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This guide walks you through the entire editing loop in WannaCut — from launching the app for the first time to exporting a finished MP4. By the end you will have created a project, imported media files, placed and trimmed clips on the multi-track timeline, previewed your edit, and rendered the final output. The whole process takes under 10 minutes on a typical machine.
1

Launch & Set Workspace

Open WannaCut from your application launcher or Start Menu. If this is your first time running the app, the Settings modal will open automatically on the System tab.Click the Settings Folder button and choose (or create) a folder on your drive — WannaCut will store your global preferences there in a file named wannacut_settings.json. Then click the Workspace Root button and select the parent directory where your projects will live.Once both folders are set, click Apply Changes. The Project Manager will load and you are ready to create your first project.
If WannaCut opens directly to the Project Manager without showing the Settings modal, your workspace is already configured. You can revisit these settings at any time by clicking the ⚙ Settings icon in the top-right corner of the Project Manager.
2

Create a New Project

In the Project Manager, click the New Project button (top-right, gradient border). A modal dialog appears with the following options:
  • Project Name — give your project a descriptive name (e.g. My First Edit).
  • Resolution — choose a canvas size preset:
    • 1080p (16:9) — 1920 × 1080, standard landscape video
    • TikTok (9:16) — 1080 × 1920, vertical short-form content
    • 4K Ultra HD — 3840 × 2160, high-resolution output
    • Square (1:1) — 1080 × 1080, Instagram and social feeds
  • Frame Rate — select 24, 30, or 60 FPS to match your source footage or target platform.
Click Create Project. WannaCut builds the project folder structure inside your workspace and opens the editor immediately.
3

Import Media

With the editor open, locate the Media sidebar on the left. Click the Import button (folder icon) to open a native file picker and select one or more files. Alternatively, drag files directly from your OS file manager anywhere onto the media sidebar.Supported file formats:
TypeExtensions
Videomp4, mkv, avi, mov
Audiomp3, wav, ogg
Imagejpg, jpeg, png, webp
Imported files are copied into the project’s videos/ folder and appear as asset cards in the Media sidebar. For video files, WannaCut automatically extracts an audio track and generates a thumbnail in the background.
You can also paste a YouTube or public video URL using the Download button (red YouTube icon in the editor header) to fetch media directly into the current project without leaving the app.
4

Place Clips on the Timeline

Drag an asset card from the Media sidebar and drop it onto the timeline area at the bottom of the screen. WannaCut places the clip at the drop position and automatically creates a new track of the correct type (video, audio, or image).You can also drop an asset onto an existing track — if the track type matches and the time slot is free, the clip is added there. If there is a conflict (wrong type or occupied slot), a new track is created automatically.Repeat for each piece of media you want in the edit. Tracks are labelled with their type and a numeric ID in the left panel.
5

Trim and Arrange

Refine your edit using the standard timeline controls:
  • Trim — hover over the left or right edge of a clip until the resize cursor appears, then drag to shorten or extend the clip. Dragging the left edge also shifts the clip’s beginmoment (the in-point within the source file).
  • Reposition — click and drag the clip body to move it to a different time position on the same track, or drop it onto a different track.
  • Split — position the playhead at the cut point and press Alt + S (or click the Split button in the timeline toolbar). The clip is divided into two independent clips at the playhead position.
  • Magnetic Snap — toggle snapping with Ctrl + T or the Snap button in the toolbar. When enabled, clip edges snap to the nearest neighbouring clip edge for frame-perfect alignment.
  • Multi-select — hold Shift or Ctrl while clicking clips to build a selection, or click-drag on an empty area of the timeline to draw a selection box. Delete all selected clips at once with the Delete or Backspace key.
Use Ctrl + Z / Ctrl + Y (or Ctrl + Shift + Z) to undo and redo up to 100 steps. The undo history persists for the entire editing session.
6

Preview Your Edit

Press Space to play or pause the timeline. The large canvas preview in the centre updates in real time using the Three.js WebGL renderer.Additional playback controls:
  • Skip to nearest cut — click the ⏮ / ⏭ buttons flanking the play button to jump the playhead to the previous or next clip boundary.
  • Scrub — click anywhere on the timeline ruler or drag the blue playhead needle to jump to a specific time instantly.
  • Source Monitor — click any asset in the Media sidebar to open it in the auxiliary Source Monitor on the left. Press I and O to mark in/out points, then drag the source monitor canvas onto the timeline to place just that subclip range.
The timecode display in the toolbar shows the current playhead position in HH:MM:SS.ms format.
7

Export Your Video

When your edit is ready, trigger the export in one of two ways:
  • Click the Export icon (↑ arrow) in the editor header, or
  • Press Ctrl + Enter from anywhere in the editor.
A native Save File dialog opens. Choose an output folder, enter a filename, and confirm — the file will be saved as .mp4.WannaCut then starts the FFmpeg render pipeline. A full-screen progress overlay displays the render percentage. You can click Abort Mission at any time to cancel the export without corrupting the project.Once the progress bar reaches 100 %, the overlay closes and your finished video is waiting at the path you selected.
Rendering at 4K or 60 FPS with many effects can take several minutes depending on your CPU and GPU. Enabling a GPU in Settings → System → Hardware significantly speeds up hardware-accelerated effects.
Auto-save is always on. WannaCut automatically saves your project data 0.5 seconds after any change to clips, assets, or tracks — you never need to hit a manual Save button. The project is written to a timestamped .project file inside your project folder. You can restore any previous auto-save snapshot from Settings → History while a project is open.

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What’s Next?

Now that you have completed your first edit, explore the deeper features WannaCut has to offer.

Importing Media

Learn about the Source Monitor, subclipping, the YouTube downloader, and Web Media Linker for streaming cloud assets.

Exporting

Dive into export settings, GPU acceleration, render phases, and tips for achieving the best output quality.

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