Comprehensive Guide To Cut A Video Clip In Adobe After Effects

Part 1: How to Cut a Clip in After Effects

There are many reasons why you need to split or cut a clip in Adobe After Effects. There are a few ways to do it, but the software does not have an intuitive video-cutting tool. As a result, you can do it by splitting or trimming the layer. Here is the easiest way how to cut or split in after effects.

1.Run After Effects, go to the File menu from the top menu bar, choose Import, and select File. Find and bring a clip into After Effects through the open-file dialog.

2.Drag the clip to the New Composition icon at the bottom of the Projects panel. Then a new composition will be created according to the media properties of the clip. The composition only has one layer.

3.Place the play-head bar to the position where you would like to cut or split. If you intend to find the exact frame, move the play-head forwards and backward with the hotkeys, like Page Up and Page Down.

4.When you find the exact frame, you have a couple of options:

Go to the Edit menu and choose Split Layer, or press Control + Shift + D keys on your PC keyboard or Command + Shift + D keys on Mac. Now, the layer will become two clips. Select the unwanted clip and press the Delete key on your keyboard to remove it.

To cut a clip in After Effects directly, place the play-head bar to the new beginning, and press the Alt + [ keys on PC and Option + [ on Mac to reset it. Next, put the play-head bar to the new endpoint and press the Alt + ] keys on PC or Option + ] on Mac.

5.Now, preview the clip in the composition panel. If you are satisfied, locate the Project window, and select the video clip. Go to the File menu, select Export, and choose to Add to Adobe Media Encoder Queue. Change or keep the preset on the Media Encoder dialog, set the destination folder, and click the Save button.

Now, you have cut the video clip. You can also learn how to extend a video clip, make 3D text, or speed up the video in After Effects. And if you like to cut clips with shortcuts in After Effects, here is a list.

Shortcuts	Windows	Mac
Split Selected Layer	Ctrl+ Shift+ D	Command + Shift + D
Duplicate selected item	Ctrl+ D	Command + D
Cut selected clip	Alt + [	Option + [
Extend selection to next item	Ctrl+ Shift+ Arrow Down	Command + Shift+ Arrow Down
Extend selection to the previous item	Ctrl+ Shift+ Arrow Up	Command + Shift+ Arrow Up
Quit program	Ctrl+ Q	Command + Q