Detect Scene Edits In Selected Clips
A rendered program, trailer, or archival master often arrives as one continuous media file even though it contains many edits. Premiere Pro already knows how to detect those shot boundaries. This workflow makes that capability available as a focused, reusable Library tool for any selected video clips in the active sequence.
This recipe uses Automation Agent for Adobe Premiere. See Set Up Your AI for installation and initial setup. The workflow calls Premiere's native Scene Edit Detection and needs neither Runtime Packs nor a Workflow AI provider.
Fastest Path: Run The Library Script
- In the active sequence, select one or more video clips on any video track.
- Open
Library > Examples > Finishing. - Run Detect Scene Edits In Selected Clips.
- Choose the result you want.
| Result | What Premiere changes |
|---|---|
| Apply cuts (Recommended) | Splits the selected timeline clips at detected edit points. |
| Create markers on source clips | Leaves the timeline uncut and writes detected boundaries as markers on the underlying Project-panel source clips. |
| Create subclips in Project panel | Leaves the timeline uncut and creates subclips for the detected scenes in a generated Project-panel bin. |
When This Is Useful
- prepare a flat rendered reference before running Reconstruct An Edit From A Reference
- split a long master into editable shots without manually finding every cut
- create source markers for review or logging while leaving the sequence unchanged
- turn detected scenes into reusable Project-panel subclips
- compare Premiere's native detection result with an existing edit decision list or manual cut
Selection And Safety
The workflow processes only selected video clips in the active sequence. It collects selections across all video tracks and stops before prompting when nothing is selected.
Apply cuts changes timeline structure. The original selected clip references are replaced by newly split clips, so later automation must relist the track instead of reusing stale pre-cut references. Automation Agent restores still-valid prior selection where Premiere allows it, and directly adjacent unselected clips keep their timeline and source ranges.
Source markers and subclips affect Project-panel items rather than cutting the timeline. Because one source clip can be used in several sequences, review source-marker changes with that broader scope in mind.
Expected Result In Premiere
Premiere performs the same native Scene Edit Detection operation it exposes in its own editing interface, while the saved workflow handles selection collection, result choice, execution, and a structured completion summary. Detection quality and supported media therefore follow the currently installed Premiere version.
For Auto-Conform, use Apply cuts on the flat reference and then run Reconstruct An Edit From A Reference. The reconstruction workflow can also invoke this preparation itself when the reference track contains exactly one flat clip.
Limitations And Review Points
- Scene detection finds hard visual boundaries; fades, dissolves, flashes, and rapid internal motion can need manual review.
- Apply cuts only when the selected timeline clips are the intended targets. Test destructive timeline preparation on a sequence copy.
- After cuts, do not expect the original selected clip objects to remain valid; newly created segments replace them.
- This tool detects boundaries only. It does not identify the original source media or reconstruct an edit by itself.