An event highlight video is a short edit of the best moments from your event. Ours run from 1 to 3 minutes and are cut for social media. They arrive by private download link within 7 to 10 business days of the event. If you want a song playing over the edit, you need permission to use that track, or a track that is cleared for the platform you post on.
What a highlight video is for
A full event film records the event. A highlight video gives people a feel for it in a few minutes. Our event coverage page describes highlight reels and clips designed for social media, marketing campaigns, event promotion and future audience engagement.
In practice, churches and organisers use them to:
- promote next year’s conference or worship night
- show partners, sponsors or a board what their support made possible
- post on social media in the days after the event
- keep a record of the event alongside the full recording
Decide which of these matters most before the day. A promo for next year needs wide shots of a full room and clear shots of the stage. A report for partners may need the moments where their work is mentioned.
What we deliver
Our help centre lists the deliverables for event coverage. Depending on your package, you can receive:
- a full event film of 5 to 20 minutes
- a highlights reel of 1 to 3 minutes, cut for social media
- short vertical clips for Reels and TikTok
Not every package includes every item, so check your quote. Our post on event videography prices sets out what the £450, £850 and £1500 packages cover.
If your event is also streamed, the Broadcast Stream package on our live streaming page includes a full event recording and a short highlight edit of 2 to 3 minutes.
How long should it be?
For most events, 1 to 3 minutes is long enough to show what happened while keeping people watching. Where you plan to post it affects the length.
- Instagram Reels: Instagram’s help page on reels says reels can be up to 20 minutes, but reels over 3 minutes won’t be recommended to new audiences.
- YouTube Shorts: YouTube’s Shorts length page says square or vertical videos up to three minutes long count as Shorts.
- YouTube: a widescreen 16:9 version suits your channel, and you can embed it on your event page.
A 60-second vertical cut and a longer widescreen version can come from the same footage. Our guide to video sizes and lengths covers each platform in more detail.
Music and permission
Putting a song over video uses what is called the synchronisation right. The Methodist Church’s copyright guide for streamed worship defines it as the right to combine music with visual content. Owning a copy of a track, or having a licence to play it in your building, does not give you that right.
You have a few options:
- Ask the rights holders. If you want a particular song, such as a track by an artist who ministered at your event, ask for written permission from whoever controls the song and the recording before the edit is finished.
- Use the YouTube Audio Library. YouTube’s Audio Library page says its music and sound effects are copyright-safe and won’t be claimed by a rights holder through Content ID. If you pick a track with a Creative Commons licence, you must credit the artist in your video’s description. You can filter for tracks where attribution is not required.
- Use the event’s own sound. A highlight can be cut to live audio from the event, such as a speaker’s words or the room singing. If the band is performing songs written by other people, those songs are still under copyright, so check what your licences cover before you post.
Music matters for short clips too. YouTube’s Shorts page says that from 24 September 2026, new Shorts between one and three minutes long with an active Content ID claim are no longer blocked automatically and may stay playable. A Short can still be blocked over a claim, and a Short blocked everywhere can’t earn money, so cleared music is still the safer choice. Our post on copyright warnings on church live streams explains how YouTube’s matching works.
If you have a song in mind, tell us when you book, and get permission before editing starts.
When to expect the edit
Our help centre gives 7 to 10 business days for event deliverables, sent by private download link. Business days leave out weekends, so for a Saturday event the edit should arrive in the second full week after it.
If you want to post something the morning after, plan for it. Take a few phone photos on the day for a first post, and share the highlight video when it arrives.
Using the footage
The help centre says all delivered event footage comes with full commercial usage rights for online platforms, broadcast and promotional use. You can post the highlight video on your own channels and use it in adverts for your next event.
Aligned Vision keeps the right to show the project in its portfolio, unless a confidentiality agreement is signed at booking. If your event is private, raise this when you book.
Getting a better highlight video
A highlight video can only use what was filmed. Before the day, send the crew:
- the running order, with times
- the names of speakers and worship leaders
- the moments you can’t miss, such as a launch, a prayer time or an award
- any areas or people that should not be filmed
Our conference filming checklist covers the rest of the planning. If you want a run of short vertical posts after the event, our content creation page lists reels packs of 5 or 10 vertical reels.
When you’re ready, contact us with your date, venue and what you want the highlight video to do.
