Video Production

Objective

Produce professional-quality video content that demonstrates Hedge Edge's product, teaches hedging concepts, and builds trust with prop firm traders all at a sustainable production pace. Maintain a batch-production workflow that generates 4-8 polished videos per cycle with minimal per-video effort through templates, automation, and reusable assets.

When to Use This Skill

• •When setting up a screen recording session for MT5, cTrader, or the Hedge Edge Electron app
• •When editing raw footage into a polished video using FFmpeg
• •When creating thumbnails for YouTube or social media via Canva
• •When extracting clips from long-form videos for Shorts or Reels
• •When adding captions, text overlays, or visual effects to video content
• •When optimizing audio (noise reduction, level normalization, music mixing)
• •When batch-producing multiple videos in a single production cycle
• •When converting video formats for different platforms (horizontal vertical, bitrate adjustments)
• •When creating animated diagrams, equity curve visualizations, or other explanatory visuals

Input Specification

Step-by-Step Process

Phase 1: Recording Setup

Screen recording configuration for trading software demos:

1. •

   MT5/MetaTrader 5 recording setup:

   • •Resolution: 1920x1080 (full HD), 60fps for smooth chart animation
   • •Clean the MT5 workspace: remove unnecessary toolbars, set chart to clean template
   • •Load Hedge Edge EA onto a demo account with visible trade history
   • •Prepare demo scenario: pre-planned trades to execute during recording
   • •Display key elements: trade journal, equity curve, account balance, open positions
   • •Use a consistent MT5 color scheme that matches Hedge Edge branding (dark theme preferred)
2. •

   Hedge Edge Electron app recording:

   • •Resolution: 1920x1080, 60fps
   • •Show full app window with all panels visible
   • •Prepare test accounts: at least one prop account + one hedge account connected
   • •Stage a live demonstration: open a position on prop account, show instant hedge execution
   • •Highlight key UI elements: account overview, trade log, hedge status indicators
3. •

   Webcam/presenter recording (optional overlay):

   • •720p webcam feed, positioned bottom-right corner
   • •Clean background or green screen
   • •Good lighting (ring light or key/fill setup)
   • •Consistent framing (chest up, centered)
4. •

   Audio setup:

   • •External microphone preferred (USB condenser or lapel mic)
   • •Record at 48kHz sample rate, 16-bit
   • •Record in quiet environment; use noise gate if needed
   • •Keep audio and video in sync (clap sync or software sync)

Recording software recommendations:

• •OBS Studio (free, screen + webcam composite)
• •Windows Game Bar (quick screen capture)
• •Separate audio recording via Audacity for higher quality

Phase 2: Video Editing with FFmpeg

Standard editing pipeline:

1. •

   Import and organize: raw/ screen-recording.mp4 webcam.mp4 audio.wav assets/ intro-animation.mp4 outro-animation.mp4 lower-third.png logo-watermark.png

2. •

   Basic assembly (FFmpeg commands):

   Trim footage: ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -ss 00:00:30 -to 00:15:00 -c copy trimmed.mp4

   Combine screen recording + webcam overlay: ffmpeg -i screen.mp4 -i webcam.mp4 -filter_complex "[1:v]scale=320:240[pip];[0:v][pip]overlay=W-w-20:H-h-20" -c:a copy output.mp4

   Add intro/outro: ffmpeg -f concat -i filelist.txt -c copy assembled.mp4 (filelist.txt contains: file 'intro.mp4' / file 'main.mp4' / file 'outro.mp4')

   Add logo watermark: ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -i logo.png -filter_complex "overlay=W-w-20:20:enable='between(t,5,999)'" -c:a copy watermarked.mp4

   Normalize audio levels: ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -af loudnorm=I=-16:TP=-1.5:LRA=11 -c:v copy normalized.mp4

3. •

   Advanced editing:

   Speed ramp (speed up boring sections): ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -filter:v "setpts=0.5*PTS" -filter:a "atempo=2.0" fast.mp4

   Picture-in-picture with rounded corners: ffmpeg -i bg.mp4 -i pip.mp4 -filter_complex "[1:v]scale=400:225,format=yuva420p,geq=lum='p(X,Y)':a='if(gt(abs(X-W/2),W/2-20)*gt(abs(Y-H/2),H/2-20),0,255)'[pip];[0:v][pip]overlay=50:50" output.mp4

   Add background music (low volume under voice): ffmpeg -i voice.mp4 -i music.mp3 -filter_complex "[1:a]volume=0.15[bg];[0:a][bg]amix=inputs=2:duration=first" -c:v copy mixed.mp4

Phase 3: Clip Extraction for Shorts/Reels

1. •

   Identify clip-worthy moments from the full video:

   • •The single most compelling 30-60 second segment
   • •A surprising stat or revelation
   • •A visual "aha moment" (e.g., watching the hedge execute in real-time)
   • •A controversial or contrarian take that stands alone
2. •

   Extract and reformat:

   Extract clip: ffmpeg -i full-video.mp4 -ss 00:05:30 -to 00:06:15 -c copy clip.mp4

   Convert to vertical (9:16) for Shorts/Reels: ffmpeg -i clip.mp4 -vf "scale=1080:1920:force_original_aspect_ratio=decrease,pad=1080:1920:(ow-iw)/2:(oh-ih)/2:black" vertical.mp4

   Add top/bottom text bars for context: ffmpeg -i vertical.mp4 -vf "drawtext=text='How to Hedge a $100K FTMO Challenge':fontsize=40:fontcolor=white:x=(w-text_w)/2:y=100:fontfile=arial.ttf" captioned.mp4

3. •

   Shorts/Reels specifications:

   • •Duration: 15-60 seconds (sweet spot: 30-45 seconds)
   • •Aspect ratio: 9:16 (1080x1920)
   • •Hook within first 2 seconds
   • •Auto-captions always enabled (80%+ viewers watch muted)
   • •End with a clear next step: "Follow for more" or "Full video linked above"

Phase 4: Thumbnail Design via Canva

1. •

   Thumbnail principles for trading content:

   • •High contrast: Dark background with bright text and elements
   • •Readable at mobile size: Test at 168x94px (YouTube mobile thumbnail)
   • •3-element rule: Face/reaction (optional), text headline, visual proof (chart/screenshot)
   • •Emotional trigger: Curiosity, fear of missing out, or problem recognition
   • •Brand consistency: Hedge Edge logo in corner, consistent color palette
2. •

   Thumbnail templates (via Canva API):

   Template A "Dramatic Result":

   • •Dark gradient background (Hedge Edge brand colors)
   • •Large bold text: "I HEDGED MY $100K FTMO CHALLENGE"
   • •Equity curve screenshot showing before/after
   • •Hedge Edge logo bottom-right

   Template B "Step-by-Step":

   • •Clean dark background
   • •Numbered steps visible: "3 Steps to..."
   • •MT5 screenshot with highlighted UI elements
   • •Arrow or circle annotations pointing to key areas

   Template C "Versus/Comparison":

   • •Split layout: left (red/loss) vs right (green/profit)
   • •"WITHOUT Hedge Edge" vs "WITH Hedge Edge"
   • •Contrasting equity curves or P&L numbers
   • •Bottom text: prop firm names (FTMO, The5%ers)

   Template D "Data/Stats":

   • •Central large number or stat ("85% FAIL")
   • •Supporting text below
   • •Chart or data visualization in background
   • •Clean, professional, data-journalism aesthetic
3. •

   Canva API workflow:

   • •Authenticate with CANVA_API_KEY
   • •Select base template by thumbnail style
   • •Inject dynamic text (video title, stats)
   • •Inject screenshot/image assets
   • •Export at 1280x720px, JPG, <2MB
   • •A/B test 2 thumbnails per video when possible

Phase 5: Audio Optimization

1. •

   Noise reduction: ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -af "afftdn=nf=-25" denoised.mp4

2. •

   Loudness normalization (YouTube standard: -14 LUFS): ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -af loudnorm=I=-14:TP=-1.5:LRA=11 normalized.mp4

3. •

   De-essing (reduce sibilance): ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -af "equalizer=f=6000:t=q:w=1:g=-6" deessed.mp4

4. •

   Background music mixing:

   • •Music volume: -18dB below voice
   • •Fade in over 3 seconds at intro
   • •Fade out over 3 seconds at outro
   • •Duck under voice sections, slightly louder during transitions

Phase 6: Caption Generation

1. •

   Generate captions:

   • •Use OpenAI Whisper API or local Whisper model for speech-to-text
   • •Output format: SRT (YouTube) or VTT (web)
   • •Review and correct trading-specific terms: "FTMO", "MetaTrader", "Hedge Edge", "drawdown", "pip"
2. •

   Burn captions into video (for Shorts/Reels where platform captions aren't available): ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "subtitles=captions.srt:force_style='FontName=Arial,FontSize=24,PrimaryColour=&H00FFFFFF,OutlineColour=&H00000000,Outline=2,Alignment=2'" captioned.mp4

3. •

   Caption styling for Shorts/Reels:

   • •Centered, bottom third of frame
   • •White text with black outline (maximum readability)
   • •2-3 words per line maximum
   • •Highlight key terms in brand accent color

Phase 7: Batch Production Workflow

1. •

   Batch cycle (recommended biweekly):

   • •Day 1: Script 4-6 videos (use content-creation skill)
   • •Day 2: Record all screen captures and voiceovers in one session
   • •Day 3-4: Edit all videos (assembly, overlays, audio)
   • •Day 5: Create all thumbnails, extract all shorts clips
   • •Day 6: Review, caption, and finalize all videos
   • •Day 7: Upload all to YouTube (scheduled), schedule all derivatives
2. •

   Batch FFmpeg processing (process all videos with consistent settings): for f in raw/*.mp4; do ffmpeg -i "$" -af loudnorm=I=-14:TP=-1.5:LRA=11 \ -vf "movie=logo.png[wm];[in][wm]overlay=W-w-20:20" \ "processed/$(basename $)" done

3. •

   Asset reuse:

   • •Intro/outro animations: same across all videos (update quarterly)
   • •Lower-third template: consistent name/title card
   • •Music library: 5-10 approved tracks rotated across videos
   • •Transition effects: standardized set (cut, dissolve, wipe)

Output Specification

• •Record Setup: Returns detailed recording configuration checklist with software settings, demo scenario plan, and asset requirements
• •Edit: Returns processed video file at output path with edit log (operations performed, duration, resolution)
• •Thumbnail: Returns Canva design URL and exported thumbnail file (1280x720 JPG)
• •Extract Clip: Returns vertical clip file ready for Shorts/Reels upload with duration and format confirmation
• •Add Captions: Returns captioned video file and SRT/VTT file for platform upload
• •Optimize Audio: Returns audio-optimized video with loudness report (LUFS measurement, noise floor)
• •Batch Produce: Returns production summary: videos completed, total duration, thumbnails created, clips extracted, and next steps
• •Convert Format: Returns converted video file with format specification confirmation
• •Create Visual: Returns animated/static visual asset (equity curve animation, diagram, data visualization)

API & Platform Requirements

Quality Checks

• •All videos exported at minimum 1080p (1920x1080) at 30fps or higher
• •Audio normalized to -14 LUFS for YouTube, -16 LUFS for social platforms
• •Thumbnails are 1280x720px, under 2MB, and readable at mobile thumbnail size (168x94px)
• •Every Shorts/Reels clip has burned-in captions and a hook within the first 2 seconds
• •Hedge Edge logo watermark present on all video content (after intro, persistent)
• •No copyrighted music used only royalty-free or licensed tracks from approved library
• •Screen recordings show clean MT5/app interfaces with no personal data, real account numbers, or sensitive information visible
• •Vertical content is properly formatted at 9:16 (1080x1920) with no letterboxing artifacts
• •Batch production cycles produce at least 4 publish-ready videos per cycle
• •All raw footage is backed up before editing begins
• •Trading terminology is correctly spelled in all captions (FTMO, MetaTrader, cTrader, Hedge Edge never misspelled)
• •Color grading is consistent across all videos in a batch (same LUT or color profile)