's git-ignored, so your videos stay private.Give the one prompt. Open Claude Code in the kit folder and paste:
Use short-form-edit on raw-media/[your-file].mp4. Make a 9:16 reel under 60 seconds. Cut dead air and mistakes, but show me the proposed mistake cuts before applying them. Add a truthful hook in the first 3 seconds, word-by-word captions, and light sound design. Use my own footage before any generated assets, and ask before using any paid service. Render a draft for review.Give notes in plain words. Watch the draft, then reply like you would to a human editor: "the captions are too big", "keep the joke at 0:22", "end on the call to action".
Use the 20 edits below. Paste any line as a follow-up on your draft. Each one maps to something the kit's skills, HyperFrames, GSAP or FFmpeg can do. Results vary, so review every render.
CUTS
1. Remove silences longer than 0.4 seconds, but keep natural breaths between sentences.
2. Find retakes and false starts, keep only the best take, and list what you cut.
3. Tighten the whole edit to under 45 seconds without losing the main point.
4. Restructure the story: hook, problem, solution, proof, call to action.
CAPTIONS AND TEXT
5. Add word-by-word captions, 1 to 3 words at a time, inside the safe zone.
6. Highlight key words in the captions in my brand colour.
7. Add a big hook title for the first 3 seconds.
8. Add a lower-third with my name and handle at 0:02.
9. Show each tool name as an animated text card when I say it.
MOTION GRAPHICS
10. Use the dark graph-paper style with occasional glass cards.
11. Add a glass pop-out card with a screenshot when I mention a website.
12. Animate a simple bar chart when I mention a number.
13. Add an animated checklist when I list steps.
14. Add a progress bar along the bottom of the video.
CAMERA AND FRAMING
15. Add subtle punch-in zooms on my key sentences, never covering my face.
16. Reframe horizontal footage to 9:16 and keep me centred.
17. Make a 16:9 version for YouTube from the same edit.
SOUND
18. Add a soft whoosh on each text card and a pop on each highlighted word.
19. Add a quiet music bed from raw-media/music.mp3, ducked under my voice.
20. Make a 15-second teaser cut from the best moment, with a hook and a payoff.Prefer video-use? Install it as a Claude Code skill:
git clone https://github.com/browser-use/video-use ~/Developer/video-use
ln -sfn ~/Developer/video-use ~/.claude/skills/video-use
cd ~/Developer/video-use
pip install -e .
cp .env.example .envAdd `ELEVENLABS_API_KEY=` to `.env`, put your clips in a folder, start Claude Code there and say "edit these into a launch video". It proposes a plan, waits for approval, then writes `edit/final.mp4`. It can also colour-grade each segment.
Good to know
Drafts, not magic. The kit's own docs say short-form output is agent-guided and should be reviewed before publishing. Expect a few rounds of notes.
Costs add up. The kit is free, but editing burns Claude usage, and ElevenLabs or generated assets (via Kie.ai) bill you separately. Ask Claude to confirm before any paid call.
Brand assets. The kit ships with AI Automation Society branding that you may not reuse. Swap in your own logo and colours.
Security. One scanner flagged npm dependency warnings in the kit in October 2026. Run it on your own machine, not a shared server, and keep it updated.
Music and labels. Use only music you have rights to. If you add AI-generated visuals or people, label the post as AI-made where the platform asks.
Sources
Found this useful? Follow @kevinsingh.me on Instagram for a new AI tool every day, and subscribe so you don't miss the next one.