Video Editor — Documentary-Style Faceless YouTube (Science/Nature Niche) - Contract to Hire

Qualifications
Proven experience editing faceless, narration-driven YouTube content (documentary, nature, science, history, or similar — not vlogs, not gaming, not reaction content)
Strong eye for sourcing real footage/stock footage that matches a script beat-for-beat, not just "generic B-roll"
Comfortable working with AI-generated images and blending them naturally with real footage
Solid grasp of pacing for long-form (10–15+ min) content — knows when to hold a shot vs. cut
Own licensed access to a decent stock footage library (Storyblocks, Artgrid, Envato, etc.) or knows how to find high-quality free/fair-use footage
Basic motion graphics / text animation skills (Premiere, DaVinci Resolve, or After Effects)
Reliable turnaround and communication — this is an ongoing, recurring gig, not a one-off
Experience specifically with nature/wildlife/science documentary content
Experience matching AI image-to-video tools (Higgsfield, Runway, etc.) into a footage-based edit
Sound design / mixing experience beyond a basic music bed
Your typical turnaround time for a 15–20 minute video
What stock footage library/libraries you have access to
Benefits
Your rate: per video (flat) or per finished minute
[$80 - $100 flat rate per video or per finished minute]
Responsibilities
The videos break down topics like ocean biology, glaciers, animal behavior, and human traits, using real footage, stock clips, and some AI-generated imagery instead of a host on camera
I'm moving away from 2D animation for a chunk of our catalog and need an editor who can build these episodes using **real B-roll, licensed/stock footage, archival clips, and AI-generated images** — cut together into a polished, story-driven documentary
Take a finished narration script (with visual cues already marked) and build the full video around it
Source and cut in real B-roll, stock footage, and archival/documentary clips that match each beat of the script
Integrate AI-generated images (we'll provide some, you may source/generate others) alongside real footage without it feeling disjointed
Add on-screen text, light motion graphics, and simple overlays where called for
Sound design: music bed, SFX, pacing edits, ducking under narration
Color-match footage from different sources so the video feels cohesive, not like a patchwork of random clips
Deliver a video that holds attention for 10–15 minutes in a documentary pacing style (not fast-cut, meme-style editing)
→ Note how stock/documentary footage is layered with clean graphics and text call-outs to support a factual narration track
Your job is sourcing the right footage/images for those cues and making the edit flow
10–15+ minutes typical
Job description
I run faceless, documentary-style YouTube channels in the science, nature, and "interesting facts" space (think Mr. Science, What I've Learned).

The videos break down topics like ocean biology, glaciers, animal behavior, and human traits, using real footage, stock clips, and some AI-generated imagery instead of a host on camera.

I'm moving away from 2D animation for a chunk of our catalog and need an editor who can build these episodes using **real B-roll, licensed/stock footage, archival clips, and AI-generated images** — cut together into a polished, story-driven documentary.

## What you'll be doing

- Take a finished narration script (with visual cues already marked) and build the full video around it

- Source and cut in real B-roll, stock footage, and archival/documentary clips that match each beat of the script

- Integrate AI-generated images (we'll provide some, you may source/generate others) alongside real footage without it feeling disjointed

- Add on-screen text, light motion graphics, and simple overlays where called for

- Sound design: music bed, SFX, pacing edits, ducking under narration

- Color-match footage from different sources so the video feels cohesive, not like a patchwork of random clips

- Deliver a video that holds attention for 10–15 minutes in a documentary pacing style (not fast-cut, meme-style editing)

## Style references

We want the pacing, tone, and footage-selection instincts of these two examples:

1. **What I've Learned** — "Eating Less Meat Won't Save the Planet. Here's Why"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGG-A80Tl5g

→ Note how stock/documentary footage is layered with clean graphics and text call-outs to support a factual narration track.

2. **Mr. Science** — "Why Penguins Choose to Freeze Into Antarctica's Deadliest Winter"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JxFZbrSdngo

→ This is closer to our actual niche and tone: real wildlife/nature footage cut to a calm, documentary narration with a slow, immersive build.

Our scripts already come with `[VISUAL:]`, `[B-ROLL:]`, `[CLIP:]`, and `[TEXT ON SCREEN:]` cues built in, so you won't be guessing what to show. Your job is sourcing the right footage/images for those cues and making the edit flow.

## Requirements

- Proven experience editing faceless, narration-driven YouTube content (documentary, nature, science, history, or similar — not vlogs, not gaming, not reaction content)

- Strong eye for sourcing real footage/stock footage that matches a script beat-for-beat, not just "generic B-roll"

- Comfortable working with AI-generated images and blending them naturally with real footage

- Solid grasp of pacing for long-form (10–15+ min) content — knows when to hold a shot vs. cut

- Own licensed access to a decent stock footage library (Storyblocks, Artgrid, Envato, etc.) or knows how to find high-quality free/fair-use footage

- Basic motion graphics / text animation skills (Premiere, DaVinci Resolve, or After Effects)

- Reliable turnaround and communication — this is an ongoing, recurring gig, not a one-off

## Nice to have

- Experience specifically with nature/wildlife/science documentary content

- Experience matching AI image-to-video tools (Higgsfield, Runway, etc.) into a footage-based edit

- Sound design / mixing experience beyond a basic music bed

## How to apply

Please include:

1. 2–3 links to faceless documentary/nature/science videos you've edited (not animated — we specifically want to see real-footage editing)

2. Your typical turnaround time for a 15–20 minute video

3. What stock footage library/libraries you have access to

4. Your rate: per video (flat) or per finished minute

To confirm you read this closely, start your application with the word **"Documentary"**.

## Project details

- **Volume:** 2-4 videos/month to start]

- **Video length:** 10–15+ minutes typical

- **Budget:** [$80 - $100 flat rate per video or per finished minute]

- **Timeline:** first video needed by July 15th]