1. Editing time is mostly search time

Watch yourself during an edit and you will notice that cutting is fast - finding the right clip is slow. "Where was that take where I did not stumble?" costs minutes every time you ask it. A fixed folder structure, a naming rule and a short clip log turn that question into a two-second lookup. You set this up once and copy it for every future project.

2. The folder structure

Create this skeleton before you copy a single file from your phone or camera:

2026-10-03_one-pan-dinner-ep01/
|-- 00_brief/            final-project-brief.txt, script, clip log
|-- 01_raw/              untouched camera/phone files, never edited
|   |-- A-cam/
|   `-- phone/
|-- 02_selects/          best takes copied out of raw
|-- 03_audio/
|   |-- voice/           voiceover and dialogue
|   |-- music/           licensed tracks + license files
|   `-- sfx/
|-- 04_broll/            cutaways, screen recordings, stock
|-- 05_brand/            logo, fonts, colors, intro/outro, safe-area overlay
|-- 06_review/           review exports with version numbers
|-- 07_exports/          approved finals per platform
`-- 99_archive/          unused takes after publishing

The number prefixes keep folders in workflow order in every file browser. Save a copy of the empty tree as _TEMPLATE_project so a new project starts with one copy command.

3. What goes where

4. How a file moves through a project

5. Naming clips and versions

A good name sorts correctly, can be read without opening the file, and never contains spaces or words like "final2". Use lowercase, hyphens inside a field and underscores between fields.

Clips:     sc{scene}_t{take}_{description}.{ext}
           sc02_t03_pan-flip-closeup.mp4

Audio:     vo_{section}_t{take}.wav      vo_hook_t02.wav
           mus_{artist}-{track}.mp3      mus_artist-track.mp3

Projects:  {date}_{slug}_v{NN}           2026-10-03_one-pan-dinner_v03

Exports:   {slug}_{platform}_{ratio}_v{NN}.mp4
           one-pan-dinner_tiktok_9x16_v03.mp4
           one-pan-dinner_yt-shorts_9x16_final.mp4

6. Importing and pre-selecting best takes

Importing everything you filmed turns the media panel into a haystack. Do the selection pass outside the timeline:

1. Copy the card or phone contents into 01_raw unchanged.
2. Watch every clip once at normal speed and fill in the clip log (below).
3. Copy only takes with a score of 4 or 5 into 02_selects and rename them.
4. Import 02_selects, 03_audio, 04_broll and 05_brand into CapCut. Leave 01_raw out.
5. If a select turns out wrong, go back to the log - not to scrubbing raw footage.

clip-log.csv
File,Scene,Take,Quality Score (1-5),Notes
IMG_4812.MOV,02,1,2,"stumbled on the word 'minutes'"
IMG_4813.MOV,02,2,4,"good, slightly soft focus at 0:04"
IMG_4814.MOV,02,3,5,"use this - clean delivery, good light"
IMG_4820.MOV,03,1,5,"b-roll: pan flip, keep 0:02-0:05"

7. Collecting brand assets and b-roll

Keep a shared library outside any single project, and copy from it into 05_brand:

_LIBRARY/
|-- brand/
|   |-- logo_primary_white.png
|   |-- logo_primary_black.png
|   |-- fonts/               font files + license
|   |-- colors.txt           hex values: #111111, #F5C400, ...
|   |-- intro_2s_9x16.mp4
|   `-- safe-area_9x16.png
|-- broll/                   reusable cutaways by subject
`-- music-licenses/          one PDF/receipt per licensed track

• Gather b-roll before editing: list the moments in the script that need a cutaway and film or source them in one batch.
• For music and stock, store the license next to the file. If you cannot prove you may use a track, do not use it.
• CapCut's built-in library assets (music, stickers, templates) carry their own usage terms - check them before using a clip commercially.

8. Cleanup protocol after publishing

[ ] Every imported file renamed to the convention
[ ] Best takes scored and tagged in clip-log.csv
[ ] Duplicate assets removed before editing
[ ] Unused takes moved to 99_archive
[ ] Only music with a stored license kept in 03_audio/music
[ ] 06_review cleared after final approval
[ ] Handoff package in 07_exports: finals, cover image, caption text
[ ] Project folder copied to backup drive or cloud

9. Exercise

1. Create _TEMPLATE_project with the folder tree above, then copy it for your final project with a dated name.
2. Copy your footage into 01_raw and write a clip log with at least five rows.
3. Move and rename your selects, then import only the selects, audio, b-roll and brand folders into the CapCut project from lesson 0.2.
4. Write your naming convention into 00_brief/naming.txt - this is the documented convention required for the Module 0 deliverable.

Further reading

• CapCut Help Center
• CapCut resources and tutorials
• YouTube Help - Recommended upload encoding settings
• YouTube Help - Copyright and fair use basics
• TikTok Help - Creating videos
• Instagram Help Center