Turn long-form video into multiple shortform content using AI.

Turn Long Videos Into High-Quality Short Clips Automatically

What this is about

If you create long videos like podcasts, interviews, webinars, or talks, you already know the problem.

Long videos don’t work as-is on Shorts, Reels, or TikTok.

And manually finding good moments inside a 30–60 minute video is slow, boring, and inconsistent.

This page shows:

• what actually works today
• how people are turning one long video into many usable short clips
• what to expect from AI and where it still needs human input

This is written for creators and editors, not as a research or technical article.

The Problem

Long-form videos are not designed for short-form platforms.

Common issues:

• Important moments are buried deep in the video
• You have to scrub the full timeline to find good clips
• Shorts need faster pacing, vertical framing, and captions
• Random clips often don’t make sense on their own

The real problem is not trimming a video shorter.

The real problem is finding moments that can stand alone and still feel complete when someone sees them in their feed.

What AI Can Do Today

AI is now good enough to handle most of the heavy work in this process.

Today, AI can:

• scan a full long video automatically
• detect moments that are likely to work as Shorts
• generate multiple clip options from one upload
• convert clips to vertical (9:16)
• keep faces and speakers centered
• add captions with correct timing

This changes the workflow.

Instead of manually cutting everything, you review and refine what AI gives you.

Artifacts from This Use Case

This use case is backed by three simple things.

1. Use Case Video

A short video showing the full flow for this exact use case.

2. Input Used

The original long video that was uploaded.

3. Output Produced

The short clips generated from the input video.

A Practical Way to Do This Today

After trying different approaches, the simplest and most reliable setup today is using a single tool end to end instead of stitching multiple tools together.

After trying the available approaches for this problem, this is the most reliable way we’ve found today, using Quso.ai to:

• detect clip-worthy moments
• handle vertical framing
• add captions
• export finished Shorts

You don’t need separate tools for clipping, captions, and reframing.

Step-by-Step Workflow

Step 1: Upload the Long Video

Upload your podcast, interview, or long talking-head video.

No pre-cutting or preparation needed.

This is the same video shown in the Input Used section above.

Step 2: Let AI Find Good Moments

The system scans the entire video and looks for moments with:

• clear delivery
• strong hooks
• good short-form potential

Instead of one result, you get multiple clip options.

Step 3: Review and Adjust

You quickly review the clips and make small edits if needed:

• trim the start or end
• adjust pacing
• discard weak clips

This usually takes minutes, not hours.

Step 4: Vertical Framing and Captions

Clips are automatically:

• converted to vertical format
• framed to keep faces centered
• captioned with proper timing

No manual caption syncing or reframing.

Step 5: Export Shorts

Export the final clips ready for:

• YouTube Shorts
• Instagram Reels
• TikTok

These clips match what’s shown in the Output Produced section.

Why This Approach Works

• No jumping between tools
• No re-uploading files
• No caption sync issues
• Faster reviews and approvals
• More consistent output

For this use case, a single focused tool works better than a patchwork setup.

What AI Still Doesn’t Do Well

AI helps a lot, but it’s not perfect.

You should still expect to:

• use judgment when choosing the best clips
• tweak emotional timing in some cases
• adjust branding or styling if needed

AI speeds things up.

It doesn’t replace taste or context.

What You Should Expect

Using this workflow, most creators can:

• turn one long video into 5–20 usable Shorts
• cut clipping time by roughly 70–80%
• publish short-form content more consistently

Final Takeaway

Turning long videos into Shorts doesn’t need to be painful anymore.

With the right AI-first workflow:

• discovery is automated
• formatting is handled
• your time goes into picking what actually works

That’s the real win.