Organize your footage

How to Build a Searchable Video Reference Library

You remember a product close-up, a turn or a particular kind of light—but not which file contains it. As reference videos, extra footage for edits (B-roll), screen recordings and AI tests accumulate, finding a filename is only part of the job. You need the shot inside it.

ShotMind helps you split existing videos into shots on Mac, choose what to analyze, and search by description. Bring saved inspiration back into editing, pitches and AI video projects.

For Apple silicon Macs running macOS 14 or later.

Download for Mac Read the quick start

Which reference videos are worth saving?

Write down why a clip is worth keeping. That note is often closer to your next search than the name of the original project.

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Which reference videos are worth saving?
Reference direction	What to record	Where it may help
Action and camera movement	A turn, reach or camera pass	Editing rhythm, action planning and video reference inputs
Mood and lighting	Color relationships, rim light and atmosphere	Pitches, visual direction and scene design
Composition and shot size	Subject position, negative space and depth	Storyboards, shot planning and visual comparison
Product and UI detail	Materials, interaction and interface changes	Product demos, advertising and feature explanations

These are organizational ideas for your folders or a separate spreadsheet. Adapt them to your work; you do not need a complex tagging system before you start.

How do you find the shot you need in a long video?

Keep original files and source notes. Put videos you own or may manage in a folder you can find again. Note where each came from and how you may use it. Keep backups of the original videos after importing them into ShotMind.
Import and detect shots. ShotMind finds where shots change and splits a long video into shots you can view separately.
Choose what to analyze. Start with shots you may reuse. Selected shots go to the cloud for analysis; full source videos stay local.
Search for the next task. Describe the subject, scene or detail in analyzed footage. Preview candidates before choosing one.
Return to the source for production. Prepare and use the segment in your editing or generation tool, and keep enough context to retrieve it again.

Analysis results and preview images are saved on your Mac. Searching and browsing analyzed content use no credits, called Points. Analyzing new shots uses Points.

How do you describe a reference shot and its camera movement?

Record why you saved a shot, as well as its filename. A hero shot might reveal a character, show a giant machine or use a bullet-time orbit. These AI-generated clay-style clips illustrate different retrieval needs.

Pulling back from feet to a wide plaza

Example search description: A character stands on a circular platform as the camera pulls back and rises.

A character facing a giant unfolding machine

Example search description: Seen from behind a character, a giant machine unfolds ahead.

Team charge into an aerial city view

Example search description: A group runs between buildings as the camera rises above the streets.

Bullet-time camera orbit

Example search description: A character moves in slow motion among suspended debris as the camera orbits them.

Use these examples to describe the shot you need. Play the candidates to check whether their action and camera movement fit.

How should you name source clips, trims and depth videos?

For a camera move through a doorway, keep doorway-01-source.mp4 as the original and doorway-01-trim.mp4 as the trimmed version. Add doorway-01-depth.mp4 only after creating a depth video. Record the source, usage terms, trim range and project in your own production notes.

How do you save AI video references for another project?

Different shots in one film may need performance, camera movement and scene-layout references. Save the clips you use so you can look through them when you start another film.

Keep motion references, simple 3D preview videos and generated results separate. A 3D preview shows a planned shot using basic models; this is often called previs. Note which reference you used for each result. Here is an example entry you can use as a guide for your own spreadsheet.

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How do you save AI video references for another project?
Field	Example
Reference and purpose	`table-reach-reference.mp4`: a person reaches for an object on a table
Source and permitted use	Self-recorded; document the performer's permitted uses
Project and shot	Product film A, shot 06
Tool and test details	Enter the actual platform, model, date and parameters
Output location	Corresponding output folder and filename
Reuse note	Record what the result preserved, where it deviated and whether to reuse the reference

Maintain these notes in your own folders or spreadsheet. ShotMind helps search and preview imported video; you need to record the platform, settings and which reference produced each result.

For another project, search your library using the new shot's needs, preview the reference and check the generation tool's current input requirements. A reference that worked once may not suit a different action, composition or platform.

For simple 3D scenes, keep the exported videos and manage the model files in your modeling software. If search does not find a suitable result, browse and play the videos to choose a clip. See how to choose AI video references and how to organize generated video tests.

These guides can help you organize more footage

Frequently asked questions

Why use a shot library if I already have folders?

Folders help you keep videos together by project. A shot library helps you find imagery within those files, such as a hand close-up inside a long reference reel. You can use both.

Must I analyze everything at once?

No. Start with a familiar group of videos and analyze the shots most likely to be useful again. Expand as you go.

Can I retrieve a video I watched but never saved?

Save videos locally, import them into ShotMind and analyze the shots you want to search. ShotMind does not automatically collect browser history or download online videos.

What if my generation platform already stores assets?

Keep using platform assets for work there. You can save videos from different sources to your computer, as long as you have permission, then import them into ShotMind. Search and compare those videos when you start another project. You need to save, import and keep notes on them yourself.

Does it automatically link prompts and every output version?

No. ShotMind does not automatically record which prompt and settings produced each video or link every version together. Keep those notes in your own document or spreadsheet.

Related guides

Product facts Pricing

Start by organizing videos you know

Choose familiar references, analyze a few shots, then try retrieving them for a new creative task.

Download for Mac Read the quick start