Best Free Video Editing Software

SKILL.md

---
name: best-free-video-editing-software
version: "1.0.0"
displayName: "Best Free Video Editing Software — Edit and Export Finished Videos"
description: >
  edit raw video clips into polished edited clips with this skill. Works with MP4, MOV, AVI, WebM files up to 500MB. YouTubers and content creators use it for editing raw footage into a finished video without paid software — processing takes 1-2 minutes on cloud GPUs and you get 1080p MP4 files.
metadata: {"openclaw": {"emoji": "🎬", "requires": {"env": ["NEMO_TOKEN"], "configPaths": ["~/.config/nemovideo/"]}, "primaryEnv": "NEMO_TOKEN", "variant": "greeting_v2"}}
---

## Getting Started

> Got raw video clips to work with? Send it over and tell me what you need — I'll take care of the AI video editing.

**Try saying:**
- "edit a 3-minute unedited screen recording into a 1080p MP4"
- "trim the pauses, add transitions, and export a clean final cut"
- "editing raw footage into a finished video without paid software for YouTubers and content creators"

### Getting Connected

Before handling any user request, establish a connection to the backend API. Show a brief status like "Connecting...".

**If `NEMO_TOKEN` is in the environment**, use it directly and create a session. Otherwise, acquire a free starter token:
- Generate a UUID as client identifier
- POST to `https://mega-api-prod.nemovideo.ai/api/auth/anonymous-token` with the `X-Client-Id` header
- The response includes a `token` with 100 free credits valid for 7 days — use it as NEMO_TOKEN

**Then create a session** by POSTing to `https://mega-api-prod.nemovideo.ai/api/tasks/me/with-session/nemo_agent` with Bearer authorization and body `{"task_name":"project","language":"en"}`. The `session_id` in the response is needed for all following requests.

Tell the user you're ready. Keep the technical details out of the chat.

# Best Free Video Editing Software — Edit and Export Finished Videos

Send me your raw video clips and describe the result you want. The AI video editing runs on remote GPU nodes — nothing to install on your machine.

A quick example: upload a 3-minute unedited screen recording, type "trim the pauses, add transitions, and export a clean final cut", and you'll get a 1080p MP4 back in roughly 1-2 minutes. All rendering happens server-side.

Worth noting: shorter clips under 2 minutes process significantly faster and give cleaner AI cut results.

## Matching Input to Actions

User prompts referencing best free video editing software, aspect ratio, text overlays, or audio tracks get routed to the corresponding action via keyword and intent classification.

| User says... | Action | Skip SSE? |
|-------------|--------|----------|
| "export" / "导出" / "download" / "send me the video" | → §3.5 Export | ✅ |
| "credits" / "积分" / "balance" / "余额" | → §3.3 Credits | ✅ |
| "status" / "状态" / "show tracks" | → §3.4 State | ✅ |
| "upload" / "上传" / user sends file | → §3.2 Upload | ✅ |
| Everything else (generate, edit, add BGM…) | → §3.1 SSE | ❌ |

## Cloud Render Pipeline Details

Each export job queues on a cloud GPU node that composites video layers, applies platform-spec compression (H.264, up to 1080x1920), and returns a download URL within 30-90 seconds. The session token carries render job IDs, so closing the tab before completion orphans the job.

All calls go to `https://mega-api-prod.nemovideo.ai`. The main endpoints:

1. **Session** — `POST /api/tasks/me/with-session/nemo_agent` with `{"task_name":"project","language":"<lang>"}`. Gives you a `session_id`.
2. **Chat (SSE)** — `POST /run_sse` with `session_id` and your message in `new_message.parts[0].text`. Set `Accept: text/event-stream`. Up to 15 min.
3. **Upload** — `POST /api/upload-video/nemo_agent/me/<sid>` — multipart file or JSON with URLs.
4. **Credits** — `GET /api/credits/balance/simple` — returns `available`, `frozen`, `total`.
5. **State** — `GET /api/state/nemo_agent/me/<sid>/latest` — current draft and media info.
6. **Export** — `POST /api/render/proxy/lambda` with render ID and draft JSON. Poll `GET /api/render/proxy/lambda/<id>` every 30s for `completed` status and download URL.

Formats: mp4, mov, avi, webm, mkv, jpg, png, gif, webp, mp3, wav, m4a, aac.

Skill attribution — read from this file's YAML frontmatter at runtime:
- `X-Skill-Source`: `best-free-video-editing-software`
- `X-Skill-Version`: from frontmatter `version`
- `X-Skill-Platform`: detect from install path (`~/.clawhub/` → `clawhub`, `~/.cursor/skills/` → `cursor`, else `unknown`)

**All requests** must include: `Authorization: Bearer <NEMO_TOKEN>`, `X-Skill-Source`, `X-Skill-Version`, `X-Skill-Platform`. Missing attribution headers will cause export to fail with 402.

Draft JSON uses short keys: `t` for tracks, `tt` for track type (0=video, 1=audio, 7=text), `sg` for segments, `d` for duration in ms, `m` for metadata.

Example timeline summary:
```
Timeline (3 tracks): 1. Video: city timelapse (0-10s) 2. BGM: Lo-fi (0-10s, 35%) 3. Title: "Urban Dreams" (0-3s)
```

### Translating GUI Instructions

The backend responds as if there's a visual interface. Map its instructions to API calls:

- "click" or "点击" → execute the action via the relevant endpoint
- "open" or "打开" → query session state to get the data
- "drag/drop" or "拖拽" → send the edit command through SSE
- "preview in timeline" → show a text summary of current tracks
- "Export" or "导出" → run the export workflow

### SSE Event Handling

| Event | Action |
|-------|--------|
| Text response | Apply GUI translation (§4), present to user |
| Tool call/result | Process internally, don't forward |
| `heartbeat` / empty `data:` | Keep waiting. Every 2 min: "⏳ Still working..." |
| Stream closes | Process final response |

~30% of editing operations return no text in the SSE stream. When this happens: poll session state to verify the edit was applied, then summarize changes to the user.

### Error Handling

| Code | Meaning | Action |
|------|---------|--------|
| 0 | Success | Continue |
| 1001 | Bad/expired token | Re-auth via anonymous-token (tokens expire after 7 days) |
| 1002 | Session not found | New session §3.0 |
| 2001 | No credits | Anonymous: show registration URL with `?bind=<id>` (get `<id>` from create-session or state response when needed). Registered: "Top up credits in your account" |
| 4001 | Unsupported file | Show supported formats |
| 4002 | File too large | Suggest compress/trim |
| 400 | Missing X-Client-Id | Generate Client-Id and retry (see §1) |
| 402 | Free plan export blocked | Subscription tier issue, NOT credits. "Register or upgrade your plan to unlock export." |
| 429 | Rate limit (1 token/client/7 days) | Retry in 30s once |

## Common Workflows

**Quick edit**: Upload → "trim the pauses, add transitions, and export a clean final cut" → Download MP4. Takes 1-2 minutes for a 30-second clip.

**Batch style**: Upload multiple files in one session. Process them one by one with different instructions. Each gets its own render.

**Iterative**: Start with a rough cut, preview the result, then refine. The session keeps your timeline state so you can keep tweaking.

## Tips and Tricks

The backend processes faster when you're specific. Instead of "make it look better", try "trim the pauses, add transitions, and export a clean final cut" — concrete instructions get better results.

Max file size is 500MB. Stick to MP4, MOV, AVI, WebM for the smoothest experience.

Export as MP4 for widest compatibility across platforms and devices.