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Junior Editor

Editing teamFully remoteFull-time contractorBonuses & perks

We're looking for someone with a real passion for editing who wants to become world class at what they do, and make millions of people's days better doing it.

~24
videos per month
100%
remote, anywhere
paydays per month
Perks
bonuses and team perks
Read this first

This role is not for everyone.

This is not a side gig or a part-time role. We're looking for people who take editing seriously and want to become world class at what they do. It's not a stepping stone to something else. We're looking for people who want this to be their final destination.

The role

You'll deliver roughly 5 to 6 videos per week, a 24-video monthly quota. You take a verified idea from our ideation team, source the right clips for it, and edit it into a short-form video that hits our standards. You're responsible for two things:

01 · SOURCING

Finding the right clips for the idea.

02 · EDITING

Turning those clips into a finished video that hits our standards.

You'll have real autonomy: swap clips, change sequencing, reject unsafe footage, and adapt the edit when the source feels off. Most of the work is asynchronous, and every sourcing package and final export goes to your team leader for quality control.

What you'll actually be doing

Sourcing clips for verified ideas and editing them into finished short-form videos, in your preferred creative software.

Nailing the hook in the first 2 seconds: establishing context while keeping information load low.

Emotionally sequencing clips (intense, funny, calm) building toward a satisfying payoff.

Feeling where the viewer’s attention is moment by moment and adjusting pacing so they never get bored.

Matching our subtitle style: animated, short, about 3 words at a time, with color for emotional emphasis.

Mixing audio so it blends naturally: balanced dialogue, SFX, and music that never breaks immersion.

Keeping every video platform-safe: no licensed clips, no TOS risk, no exceptions.

Reviewing each upload, diagnosing what worked and what didn’t, and carrying that into the next video.

Who we're looking for

We're serious when we say we care more about your personal character than your raw editing skill.

You detach your ego from the work.

It doesn’t matter if you think the video is good, the market decides. The number of views a video gets is exactly how many it deserved. YouTube is cause and effect, and it’s brutally fair. We have full control over the outcome.

You can feel what the viewer feels, second by second.

This is the core skill. You can sense exactly how emotionally invested someone is at every moment, feel emotion rise, feel it drop, and feel the exact second they start to get bored. (If you don’t have it yet, we can teach it to you.)

You think in emotion and psychology, not templates.

You feel the cognitive effort a viewer spends watching your video, know when to pull back, and only make the viewer work when the payoff is worth it. Editing, to you, is the ability to control how someone feels.

You want direct feedback, and you give it back.

Our culture runs on truth, directness, and accountability. If something feels off, call it out. If you make a mistake, own it. Mistakes are completely okay, hiding them isn’t.

You’re obsessed with getting better, and self-accountable.

You self-review constantly, want feedback daily, and a dud doesn’t crush you, it’s data. You hit deadlines, communicate clearly, and operate independently once you know the standards.

Requirements

Prior experience editing short-form content (YouTube Shorts, TikTok, Reels).

Strong editing fundamentals: hooks, pacing, sequencing, emotional escalation.

Fluent English: transcribe accurately and format clean, readable captions.

Solid comedic timing and emotional rhythm.

Skilled at text animation, keyframing, and clean transitions.

Strong audio mixing: balanced dialogue, SFX, and music never exceeding 14 LUFS.

Able to consistently deliver 5 to 6 videos per week.

Comfortable taking direct feedback and turning around precise revisions fast.

Available for daily communication on Slack (plus 1 team meeting per month).

Detail-obsessed: no sloppy captions, broken formatting, or uneven audio.

How we work

Fully remote

Work from anywhere. No relocation, ever. If we open offices later, joining one is optional.

Independent contractor

You handle your own taxes and local obligations.

Paid twice a month

The 1st and the 15th, via PayPal, Wise, Xoom, or any transfer method you prefer.

Daily on Slack

Real autonomy to make your own calls once you know the standards.

FirstCut owns the work

Videos, project files, captions, and systems. Internal docs and workflows are confidential.

Competitive pay, real support

Competitive pay with performance bonuses. Consistent quality and strong results lead to raises, and the people who perform here are rewarded for it.

What our editors average
$1,500 / month

This is a conservative number, not a ceiling. It grows with performance bonuses, raises, and how well your videos do.

Paid twice a month

The 1st and the 15th, via PayPal, Wise, Xoom, or any transfer method you prefer.

Paid training

Your onboarding and training (up to 4 weeks) are paid while we get you up to our standards.

Performance bonuses

When your videos hit milestones, you get rewarded for it. The better they do, the more you earn.

Transition payout

If we ever part ways, there’s a discretionary transition payout. We take care of our people, always.

Performance bonusesFlexible scheduleHardware upgrade supportSoftware stipendCareer growthLeadership developmentDiscretionary transition payout

The test is the application

Anyone can learn the technical side of editing. What makes these videos go viral is the psychological awareness behind every decision. That's what we want to see.

1
Your Discord username

Drop your Discord username in the form below. This is how we'll get back to you if we move forward, so double-check it's correct.

2
Portfolio · optional

Completely optional. If you have a portfolio site, Google Drive, or YouTube videos you've worked on, link them.

3
The sample video · required

This is the real application. Watch our reference video first: it's a ranking style best owls video, and your job is to copy it 1:1. Same hook, same pacing, same sequencing, same subtitle style, same style of sound design. The audio has to be your own work though. Ripping our SFX and laying them under your cut is an instant no. When we watch your version, it should look like we edited it ourselves. Cut it from the owl clips in the Drive folder below.

Quick note: Google Drive often defaults playback to 360p, which looks blurry. Set the quality to 1080p before you study the reference.

Host your finished video anywhere: Google Drive, YouTube, Dropbox, Gofile.

A few things to know going in
Match ours 1:1

Your version should look as close to identical to our reference as you can get it. Not your own spin on it, a match.

Subtitles in Gilroy

Match the energy of the commentary. Clean formatting, no typos.

Do your own sound design

Never rip the audio from our reference and lay it under your cut. We check for this, and it is an instant no. Source your own SFX and place them with intent, only where they add to the moment.

Apply now

DeadlineSeptember 30

We accept sample videos until September 30, the last day of the month. After that the cutoff moves to the last day of the next month. Put your best effort into it, that's what we're looking at.

Make sure your link is viewable before submitting. Google Drive: share as “Anyone with the link”. YouTube: set to Unlisted or Public, not Private.

We review every entry personally. If you don't hear back, we've moved forward with someone else this time.