Selects by Cutback Turns 80 Hours of Raw Footage Into a Rough Cut in Minutes

Selects by Cutback is an AI-powered assistant editor that handles the prep work most editors dread: syncing multicam, removing false starts, labeling chapters, and assembling a rough cut. CEO Tom Kim demoed the tool at NAB 2026 with 320 GB of four-camera footage, processing everything over a phone hotspot.

Local processing, no upload. Selects compresses raw footage to roughly 100 MB using a custom algorithm, then analyzes it on Cutback's server. The original files never leave the machine. Kim connected via phone hotspot to show the workflow works even with limited bandwidth.

Visual understanding. Unlike waveform-based auto-editors, Selects watches the video. It detects reaction shots, switches cameras when someone smiles or reacts, and places B-roll based on conversational context. Kim showed a multicam edit where the tool cut to a panelist's laugh without being prompted.

Multiple cuts from one pass. Once footage is analyzed, editors can generate multiple versions from the same material: a 30-minute highlight, a 10-minute overview, a funny cut, or a short-form clip. Each draft takes minutes, not days. A reference video feature lets editors paste a YouTube link and ask Selects to follow the same editing style.

Premiere export. Finished projects export as native Premiere Pro files with color-coded chapters, labeled multicam clips, and embedded captions. The round-trip workflow lets editors search for specific scenes in Selects and pull them into an existing Premiere project.

Claude integration. Cutback is building an MCP connection between Selects and Claude. For large-scale projects with thousands of files across a NAS, Claude can organize and route clips to Selects, which handles the actual analysis and editing. Kim said customer demand at NAB accelerated their timeline for making this public.

Pricing. Starter plan at $20/month for single-camera, 10 hours of footage. Creator plan at $50/month for 3 multicam tracks, 20 hours. Pro plan for 10 multicam tracks, 80 hours. Enterprise pricing is pay-per-hour with unlimited seats.