Rearrange clips on the main track by dragging

The main video track packs itself after you drag a clip into a new spot, insert footage, or delete a clip while the main track is the only video track. That one rule explains most of what happens when you reorder, insert, or delete clips.

Drag a clip to a new spot

1. Press on the clip and drag it along the track. Pressing also selects it and moves the playhead to the point you grabbed.
2. Watch the neighbors. Clips whose middle sits left of your pointer stay put, and the rest slide right to make room. A blue outline marks the slot where your clip will land, and a small label shows its length.
3. Release. The clip settles into the slot and the track repacks without gaps.

Clip edges snap to cut points, the playhead, and the edges of titles and audio on other tracks. Hold ⌘ while you drag to turn snapping off. When you drag near the left or right edge of the timeline view, it scrolls so you can reach clips that are off screen.

If you pick the wrong spot, press ⌘Z (Ctrl+Z on Windows and Linux). The whole drag is one undo step.

Insert footage between clips

Drag a card from Media onto the timeline and release it between two clips. The new clip lands there and the later clips shift right to make room. The + button on a media card adds the clip to the end of the main track, which suits a first pass where you line up everything in order.

A photo works the same way as a video. It arrives as a clip you can stretch to any length by dragging its right edge.

Reorder with the Move tab

You can reorder without dragging. Select a clip and open Move in the right panel. The Move in time control is a shuttle bar:

1. Press on the bar and drag sideways.
2. The clip steps one place at a time through the order while you hold.
3. Release when it sits where you want.

The distance you drag from the press point sets how quickly the clip steps along. This helps when the timeline is zoomed out and the clips are too small to grab.

Delete without leaving a hole

Select a clip and press Delete or Backspace. To remove several at once, hold Shift or ⌘ while you click clips. Each click adds a clip to the selection, or takes it out if it was already in. Selected clips get a blue wash, so you can check the group before you press Delete.

When the main track is the only video track, the footage after a deleted clip slides left. The titles, captions, and soundtrack move with it, so everything stays in sync.

When video sits on upper tracks, the delete leaves a gap so those layers keep their timing. Right-click the empty space and choose Remove empty space to close it on that row only. Press ⌘Z if you remove the wrong clip.

Build the order first

Place your clips in story order before you fine-tune any of them. Reordering is quick while the pieces are still long, and trims and speed changes travel with their clips. Titles and captions sit at fixed times on their own rows, so add them once the order is settled.

Your turn

Add three clips to a project in DepCut and drag the last one to the front.