Video editing software makes the mechanics of putting together your finished film quick and easy to master, allowing you to concentrate on the creative part of your work. We've asked our team of experts here at the Open University to share their top tips for top clips with you:

• Plan ahead – even a three-hour Hollywood blockbuster starts out as a storyboard sketched out on paper; planning your video before firing up your computer will make your edit session run more smoothly
• Keep organised – give your new files clear, descriptive names and create a sensible file structure to keep track of your work, for example, by keeping similar clips in the same folder
• Get established - a wide view of a scene is a great way to establish a location at the start of a sequence
• Separate your sound – use the audio as a 'blanket' to cover a cut-up sequence
• Get in close – editing complex scenes can be a lot simpler in you zoom in, down to individual frame level to find the cut you need
• Don't jerk the viewer - if the camera is moving in one direction, say left to right, cutting to a sequence where the camera is heading off in another can give the viewer a queasy, rollercoaster feeling
• Continuity vigilance – keep an eye open for continuity errors (does a car in the background appear and disappear? does a drink suddenly, magically refill itself and then empty again?)
• Listen out – a sudden cut in the audio track can sound jarring; fade the audio from one scene out as you fade the audio from the new scene in
• Avoid the toys – it's easy to make a very good video really bad by over-using effects. It's your choice, of course, but sticking to basic effects can prevent you from turning out an eye-burning recreation of the worst excesses of 1970s Top of the Pops
• Be bold – take chances, play with ideas and produce multiple versions before deciding on your final cut

Have you come up with any useful tricks or tips? Why not share them with us - we'll publish the best of them here on Open2!