11 Video Editing Programs to use with Projects

In my final post on Video-Based Projects, I want to explain some of the different editing programs on the market and how they can best be used.

The easiest and cheapest way to get started video editing is with the software that comes on your computers. So for mac users, that’s iMovie and for Windows…well, it used to be Windows Movie Maker. Back in the day, this was a great program and I used it extensively, however around 2014, they updated it and took away a lot of it’s best features. Microsoft has again made some updates and according to their help site are no longer supporting it or installing it on computers with Windows 10. They recommend using the Photos app instead, which includes the ability to create and edit videos with music.

I’ve never used this app so have no frame of reference, but I put together the below video playlist you can check out. It looks easy enough from a quick glance.

iMovie, in my opinion is the more robust of the two programs and has the added benefits of green screen capabilities, easy-to-use templates, and a generous audio library that can connect directly with Garageband.

Another easy to use video editing program is Adobe Spark Video. This is a free online program that also includes two other apps, Spark Post for graphics and Spark Page for web stories. Adobe Spark for Education allows K-12 schools access to it’s premium features for free too! Your IT department just has to set it up!

It is a very basic video editor that allows for uploads of videos and photos, and will allow users to cut footage, add transitions and music. I wish it did have some more advanced features, but if you’re looking for quick editing, this will do the trick!

YouTube Studio is another free and basic editing program. It’s still in beta, which means it’s in a trial phase while they get all the kinks worked out, but that only means they want user experience and feedback to make it better. This is a good thing as it will continue to get better as they receive user feedback. One of my favorite features in this program is that you can add what they call “cards” that are actually links to other videos that relate to what you are talking about. They show up in the upper left corner of the screen and I use them frequently in my Tech Tuesday videos.

Clips is a free app available on IOS that again allows for basic video editing. It formats well for social media type videos, but also allows you to directly upload to YouTube or social media accounts. A great feature if you’re a teacher with a YouTube channel. You can also take photos, as well as, create comic book effects, use on-screen words (which appear in the video as you speak them), speech bubbles, and music options. To use, hold the red record icon and begin recording. Let go to stop recording. To add text to the video, tap on the bubble icon and start speaking while recording; the text of what you said will appear on the screen.
Plus, it automatically saves all of your work.

Moovly and ClipChimp are two web-based editing tools. Moovly has a free K-12
subscription and I believe I remember Ditch That Textbook recommending it. Features are easy to use and allow for drag and drop capabilities and easy sharing. Another great feature is you can use templates, always a time saver for any teacher! Clipchimp is a little more advanced, but has both free and paid options for a subscription. Again, I haven’t used either of these tools myself, but I found tutorials that will explain more. Here’s How to Make Explainer videos in Moovly and here’s an entire playlist of tutorial videos for Clipchimp.

WeVideo is a paid subscription service that is completely online. My school uses it and it one of the better video editing programs I’ve used. It has advanced editing tools, a large library of stock footage, images, and music with the ability to upload your own items. Students can export videos to Google Drive too, which is a great feature and allows for easy sharing. Our students catch on to it quickly and find it to be very user friendly. It has also a 30 day free trial.

Touchcast Studio is another advanced editing program available on IOS. It has broadcast-quality end products that you usually find in more expensive programs such as Adobe Premier Pro or Final Cut. It also has a feature I envy in that it has a built-in teleprompter. I’ve used teleprompter apps on both my personal ipad and Pixel phone so that students have a more professional experience and don’t have to worry about memorizing lines. It also has amazing green screen abilities too. A subscription is free for K-12 schools.

VSDC is a free downloadable program for PCs. I added this to the list in case your school doesn’t allow for online tools, but you need a cheap option with green screen capability. It’s similar in quality to Touchcast Studio and will deliver professional quality end products.

Green Screen by Do Ink comes highly recommended from its users and seems to be THE app to use on IOS. It has a similar interface to iMovie. The only thing I wish it did have was a stock library with images and videos, instead you have to import your own from your camera roll or from the live video camera. 

I’d love to see what you create! Please share with me@mspriester_ITRT.

Missed the other posts on creating video-based projects? Here’s the first post and second posts.