AI Video Tools: The Stack Around a Generator
Try it: write the thirteen stages below on a sheet and tick the ones you already have a tool for. Whatever is unticked is what to line up before your first episode is done.
From idea to shots: all built in
1. Idea and script. Built in. AI Create turns one or two sentences into a script, or you paste your own. Bring nothing, except a story worth telling. 2. Cast and look. Built in. Characters, locations and props are drawn from the script, with state pictures where a look changes. Bring your own photo only if you want a specific face, and that is a paid-plan feature. 3. Shots. Built in. The storyboard splits each episode into numbered shots with seconds, which you can read and edit for free. Four ways to start · What is inside a project.
4. Clips with voices and ambience. Built in. Each segment is generated with its speech, lip movement and ambient sound inside it, at 10 credits a second on the default tier. Bring a voice recording only if you want your own, and only one you have the right to use. Dialogue and sound in one generation.
Sound and words on screen: half in, half out
5. Music. Built in, with one switch. Each episode is scored for you and mixed under the voices; there is no track picker. If you want your own licensed track, turn Music off, download the version without it and lay yours under the file in an editor. Bring music you have the right to use. There is no separate sound-effects library; ambience arrives with each clip. The built-in score.
6. Subtitles. Built in for accounts that have bought credits or a plan at least once. A switch shows each line as it is spoken and offers a burned-in download, and an exported episode can be downloaded with subtitles or as an SRT file you can upload to a platform. No credits are charged. 6b. Titles and styled on-screen text. Not built in. The site asks for a clean picture, with dialogue carried by sound, so a title card or a lower third is added in an editor after download. Add subtitles · Text in the picture.
Cover, review and the file
7. Cover. Built in. Three poster options drawn from your leads’ sheets with the title painted in, in portrait and landscape, with episode covers and a share-card picture. Your first drama gets one free batch; ad projects have no cover art. For a platform thumbnail you may still need to crop, or add a short title, in an image editor, because each platform has its own shape and rules. Make a promo cover poster.
8. Private review. Partly. A share link is free, but it is public to anyone who holds it, cannot be password-protected, has a daily play limit and always carries the badge. For controlled review, download the file and send it through a channel you control. Share links.
9. Joined episode file. Built in. Composite Episode joins finished segments at 1 credit a second, and the download is the full-quality original; the player and share pages use a lighter copy. Original versus play version.
Beyond one episode: language, editing, publishing
10. A second language. Built in as a second project: the dialogue language is fixed once the script is read, so you start a new project from the same script, choose the new language and bring the cast across with Pick existing. If viewers only need to follow the story, subtitles on the existing episodes are the cheaper route. A second language version.
11. Cutting with other footage, colour grading, branding. Not built in. There is no timeline and no mixing with your own footage. Fixes to one clip are inside (trim, one of eight picture changes, a re-voice, an enhance); anything that combines files is a conventional editor’s job. 12. Upload and label. Yours. Make the project 9:16 from the start for a vertical feed, upload the downloaded file natively, and turn on the platform’s own “made with AI” setting. The badge in the corner and that setting are separate things, and platforms can limit unlabelled realistic AI content. Posting guide · AI short drama compliance.
13. Backup. Yours. Generated files stay in your account until you delete them, and deleted items are cleaned up about seven days later. Uploaded reference material is kept 30 days by default unless it is in an active project. Download the original of anything you cannot lose. The seven-day window.
What to ask of any AI video tool stack
Can I export the original file? If the only copy is a streaming one, it is not yours to edit. What stays on the file? Ask whether a mark or a metadata line is added, and whether you can switch it. Can I swap the music? A tool that mixes in a score you cannot turn off blocks your licensed track. Are captions a file or a picture? An SRT you can upload is more flexible than burned-in words only. Is sharing private? Most share pages are public; plan review accordingly. Where does the work stop? The stage where a tool says nothing is usually the stage it does not do.
A minimum stack for one person
SceneMixer for stages 1 to 10; a simple video editor you already know for titles, your own music and the odd join; an image editor for thumbnails; and the platform itself for the upload and the AI declaration. That is four kinds of tool, and only the editor is optional if you are happy with the built-in score and no titles. Start there, and add a tool when you can name the stage that needs it.
| Stage | Built in? | You bring or do elsewhere |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Idea and script | Yes | A story |
| 2 Cast and look | Yes | Your own photo (paid plan), if you want a specific face |
| 3 Shots | Yes | Nothing |
| 4 Clips with sound | Yes | Nothing; your own voice recording is optional |
| 5 Music | Yes, on or off | Licensed music to lay in an editor |
| 6 Subtitles and titles | Subtitles yes; titles no | Titles, styled text |
| 7 Cover | Yes | Cropping or lettering for a platform |
| 8 Private review | Partly | A private channel for the file |
| 9 Joined file | Yes | Nothing |
| 10 Second language | As a new project | Nothing |
| 11 Mixing, grading, branding | No | An editor |
| 12 Upload and label | No | The platform, and its AI setting |
| 13 Backup | No | Your own copy of the originals |
FAQ
What AI video tools do I need besides a generator?
A way to write the story, a cast, sound, captions, a cover and an upload. SceneMixer covers the story, cast, shots, clips, score, subtitles and cover; you bring titles, licensed music, platform thumbnails and the upload.
Can I use my own music?
Yes. Turn the Music switch off, download the version without it and lay your track under the file in an editor. Use music you have the right to use.
Does it make captions?
Subtitles are built in for accounts that have bought credits or a plan once, with a burned-in download and an SRT file. Styled titles and on-screen text are added in an editor.
Can I make a thumbnail?
You can make cover posters in portrait and landscape from your lead characters. Each platform has its own thumbnail shape and rules, so you may crop or add a title elsewhere.
Can I edit my own footage into the video?
No. There is no timeline and no mixing with your own clips. A remake reads your clip and films it again with new characters. Combining files is done in a regular editor after you download.
How do I keep a review private?
Share links are public to anyone with the link and cannot be password-protected. Download the file and send it through a channel you control.
Do I need a tool for the AI label?
No tool, but a step: turn on the platform’s own AI setting when you upload. The badge in the corner is separate and does not replace it.
Do I need to install software?
No. The generator runs in the browser. The only other tools are the ones for stages it does not cover.
Tick the thirteen stages, then line up what is missing
Make one episode and see which stage you reach for another tool.
Updated November 2, 2026