Shotcut

Overview

Shotcut is a free, open source, cross-platform video editing software that supports Windows, macOS, Linux and FreeBSD. It is based on the MLT multimedia framework and FFmpeg, providing non-linear video editing capabilities suitable for amateurs, students, educators, small content creators, and open source community users. Shotcut is known for its no-cost, wide format support and intuitive interface, and is particularly suitable for creating educational videos, promotional clips or social media content.

History and Development

• Origin: Shotcut was originally created by Charlie Yates (MLT co-founder) in 2004, but the current version was completely rewritten by Dan Dennedy (another MLT co-founder) in 2011, reusing the Shotcut name, aiming to demonstrate the cross-platform capabilities of MLT, especially in combination with plug-ins such as WebVfx (HTML special effects) and Movit (GPU acceleration).
• Open source license: GNU General Public License (GPL) is adopted, and the source code is hosted on GitHub, allowing community contributions and custom development.

• Development history:

  • 2011: Dennedy restarted the project and released early versions.
  • 2012-2015: Gradually added FFmpeg support, filters, and multi-track editing.
  • 2016-2020: Added advanced features such as 4K support, keyframe animation, proxy editing, etc.
  • 2021-2025: Continuous updates, the latest version (such as 25.05, as of May 2025) optimizes stability, GPU acceleration, and user interface.

• Development team: Mainly driven by Meltytech, LLC, Dennedy leads the development, and the community provides feedback and patches through forums and GitHub.

• Community support: The active Shotcut forum, official tutorials and YouTube videos provide help to users.

Main features

1. Format and codec support

   • Wide compatibility: Support hundreds of audio, video and image formats (MP4, AVI, MOV, MP3, WAV, PNG, JPEG, etc.) through FFmpeg, and can be edited without importing, saving time.
   • Multi-format timeline: Supports mixing content with different resolutions (SD, HD, 4K) and frame rates, suitable for combining screen recording and camera footage.
   • Frame-accurate editing: Many formats support frame-by-frame positioning, suitable for precise editing.

2. Editing functions

   • Non-linear timeline: Supports multiple video and audio tracks, suitable for complex editing.
   • Drag-and-drop operation: Import materials through drag-and-drop or file menu to simplify workflow.
   • Editing tools: including split (S key), copy, paste, insert, overwrite, adjust speed, etc., to facilitate video rhythm adjustment.
   • Video filters: crop, scale, rotate, color correction, blur, green screen (chroma key), keyframe animation.
   • Keyframe animation: dynamically adjust position, scale, transparency, etc., suitable for creating dynamic tutorials.
   • Proxy editing: generate low-resolution proxy files for high-resolution materials to optimize editing performance.

3. Capture and monitoring

   • Input devices: support cameras, SDI, HDMI, JACK/PulseAudio, IP streams, X11 screens, etc.
   • Screen recording: directly capture desktop activities.
   • Blackmagic Design support: SDI/HDMI input and preview, suitable for professional settings.

4. User interface

   • Dockable panels: support custom layout, including media properties, recent files, playlists, filters, history, encoding and task queue panels.
   • Thumbnail view: The playlist displays thumbnails of the material for quick preview.
   • Task queue: Batch processing of export tasks, suitable for generating multiple versions (such as 1080p, 720p or GIF).

5. Output and export

   • Resolution: Supports up to 4K export, suitable for high-quality YouTube tutorials.
   • Format: Export to H.264, WebM, MP4, GIF, Ogg-Vorbis, WMV, etc.
   • Presets: Provide export presets for platforms such as YouTube and Vimeo to simplify the publishing process.
   • GPU accelerated export: Use OpenGL to accelerate export and shorten processing time.

Advantages and limitations

Advantages

• Free and open source: No subscription fees, GPL license allows free modification.
• Native timeline editing: No need to transcode import, faster editing.
• Wide format support: Process a variety of materials without additional conversion tools.
• Lightweight: Shotcut has lower hardware requirements than DaVinci Resolve.

Limitations

• Stability issues: Some users report crashes with MP4 files or complex projects, which require enabling proxy editing or converting formats (such as MOV).
• Complex undo behavior: Undo operations may interfere with the timeline, so be careful.
• Limited professional features: Lacks advanced color grading or motion tracking, and has fewer features than Adobe Premiere Pro or DaVinci Resolve.
• Linux audio configuration: Manual configuration of JACK or PulseAudio may be required.
• Learning curve: Keyframes and multi-track editing are difficult for novices, so refer to tutorials.

Summary

Shotcut is a powerful and free open source video editing software suitable for creating high-quality instructional or promotional videos. Despite stability issues and professional feature limitations, Shotcut can meet most needs by enabling proxy editing, converting formats, and referring to community resources. Compared to OpenShot or DaVinci Resolve, Shotcut strikes a balance between ease of use and functionality.