This guide walks you through completing your first captioning and editing workflow in Premiere Assistant.
Step 1. Open Premiere Assistant
To open Premiere Assistant, first open your project in Premiere. Launch the plugin from [Window > Extensions > Premiere Assistant by Cutback].
Sign in with your Cutback account. If you don't have one yet, create a free account here.
See Understanding the Premiere Assistant Panel to learn your way around the interface.
Step 2. Transcribe your footage
To transcribe your footage, select the sequence you want to work on in your timeline.
In the Premiere Assistant panel, click [Edit Captions] and start transcription. Premiere Assistant will analyze your footage and generate a full transcript.
Review the transcript before moving on. The more accurate it is, the faster everything else goes.
Step 3. Clean up your footage
To clean up your footage, open the [Trim] menu:
[Remove silence]: cuts dead air from your timeline
[Remove filler words]: removes "um", "uh", and similar
[Remove retakes]: identifies and removes repeated takes
[Edit according to script]: trims footage to match a script
[Create shortform clips]: pulls highlight clips from longer footage
Premiere Assistant marks the suggested cuts. Review them and apply in one click.
You can also refine your cut using text-based editing. Navigate your footage by reading the transcript instead of scrubbing the timeline. Select the text you want to remove, and Premiere Assistant marks the edit.
Step 4. Switch camera angles (optional)
If you're working with a multi-camera shoot, use [Multi-cam switch] to automatically cut between angles based on who's speaking. No manual cutting needed.
Skip this step if you're working with a single camera.
See Multi-Cam Switch.
Step 5. Generate and style captions
With your edit locked, click [Generate captions] to create a native caption track directly in your Premiere sequence.
Style your captions:
Set line length and punctuation
Choose single or double line layout
Hide filler words, repeated words, or profanity
Translate into 30+ languages
To use animated captions, open [Animated captions], choose a template, and apply in two clicks.
Step 6. Add effects and visuals
To add effects and visuals, finish your edit without leaving Premiere:
[Animate object]: add motion effects to on-screen elements. See Add Animations to Objects.
[Background effect]: change or remove the background behind your subject. See Remove Video Background.
[Resources]: edit and enhance images you've uploaded using AI tools. See Edit Your Images Using AI Tools.
You're done. Footage cleaned up, captions generated, effects applied, all inside Premiere. Ready to go deeper? See Understanding the Premiere Assistant Panel to learn every tool in detail.
FAQs
How do I download and install Premiere Assistant?
Download the Premiere Assistant installer from https://cutback.video/premiere-assistant/install.
Run the installer and complete the installation.
Restart Adobe Premiere and open your project.
In Premiere, go to [Window > Extensions > Cutback] to open the panel.
Note: If the [Extensions] menu is not active, restart Premiere with a project open. The menu appears once a project is loaded.
How do I update Premiere Assistant?
Close and reopen Premiere Assistant. It updates automatically to the latest version.
Can I continue working on a different device?
Yes. Export your transcript data first, then import it on the new device.
To export: In the Premiere Assistant panel, go to [Menu > Settings > Backups > Export transcript data]. A cutback folder is created in the same directory as your Premiere project file (.prproj), with transcription data saved per sequence.
To import: Place your project file (.prproj) and the cutback folder in the same directory. Then go to [Menu > Settings > Backups > Import transcript data].
Important: Do not rename or modify any files or folders inside the cutback folder. Doing so will prevent the data from being imported.
Premiere Assistant won't launch
If you see errors like "ERR_NETWORK_ACCESS_DENIED" or "ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT", try the following:
Check your internet connection. A stable connection is required, with an upload speed of at least 200 Mbps. Test at https://fast.com.
Check your firewall and security settings. Your firewall, antivirus, or VPN may be blocking Premiere Assistant. This includes Mac network monitoring apps like Little Snitch or Radio Silence, which can block Premiere Assistant even when your regular firewall is off. Temporarily disable all of these, restart your computer, and try again.
Try a different network. If you're on a shared or restricted network (corporate or proxy), switch to a different connection.
If you see "The Cutback plugin must be running and logged in to use this feature," you may have opened Cutback Browser instead of the Premiere Assistant plugin. Close the panel, then in Premiere go to [Window > Extensions > Cutback].
How do I add Premiere Assistant as a firewall exception on Windows?
Open Control Panel > System and Security > Windows Defender Firewall.
Click Advanced settings on the left.
Select Inbound Rules, then click New Rule.
Choose Custom, applied to All programs.
Set the protocol to TCP.
Under "Which remote IP addresses does this rule apply to?", choose "These IP addresses" and add each of the following:
34.149.203.40
34.36.200.4
35.216.66.141
35.209.20.87
Click Next, then choose Allow the connection.
Check all profiles (Domain, Private, Public) and click Next.
Name the rule (e.g., Cutback Exception) and click Finish.
I tried to use Premiere Assistant, but my payment didn't go through
Go to the Cutback Dashboard and complete the transaction. Check your email for a payment failure confirmation.
I can't access the payment page or dashboard
If the page isn't loading:
Clear your browser cache and try again.
Try a different browser (e.g., Chrome or Safari).
Check that your network connection is stable.
Access the dashboard at https://dashboard.cutback.video/.