Overview

Kaltura provides a web-based video editor that you can use to trim your video (that is, remove parts of it). 

These instructions apply to all Kaltura users (instructors, students, and staff with active directory credentials). Anyone can edit their videos!

Videos can be trimmed in both Canvas and MediaSpace. 

Critical Concepts

Prerequisites

• You must be an owner or a co-editor. In order to edit a video, the video either has to be one of yours, or you have to have been given the "co-editor" collaboration role. You can't edit a video if you're a co-publisher or co-viewer.

Things to Keep in Mind

• You can do two things in the editor: make cuts and add fade-ins and fade-outs. The fades can make your cuts look a little smoother, since the transition between clips will be less abrupt.
• There are two other sections in the editor that allow you to add quiz questions and hotspots. We won't cover these functions in this tutorial, however. To switch to those sections use the left navigation in the editor window. If you're interested in learning more about these features, check out the articles below:
  • Add Quiz Questions to a Kaltura Video
  • Adding Hotspots
    • Add a URL Hotspot to a Kaltura Video
    • Add a "Time in This Video" Hotspot to a Kaltura Video
    • Add Onscreen Text to a Kaltura Video (a URL hotspot without a URL)
• Making fine-tuned adjustments can be tricky. We like to say that using the Kaltura video editor is like doing surgery with a steak knife. Though you can zoom in on the timeline or set specific timecodes for edits, it still can be trickier than your average desktop video editor to shave off some of your video.
• There are two different ways to save your edits. When you're done making your edits, you can click either "Save" or "Save a Copy."
  • Save will save over the original video entry. Anything you've removed will not be retrievable. 
  • Save a Copy will create a new Kaltura entry and leave the original intact. 
• Podcast editing. If you're editing a podcast and you want your edits to be reflected on the video embedded on the podcasting site (https://podcast.ucsd.edu), be sure to click "Save" and not "Save a Copy."
• If you save over the original, your changes won't be apparent until processing is complete. If you elect to "Save" your changes (as opposed to "Save a Copy," which creates a new entry), your old video will continue to play normally while the new version is being processed. So it may not seem like your changes have taken effect. Once the processing is complete for the new version of your video, it will be quietly replaced in the player. 
• You can't edit separate streams of a multi-stream entry. If you're editing a dual-stream entry (or a "multi-stream" entry with more than two video streams), you can't remove parts from only one of the video streams. Any cuts you make will apply to ALL of the streams.
• But you can change what video stream you're looking at. If you're editing a video that has two or more video streams (such as a Kaltura Capture video), you can select which video stream you'd like to see in the video preview window. It may be easier, for example, to identify where to cut your video based on your camera instead of your screen capture - or vice versa. Regardless, to change the video feed in the preview window, click the icon above the timeline that looks like a stack of rectangles with a triangular play button on top. You'll be presented with the available video streams you can select.

Known Issues

• If you save over the original version, sometimes your video will get "stuck" in a processing status. Kaltura has acknowledged this. If it's been quite some time (more than a few hours for an hourlong lecture), let us know at kaltura@ucsd.edu and we'll investigate.

Steps to Take

Feel free to watch the video tutorial below, or read the text instructions that follow.

There are four main steps involved in editing a video. If desired, use the list below to jump to the section you need:

1. Enter the Kaltura video editor
2. Make your edits
3. Add fade-ins and/or fade-outs (optional)
4. Save your changes

1. Enter the Kaltura Video Editor

a. Setting a New Start Point

If you want your video to start later, this is the easiest way to do it. You might want to do this if you took a moment to open your PowerPoint presentation, centered yourself on camera, or maybe because the recording has some dead space at the beginning.

1. Under the video preview, click on the timeline where you'd like your video to begin. (For more precision, zoom in on the timeline using the "Timeline Zoom" slider on the lower right side of the window.)
2. On the blue-ish box just above where your cursor is on the timeline, click the icon that looks like a left bracket (" [ "). The timeline before your cursor should become grayed out.

b. Setting a New End Point

Setting a new end point is just removing a section at the very end of your video. This could be when your lecture is done and students are asking questions at the podium, when you're trying to find the "stop recording" button on your screen, or if you just want to tighten up your video. 

1. Under the video preview, click on the timeline where you'd like your video to end. (For more precision, zoom in on the timeline using the "Timeline Zoom" slider on the lower right side of the window.)
2. On the blue-ish box just above where your cursor is on the timeline, click the icon that looks like a right bracket (" ] "). The timeline after your cursor should be replaced with diagonal gray lines.

c. Removing Parts of Your Video in the Middle

There may be points in the middle of your video that you want to remove. To do this, you essentially have to create three separate clips in the video: the part before the section you want to remove, the section you want to remove, and the part after the section you want to remove. After creating these separate clips, you just delete the middle part. You do this by using the scissors icon to make two cuts. 

1. Locate the point on the timeline that's the start point of the clip you want to remove and click on it. (For more precision, zoom in on the timeline using the "Timeline Zoom" slider on the lower right side of the window.)
2. Click the scissors icon ("Split") in the blue box above your cursor on the timeline. This turns your existing video into two separate clips.
3. Click on the timeline where the end point of the portion of the video you'd like to remove is.
4. Click the scissors icon ("Split") in the blue box above your cursor on the timeline. Now your video is divided into three clips: the beginning, the part in the middle you want to remove, and the end.
5. Click on the clip in the timeline that you want to remove to select it. The selected clip will have a yellow outline around it.
6. Click the trashcan icon above the timeline. The selected clip should be replaced with diagonal gray lines, indicating it's been removed.

After making all the edits you'd like, you're ready to save your changes. 

3. Add Fade-Ins and/or Fade-Outs (Optional)

As mentioned earlier, you can use the Kaltura video editor to do two things: make cuts and add fade-ins and fade-outs. Here's how you do the latter.

Note that you can add fade-ins/outs to any "clip" on the timeline in the editor. (If you haven't used the scissors icon to make any cuts, you'll have only one clip - your entire video.)

To add a fade-in or a fade-out:

1. Click on the clip in the timeline to which you want to add a fade-in or a fade-out.
2. Click on the Fade In/Out icon just above the timeline, which looks like two balls connected by a stick (tooltip: "Fade In/Fade Out").
3. Enter the number of seconds you'd like the fade-in and/or fade-out to take in the In and Out fields. Note that you can use decimals (e.g. 0.5). 
4. Click anywhere to apply your changes. 

4. Save Your Changes

1. Click Save or Save a Copy.

2. If you clicked Save a Copy, enter a name for your new clip.
3. Wait for the changes to be saved and click OK.