Course description

Want to make short videos for your business, charity or channel, without a computer or an editing background? This course teaches you to edit vertical video on your phone with CapCut: trimming and pacing, framing for a tall screen, clear text and accurate captions, sound and voiceover, speed and keyframes, colour that shows products as they really are, and exports that suit TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts.

It's a full, hands-on course, not a quick tour. There are 10 sections and 50 written lessons, each with a worked example, common questions and a short task to do on your phone. You follow Maryam, a silversmith with a small shop in Hastings, from her first fifteen-minute edit to a weekly routine, a product launch, a how-to and a charity appeal for the dog rescue where she volunteers, including the mistakes she made and how she put them right. Every section has a practice pack with a worksheet, key points and files to practise on: mock-up screen maps, storyboards, a safe zone guide, caption files, scripts, a music bed and short clips made for the course, checklists and planners.

It also covers the parts that matter when you post for a business or charity: checking music and template licences, consent to film people, honest claims and ad labels, fundraising rules and accessible captions, in plain words and general terms. CapCut changes often, so the course describes what each tool does rather than exact buttons, and shows you how to keep up.

What you'll learn

• Getting started: what CapCut is, what to check in its terms before you edit for a business or charity, the settings to set first, a tour of the editing screen and your first edit in fifteen minutes.
• Importing and organising: filming footage that edits well, importing clips, photos and sound, albums and names, backups, and replacing clips without starting again.
• Cutting and pacing: trimming and splitting, putting shots in order, pacing for short videos, cutting to a beat and tightening a talking clip.
• Vertical framing: aspect ratios in plain terms, the canvas, reframing, safe zones so the buttons don't hide your text, and turning landscape footage into vertical video.
• Text and captions: clear on-screen text, timing, auto captions, checking every line for accuracy, and accessible text and captions.
• Music, sound and voiceover: sound on the timeline, the music licence question, copyright in plain terms, recording a voiceover and balancing the mix.
• Transitions, effects, speed and keyframes: when transitions help, effects with restraint, speed changes, keyframes explained and simple animation.
• Colour, cutouts and templates: honest colour for products, matching clips, green screen, background removal, and templates and their limits.
• Brand, export and a weekly routine: a simple brand style, export settings, posting to TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts, a before-you-post check and batching a week of videos in one session.
• Worked projects and your own: a product video, a charity appeal and a how-to, start to finish, then a video of your own with a planner and model answers.

Who it's for

Small business owners, charity staff and volunteers, and creators who want to make their own short videos on a phone. You don't need any editing experience. The course is about editing, not platform strategy: it doesn't cover growing an audience or advertising campaigns. It gives general information, not legal advice. Rootlet isn't connected to CapCut, TikTok, Instagram or YouTube. Everyone in the course is fictional.

What will I learn?

• Set up CapCut on your phone, check its terms before editing for a business or charity, and find your way round the editing screen
• Film footage that edits well, import and organise clips, keep backups and replace clips without starting again
• Trim, split, order and pace clips for short videos, cut to a beat and tighten a talking clip
• Set the right shape for vertical video, reframe shots, keep text inside the safe zone and turn landscape footage into 9:16
• Add clear on-screen text, generate auto captions and check every line for accuracy and accessibility
• Balance sound, record a voiceover on your phone, and choose music you’re allowed to use for business or charity posts
• Use transitions, effects, speed changes, keyframes and simple animation with restraint
• Correct and match colour so products look like the real thing, and use green screen, background removal and templates well
• Keep a simple brand style, export at the right settings for TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts, and run a check before every post
• Plan, film, edit and post a product video, a charity appeal and a how-to, and batch a week of videos in one session

Frequently asked questions