# The basics

> Projects, the timeline, three tracks, and the rules that never change.
> Part of the Cuts Guide (en) — https://ferment.run/cuts/docs (Markdown map: https://ferment.run/cuts/docs/index.md)
> Canonical page: https://ferment.run/cuts/docs/the-basics

## Projects

Everything lives in a project: your footage, the timeline, the chat, the decisions you've made. Create as many as you like from the Projects screen; rename or delete them there too. Projects are yours alone — there's no shared editing.

## The editor

Preview on top, timeline below. The timeline has three tracks:

- **Video** — your clips, in order. See [Cut](/cuts/docs/cut).
- **Music** — one music clip at a time. See [Music](/cuts/docs/music).
- **Speech** — narration and voice. See [Speech & captions](/cuts/docs/speech-and-captions).

The canvas is 9:16 — built for reels and shorts. Export sizes are covered in [Export & share](/cuts/docs/export-and-share).


## The rules that never change

- **Editing is free.** Trims, splits, reordering, captions, text cards, music slicing — mechanical work never costs credits. Only AI jobs do.
- **Everything is reversible.** Undo and redo work everywhere, including anything Cuts does to your timeline.
- **Analysis runs on your phone.** Transcripts, beat grids, scene boundaries, highlights — computed right on the phone, free, private, and offline. Only the chat and cloud jobs need a connection.

## Snapping

The timeline is magnetic. Clips snap to edges and — once your music is analyzed — to the beat, so cuts land where the track lands. If you'd rather clips didn't snap, turn **Auto Snap** off in Preferences.

## Variants

Some changes — an enhanced clip, a different take — appear as variants on a rail. Tap one and the preview plays it live; commit with ✓ or step back with ✕. Nothing is destroyed by trying.