Commentary video maker
One YouTube link in, one finished vertical Short out: your commentary recorded over the original footage, cropped to 1080x1920, with word-by-word captions
Last checked
One YouTube link in, one finished vertical Short out: your commentary recorded over the original footage, cropped to 1080x1920, with word-by-word captions burned into the frame. The output specification behind that pipeline was measured on 22 August 2026 and includes 7 caption styles and voiceover in 5 languages. You download the file and publish it yourself.
What you give it
You give the commentary strip two things:
- A YouTube link. The tool requests read-only access (youtube.readonly), pulls the source video for processing, and discards the access token after import.
- Your commentary script or narration track. This is what gets layered on top of the original audio as the telling voice of the video.
It does not write the commentary for you. If you want a topic turned into a documentary from scratch with no source video, that is a different strip.
What comes back
Each render returns:
- A finished vertical file at 1080x1920
- Word-by-word subtitles embedded in the image, in one of 7 caption styles
- Voiceover support in 5 languages
- Background music
- A title, description, and tags ready for upload
- A media credits file naming the source of every clip
How it works
- Import the source video. Paste the YouTube link; ViewMade reads it with read-only permission and drops the token once the import finishes.
- Add your commentary. Supply the script or narration that carries your take on the material.
- Render the vertical cut. The tool reframes the footage to 9:16, layers your narration, and burns in word-by-word captions in the style you picked.
- Download and publish. You receive the file plus title, description, tags, and the credits file; uploading to your channel stays entirely in your hands.
Where the footage comes from
For commentary work the footage is the video you supplied, so this section matters less than elsewhere on the site, but the same rule holds across every strip: ViewMade does not generate frames with a video model. Where a render calls for illustrative material beyond your source clip, it draws on real archive footage, maps, and charts, and every render ships with a media credits file that names the origin of each clip. That file is not decoration. If you publish commentary on news events, court cases, or historical claims, viewers and platforms increasingly ask where images came from, and an AI-generated shot presented as archival material is a credibility problem you do not want in your comments. The credits file lets you answer that question before it is asked. Nothing in the pipeline invents a visual and labels it real.
What it costs
There is no free tier and no signup credit. Production starts after payment succeeds.
| Plan | Price | Renders per month | Cost per Short |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | $29/month | 50 | $0.58 |
| Pro | $59 monthly, $29.50 per month billed annually ($354 total, 50% off) | 150 | $0.20 |
Starter is monthly only; there is no annual plan at that tier. Pro adds 10 AI child videos per month, priority render queue, and API plus MCP access. Agency pricing is custom. Figures come from viewmade.com/pricing as measured on 22 August 2026.
When this is not the right fit
This strip assumes you already have a point of view and a source video. Three cases where it is the wrong tool:
- You have nothing to say yet. If you need research, a script, and narration written for you around a topic, use the documentary strip instead; it produces sourced vertical documentaries from a subject rather than commentary over existing footage.
- You want to edit the video yourself. If the job is cutting, trimming, and polishing a recording you already made, Descript is built for editing around a recording with the most control, and CapCut handles editing a script and clips you already have. Both give you hands-on control that an automated pipeline deliberately removes.
- You want clips extracted from a long video. Opus Clip finds short clips inside a long video you already made, which is a different job from layering new narration over one source.
Saying where the tool fails is part of the product. Paying for the wrong job helps nobody.
<!-- faq -->Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost?
Starter is $29 per month for 50 renders ($0.58 per Short). Pro is $59 monthly or $29.50 per month equivalent on annual billing at $354 per year, for 150 renders ($0.20 per Short). No free tier. Measured 22 August 2026.
Where does the imagery come from?
From your source video, plus real archive footage, maps, and charts when extra material is needed. No AI-generated visuals are passed off as real. Every render includes a media credits file naming each clip's source.
What YouTube permissions does ViewMade need?
Read-only (youtube.readonly). The access token is discarded after import and no refresh token is stored. ViewMade cannot upload, edit, delete, or comment on your channel.
Do I get the upload done for me?
No. You download the finished file with its title, description, tags, and credits, and you publish it yourself.