---
title: "How to Edit Outside NLE and Re-import Timeline"
author: "Alex Johnson"
category: "AI & Automation"
excerpt: "Learn how to use external AI tools to generate rough cuts and seamlessly re-import those timelines back into your main NLE using XML."
image: "/cutsio-thumbnail.svg"
tags: "AI, XML, NLE, Rough Cut, Workflow, Cutsio"
---

The traditional video editing workflow is linear: import footage into your NLE (Non-Linear Editor), scrub through it, and start cutting. However, the rise of AI tools has introduced a much faster method: editing *outside* the NLE first to create a rough cut automatically, and then importing that timeline back in for the finishing touches.

Here is how you execute this modern workflow.

## Step 1: Process Footage with an External AI Tool
Instead of dragging hours of raw interview footage or podcast recordings into Premiere Pro or Final Cut Pro, you start by uploading or pointing a specialized AI tool to your media.

Tools like [Cutsio](https://cutsio.com) are designed specifically for this. The AI analyzes the audio track of your video and automatically identifies all the dead air, awkward pauses, and silent moments. It can also generate a full text transcript.

## Step 2: Generate the Rough Cut
Within the external tool, you establish your parameters (e.g., "remove any silence longer than 0.5 seconds"). The software instantly applies these cuts virtually. You haven't rendered any new video files yet; you've just created a list of edit points.

## Step 3: Export the XML
This is the magic step. Instead of exporting a massive, rendered video file (which takes time and loses the ability to tweak individual cuts later), you export an **XML** or **FCPXML** file directly from the AI platform. This file is tiny (a few kilobytes) and contains all the data about where the cuts should be.

## Step 4: Re-import to Your NLE
1. Open your NLE (Final Cut Pro, DaVinci Resolve, or Premiere Pro).
2. Import your original, high-quality raw footage into your project bin.
3. Import the XML file you downloaded from the AI tool (`File > Import > XML`).
4. The NLE will read the XML, locate the raw footage on your hard drive, and instantly build a timeline with hundreds of precision cuts already made.

You now have a fully populated timeline, completely stripped of dead air, ready for you to add b-roll, color grading, and music—saving you hours of manual scrubbing!