Ending on the music:hitting the last frame

Endings are where videos most often sound amateur. The music is still playing when the video cuts to black, so it gets faded out. The audience feels it was not planned.

Edit backwards from the end

The simplest technique: place the music on your timeline so that its ending lines up with the end of your video, then edit your footage to fit, working backwards. The start of the music can be trimmed on a bar line if needed.

Use the track's own ending

Most tracks have a clear final hit or chord. That hit should land on your final shot, your logo or your end card. When you shorten a track, keep this ending and cut earlier sections instead, so the video still finishes on it.

• The Turning Point on the Cinematic & Trailer shelf

Cinematic cues like The Turning Point are built to end with weight. Line up that final moment with your title or call to action.

Leave a little tail

Let the last note ring for a second or two after the final hit, over the end card or a black frame. Cutting the music off instantly at the last frame sounds abrupt.

When you must fade

Sometimes a fade is unavoidable, such as when the video continues into an end screen of unknown length. In that case:

• Fade slowly, over three to five seconds, not one.
• Start the fade at the end of a musical phrase.
• Consider ending on a loop section, which fades more gracefully than a busy chorus.

For short formats, How to cut a song to 30 seconds covers endings at vertical-video lengths.