Part 1 of 7What it can do
A short guide

Edit your reels with Claude Code

Turn a raw talking head clip into a polished reel by talking to Claude Code. No editing software, no coding.

10 minute readNo coding needed
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Part 1

What Claude Code can do for your reels

On its own, Claude Code cannot edit a video. What it can do is use free tools, and run them for you, to do all of this:

Cuts the silencesDead air gone, tightly.
Finds fillers and repeatsUms, stutters and double takes.
Keep or remove what you likeYou choose which takes stay.
CaptionsMade from your own words.
Text overlaysAnimated headlines and titles.
Image overlaysPictures on screen, or behind you.
Sound effectsAdded right where they fit.
Animated effectsZooms, motion and polish that bring it to life.
Part 2

The toolbox

Eight tools, one job each. Claude Code installs and runs them for you, and you decide how much it checks in with you along the way.

Your editorClaude CodeYou talk to it. It edits and runs the rest.
The earsWhisperWrites down every word, with its time.Free
The scissorsFFmpegCuts, joins, mixes sound, exports.Free
The designerHyperframesAnimated text, captions and images.Free
The fontsFontsSet up your own, for example with Google Fonts, a free library.Free
The enginesPython and Node.jsRun quietly behind the scenes.Free
The undo buttonGitSaves snapshots, so you can go back.Free
The screensYour browserWhere you look and choose.Free

What it costs

Claude Code

Needs a Claude subscription. Check the current plans on the Anthropic website.

FreeEverything else

The other seven tools cost nothing to use.

Good to knowTime and space

Whisper downloads its model the first time, which takes a few minutes. Videos are big, so keep plenty of free disk space.

Part 3

So, what is the catch?

You might think this sounds too good to be true. So what is the catch?

If you do this on your own, it costs you 4 things.

1It takes timeSetting up and learning to direct Claude takes a while. Your first reel will not be done in an afternoon.
2It takes effortYou decide, check and describe what you see, again and again.
3It takes trial and errorThings will break or look wrong. That is part of the process.
4And it costs moneyA Claude subscription, plus every hour you spend.

None of this is a reason not to do it. It is just better to know before you start.

The shortcut: Y.E.S.

Y.E.S., the Yap Editing Studio, is a proper app on your computer, outside Claude Code. You click around to edit your reels, so you skip most of the catch above.

1

Ready from day one

Cuts silences and fillers, adds captions, overlays and effects.

Saves: time and trial and error
2

Your brand built in

Set your fonts, colors and images in the settings.

Saves: the generic look
3

Fully yours

The course shows you how to customize everything with Claude Code.

Keeps: your freedom
Join the waitlist

Want a head start?

Y.E.S., the Yap Editing Studio, gives you the ready-made base, and I show you how to make it yours.

  • The app: cuts silences and fillers, and adds captions, overlays and sound effects, all animated.
  • The real value: I teach you how to customize everything with Claude Code, in your own style.
  • A waitlist: join to hear first when it opens.
Nah, I want to do it on my own
Part 4

Getting started

Three steps. Then it is a conversation.

1

Install Claude Code

Download it from Anthropic and sign in. It needs a Claude subscription.

2

Make a project folder

A short name, no spaces. Open it in Claude Code.

Where to put the folder
Keep it out of cloud sync. OneDrive, Dropbox, iCloud and Google Drive can break things while files are being written. Desktop and Documents are often synced without you knowing. Pick a plain folder on your main drive, with plenty of free space.
3

Send your first message

Say what you want to edit, in your own words. Here is an example.

Your first message
I want to edit my talking head videos into Instagram reels by talking to you. For each clip, I want you to listen to it and write down every word, find the silences, filler words and repeats, let me choose what to keep, cut it, and add captions, animated text, image overlays and sound effects. Use free tools: Whisper to write down my speech, FFmpeg to cut the video and mix the sound, Hyperframes for animated text, captions and effects, Google Fonts for my brand fonts, and Git to save snapshots. Show me things in my browser when they need my eyes. Explain each step in plain words before you do it, ask me before installing anything, and set up whatever else is needed (like Python and Node.js).

Claude explains a plan and, because you asked it to, checks with you before installing anything. Part 5 then gives you the exact messages for your first edit, one at a time.

Part 5

Your first edit

Eight messages, in order. Copy one, paste it, read what comes back, check it, then move on.

Good to knowThese messages are written in plain words. You never have to name a tool: Claude Code picks the right one itself. Your results will look a bit different from mine, and that is normal.
1Set up your folders

Your first message may already have done this. If not, this keeps your clips safe.

Make two folders in this project: input for my raw clips, which you must never change, and output for everything you make. Anything I remove from a clip must be restorable.

You should see: two folders, input and output. Now put one short clip, about a minute, in the input folder.

2Listen to your first clip

This is your first real test.

I put my first clip in the input folder. Listen to it and write down every word with its timing. Show me the first ten lines.

You should see: your own words with times. If a name is spelled wrong, tell Claude and it will fix it. The first time can take a few minutes while it downloads what it needs.

3Find what to cut

Nothing is changed yet. You are only looking.

Now find the silences, filler words, stutters and repeated takes in my clip, and list them with their times. Do not change the video yet.

You should see: a list of what could be cut, with times.

4Decide what stays

This is where you decide. Claude never decides for you. Prefer clicking? Ask Claude to build a small page with Keep and Remove buttons, or start from Y.E.S., the Yap Editing Studio, which has it built in.

Show me my clip as numbered sentences, with the silences, fillers and repeated takes marked. Put repeated takes next to each other so I can pick the best one. I will tell you which numbers to keep or remove. Keep a list of what I removed, so I can bring anything back.

You should see: a numbered list. Answer in plain words, like “remove 4 and 7, keep the second take of 9”.

5Cut it

Always make a short preview first. It is much faster, and shows problems early.

Cut my clip using only what I kept. First make a 30 second preview in the output folder. Never touch the original, and tell me the old length and the new length.

You should see: a preview video that plays with sound in sync. Watch the joins, where one sentence meets the next.

6Set your brand look

Your fonts and colors are set once, in one place, so you can change them later in one go. Not sure what to put in the brackets? Part 6 shows you how to gather your brand and teach it to Claude, even if you have no color codes yet.

Set up my brand look in one place: a heading font, a body font (or one font for both), a main color, an accent color and a text color. Use these: [your fonts and colors]. Everything you add to my reels must use this look.

You should see: a small settings file. Change a color in it later and ask Claude to redo the preview. The look should follow.

7Add captions, text and an image

Keep it to one scene first, for example the opening.

Pick the opening scene of my preview. Add animated captions from my own words, an animated headline, an image and a slow zoom. Use my brand look, and make sure the text is easy to read against the picture. Tell me if it is not.

You should see: captions that match your words, a headline typing in, your image and a gentle zoom, all in your look.

8Add sound and export the reel

The last polish, and then your first finished reel.

Add soft sound effects where they fit, and keep them quiet under my voice. Make the loudness right for Instagram, and tell me the loudness before and after. Then make the full reel as an MP4 with three cover images.

You should see: your finished reel and cover images in the output folder. Watch it on your phone, with the Instagram app, before you post it.

When you get stuck

Copy one of these, with your own words in the brackets.

It does not look like I imagined
This is not what I pictured. Here is what I see: [describe it]. Here is what I wanted: [describe it]. Fix it in small steps.
I do not understand what happened
Explain what just happened in plain words, as if I have never seen code. Then tell me what you plan to do next.
Something broke
That did not work. Show me the short version of the error, tell me what you think caused it, and what you plan to do. Wait for my yes.
It is taking too long
This has been running for a long time. Tell me what you are doing right now and how long it should take. If something is wrong, stop and tell me.
It changed something I did not ask for
You changed something I did not ask for. Put it back exactly as it was, and from now on only change what I ask.
I want to go back
Undo the last change and put things back exactly as they were. Tell me what you restored.
I want to save my work
Save a snapshot of everything that works now, so I can come back to this point. Then write me a short summary of where we are.
I am coming back tomorrow
Look at what we have done so far and tell me in three sentences where we stopped and what the next small step is.
Part 6

Make it yours: your brand

Gather a few choices once, teach them to Claude once, and every reel you edit follows.

1. Gather what makes it yours

Start with fonts and colors. The rest can wait.

Font libraryBrowse fonts.google.com and pick what you like: one for headlines and one for text, or a single font for everything. Note the exact names.
Three to five colorsEach has a code like #F6E58D. No codes yet? Describe them in words, like “butter yellow and warm brown”, and Claude will suggest the codes.
Images and soundsPictures and sound effects you have the right to use.

2. Teach it to Claude

Put your files in a folder called brand inside your project folder, then pick the way that fits you. Each one ends with a preview.

AI already know my fonts and colors
Create my brand kit in one settings file. Fonts: [name] for headlines and [name] for text, or one font for both. Colors: main [code], accent [code], text [code], background [code]. Every headline, caption and effect must read from this file. Never write fonts or colors into the code. Then make a preview so I can see it.
BI have a look in mind, but no codes
Look at the pictures in my brand folder: screenshots of my Instagram or of pages I like. Suggest two Google Fonts and four colors with their codes that match, and explain why. Show me the options as a small preview and wait for me to choose. Then save my choice in one brand settings file.
CI am starting from nothing
Help me find a brand look for my reels. My style is [for example calm, bold or playful] and my audience is [who]. Suggest three looks, each with two Google Fonts and four colors with their codes, and show them as small previews. I will pick one. Then save it in one brand settings file.
Changing it later is one sentence“Change my accent color to [code] and redo the preview.” It only lives in one place.

3. Add your own images and sounds

Let me add my own images and sound effects. Make a folder for each, list them in my settings, and let me pick them for any scene. Show me a preview of the image and play the sound before I choose.

Need inspiration? Try an example look

New reel
Why I stopped editing by hand
Headline, caption and effects all use your look.

Examples only. Click a color to copy its code.

Part 7

Your checklist

Tick things off as you go. Your progress is saved on this device.

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Waitlist

Would you rather start from a ready base?

Y.E.S., the Yap Editing Studio, is a real app you click around in, so you do not need Claude Code to edit. It comes with a course on making it completely yours with Claude Code: your fonts, images, brand colors, sound effects and more.

Join the waitlist →