What does offline editing primarily involve?

Offline editing primarily involves working with lower-resolution copies of the original footage to create a rough cut or preliminary version of a project. This process allows editors to make decisions about the overall structure and flow of the film or video without needing to work with the high-resolution files throughout the entire editing phase. By using these copies, it becomes much easier to manage large quantities of footage, as the file sizes are smaller and editing can be performed more efficiently.

This practice is commonly utilized in the film and video production industries before transferring to online editing, where high-quality footage will be used for the final cut. Consequently, while other options, like enhancing audio quality or cutting and arranging footage, are indeed important parts of the broader editing process, they do not specifically describe the essence of offline editing, which centers on working with copies of the original material to establish the project’s foundation.