Authoring Video Clips

Use video clips when part of your demo is better as a reliable recording: builds, deployments, product walkthroughs, or anything that is slow or risky to perform live. Snipsy lets you trim the recording, add narration beats, spotlight important areas, and rehearse the flow before presenting.

Authoring Flow

1. Trim the clip

   Choose the source video, then set the start and end times in the clip editor. Use the frame-step controls when you need to land on an exact frame.

2. Add pause stops

   Move the playhead to a moment where you want to stop and explain something. Choose Add pause at playhead, then add a short label so you remember the point of the stop.

3. Add spotlights

   Choose Add spotlight on a pause stop, then draw one or more regions over the paused frame. During authoring, the video remains clear so it is easy to place additional regions. During preview and playback, Snipsy dims/blurs the surrounding area to guide the audience’s attention.

4. Preview the clip

   Choose Preview to rehearse the trimmed range. Preview pauses at your pause stops and shows spotlight overlays. Use Previous stop / Next stop or the Left / Right arrow keys to jump between the clip start, pause stops, and clip end.

5. Save in place

   Choose Save Clip or press Ctrl+S (Cmd+S on macOS). The editor stays open and shows the save status so you can keep refining without losing your place.

Tip

Think of pause stops as narration beats. A good pause stop marks the exact frame where you want to say, “Notice this part.”

Playback Controls

When you trigger a clip during demo mode, Snipsy opens the playback window on the target monitor. You can still control the flow from the keyboard:

Context	Shortcut	Action
Clip editor	Ctrl+S / Cmd+S	Save the current clip in place
Clip editor preview	Left Arrow	Jump to the previous preview stop
Clip editor preview	Right Arrow	Jump to the next preview stop
Playback	Left Arrow	Jump to the previous playback stop
Playback	Right Arrow	Jump to the next playback stop
Playback pause stop	Space or Click	Resume playback
Playback	Escape	Close the playback window

Playback stops are the clip start, each configured pause stop, and the clip end. If a clip has no pause stops, the arrow keys jump between start and end.

Spotlight Tips

• Keep spotlight regions large enough to be visible from the back of a room.
• Use multiple regions when two areas matter at the same pause stop.
• Use short labels for pause stops so they are easy to scan while editing.
• Preview the clip after adding spotlights to confirm the highlight aligns with the paused frame.

Note

Spotlights do not change the original video file. They are saved as clip metadata and rendered by Snipsy during preview and playback.