CutWright

Save, open & recover projects

Create, name, save, reopen, recover, and move editable CutWright projects while keeping their original media available.

Know what a project saves

A CutWright project file ends in .cutwright.json. It keeps your editing decisions: timeline clips and timing, titles and graphics, captions, transitions, markers, frame dimensions, and canvas aids. It is different from an exported MP4.

Keep the original media separately. Saving a project does not package your imported videos, photos, and audio into that file. In Windows, projects refer to the selected media files. In the browser, imported media is kept locally for the editor where possible; those local copies do not travel inside the project download.

Create and name a new project

  1. Save the current project first if you want to keep it. New replaces the working project immediately; do not expect a Save changes question.
  2. Click New, the page-with-plus icon beside the CutWright name.
  3. The editor shows an empty timeline and Untitled project. A new project starts as landscape 1920 × 1080 at 30 frames per second.
  4. Click Project name in the top bar, replace the name, and click outside the field.
  5. Choose a frame shape in Project settings if required, then import your originals.
  6. Click Save to create the first project file, even if the new project currently shows Saved.

New has no default keyboard shortcut; you can assign one in Keyboard shortcuts. Choosing New does not remove original files from your computer. Your locally saved custom transition creations can remain available when switching projects.

Save an editable project

In the browser

  1. Click Save, the disk icon, or press Ctrl+S while no dialog or menu is open.
  2. Allow the browser's project download. Its name is based on the Project name and ends in .cutwright.json. Cyrillic, accented letters, and other Unicode characters are preserved. Characters that cannot be used safely in a filename are replaced; this does not change the name inside the project.
  3. Find it in your browser's Downloads list or the folder your browser uses for downloads. If asked where to save, choose a folder you can find again.
  4. Save again after important edits. The browser may create another downloaded copy rather than overwrite the previous one; keep track of which copy is newest.

In Windows

  1. Click Save or press Ctrl+S.
  2. Choose a folder and filename in the project save dialog, then confirm Save. The suggested name follows the project name.
  3. If Windows asks whether to replace a file, replace it only when you intend to update that saved project. Choose another name to keep a separate version.
  4. Wait for the Project saved message. Cancelling the dialog leaves the current edits in the editor without saving that file.

The Unsaved indicator means the current project differs from its last New, Open, or successful Save state. Changing the project name also counts as a change. A Saved indicator does not mean that the original media has been copied into the project file, or that browser-local recovery is a permanent backup.

Open a saved project

  1. Save any current work you want to keep.
  2. Click Open, the folder icon, or press Ctrl+O.
  3. Choose the .cutwright.json file and confirm Open. Do not choose an MP4, an installer, a subtitle file, or an unrelated JSON file.
  4. The chosen project replaces the working project. Playback is paused and the playhead returns to the beginning.
  5. Look through Project files for missing badges. In the browser, reopening in the same browser profile at the same editor address can restore locally retained imported files. If it cannot, relink them as below.
  6. Play a few sections to check that the expected files are connected, then save a new copy after any relinking or edits.

Cancel the file picker to keep the current project. An invalid or unreadable file produces a message instead of opening as a valid project. If you chose the wrong project, reopen the correct saved file; save frequently rather than treating Undo history as a backup of every previous project.

Restore a recovered project

The editor keeps a local recovery copy after changes. On a later launch, a bar can offer Recovered autosave of… with a time, Restore, and Dismiss.

  1. Read the project name and time in the recovery bar. If you have started other work in the current editor, save that work before replacing it.
  2. Click Restore to load the offered recovery. Wait while it says Restoring….
  3. The recovered timeline opens paused at the beginning. Inspect it and relink any missing originals through Import.
  4. Click Save to make a project file you can keep outside the editor.

Click Dismiss to close the offer without loading it. This does not delete an already saved project file. Recovery is local to that app or browser setup; it is not an online account, a list of dated backup versions, or a substitute for saving files. Clearing browser data, using a different browser profile or website address, or blocked local storage can prevent a recovery from being available.

If a message says recovery could not be saved, save a project file immediately. If a Restore attempt says the project changed while recovery was loading, finish or save the current work and try Restore again when ready.

  1. Open Media and find the cards marked missing. Hover over one to read the filename it needs.
  2. Locate the corresponding original on your computer. Keep its filename the same as the missing entry, including its extension.
  3. Click the top-bar Import button and select that original. You can select several originals together.
  4. For a matching missing filename, Import reconnects the existing entry. A Relinked… message confirms the match. Existing clips keep their timeline placement and edits.
  5. Check that the missing badge disappears, inspect playback and clip lengths, and save the project again.

Do not delete your edited clips first. Do not click a new library card repeatedly to reconstruct an existing sequence. A differently named file is imported as a new item rather than reconnecting the missing one. If several missing items have the same filename, relink and inspect them carefully; the filename alone does not identify a folder or distinguish different recordings with identical names.

Using a different recording under the old filename can reconnect it, but its content and length may not match the edit. Use the actual original whenever possible. Built-in editable titles and graphics do not need separate original image files.

Move a project to another computer or edition

  1. Save the latest .cutwright.json file on the source computer.
  2. Copy that file and all original videos, photos, and audio it uses to the other computer. Preserve the original filenames.
  3. Open the project in CutWright on the destination computer.
  4. Use Import to reconnect any missing originals. A browser cannot use a Windows file location merely because it appears in the saved project; select the originals in the browser's file picker.
  5. Review text, composition, timing, and audio. Fonts available on the destination device can affect text appearance.
  6. Save a separate destination copy, then export the video and review the result. Export uses the complete sequence, not a selected range.

Moving a project file between folders on the same Windows computer does not move its originals. If those originals also move, relink them. Moving from browser to Windows likewise requires importing originals when the project refers to files retained only by the browser.

Keep versions and use Undo safely

  1. Save a named project before a large change, such as rearranging tracks or changing orientation.
  2. In the browser, keep the earlier download; in Windows, choose a different filename in Save if you want a separate version.
  3. Use Undo and Redo in the timeline toolbar for recent project edits during the current editing session.
  4. After restoring the version you want, save it explicitly. An exported MP4 cannot replace the editable project for continued editing.

Undo history is limited and is not a permanent version archive. A new edit after Undo replaces the available redo path. Text-field undo belongs to the focused field; leave the field before using the editor's timeline history.

Project and media problems

Open says the file is not a valid CutWright project.
Choose the original .cutwright.json download rather than a video or an unrelated file. If a saved copy was damaged, use a previous saved copy or an offered local recovery.
My project opens but the preview is empty or a card says missing.
Relink the original media. The project keeps edit decisions even when the corresponding file is unavailable.
The browser says a file is available in this tab only.
Local retention failed. Save the project, keep the original, and do not assume that reloading will restore the media. Reimport it when needed.
Saved is shown, but I cannot find a project file.
New and Open also reset the save-state indicator. Click Save and check the actual browser download or Windows destination.
I need a video I can share.
Use Export to make an MP4. Sharing the editable project requires its original media as well.