Video Editing with Artificial Intelligence using DeScript

(A DeScript Creator account will be provided for workshop activities)

Explore how to use an AI video editor to create videos with the speed and flexibility of artificial intelligence.

Descript makes editing as easy as editing text, with AI tools that handle transcription, automatic cleanup, synthetic voice generation, and instant visual enhancement. Learners develop confidence working with AI-powered editing features, explore templates and stock assets, and produce a polished short video they have created themselves.

Learning Objectives

• Understand how Descript uses AI for transcription, editing, and media enhancement
• Edit video projects quickly using text-based controls and automatic cleanup tools
• Generate voiceovers, music, and stock visuals using built-in AI features
• Combine templates, stock assets, and custom recordings for faster production
• Understand copyright and usage issues and best practices when working with AI-generated or stock materials

Getting Started with Descript
Explore the basics of setting up and navigating Descript. Discover how AI transcription and editing features make professional video production faster and more accessible.

• Overview of the Descript interface and AI editing workflow
• Importing media and generating automatic transcripts
• Exploring built-in templates for podcast, tutorial, and social formats
• Accessing Descript's stock footage and audio libraries
• Milestone: Create your first project using a template and transcript

Editing by Text
Experience how Descript's transcript-based editing replaces complex timelines with intuitive, word-level control.

• Edit video by cutting, rearranging, or deleting text
• Automatically remove filler words, pauses, and background noise
• Use multi-track editing to sync visuals and narration
• Add captions, transitions, and lower thirds with a few clicks
• Milestone: Produce a clean, text-edited clip ready for export

Voice and Sound Tools
Explore how AI transforms the audio process with quick fixes and synthetic voices.

• Use Overdub to correct or replace lines with your cloned voice
• Add stock or AI-generated music beds for background sound
• Balance volume and remove noise using AI repair tools
• Record directly within Descript and sync automatically to your timeline
• Milestone: Replace and enhance audio in a short scene

Enhancing Visuals and Using Templates
Explore how to style and refine your project visually using templates and stock assets.

• Insert stock video and images directly into your edit
• Use AI tools for auto-resize, layout suggestions, and quick reframes
• Customize titles, fonts, and transitions to match your project style
• Combine AI-generated B-roll with your recorded footage
• Milestone: Build a short, branded sequence using AI-assisted design tools

Copyrights and Usage
Build a practical understanding of how to use AI-generated and stock materials responsibly.

• How Descript licenses its stock footage and music
• Understanding public domain, royalty-free, and creative commons sources
• Tips for crediting stock assets and AI-generated voices
• Milestone: Submit your final edit with a short list of cited assets

Final Project: Complete an AI-Edited Video
Bring together all your skills to plan, edit, and export a short project that showcases AI-driven editing.

• Use templates to structure the story
• Mix stock visuals, AI voiceovers, and your own clips
• Apply text-based editing and export to a sharing platform
• Milestone: Present a one-minute AI-edited video for peer review

Prerequisites

• Access to short video or audio clips for editing
• Optional: microphone or headset for recording voiceovers