The Complete Guide to Anime AMVs: Create, Edit, and Upload

Anime AMVs have taken over fan editing with style and creativity. They show how much passion goes into matching anime scenes with catchy music choices. The energy, timing, and effort behind these edits make them one of the most enjoyable parts of anime culture today.

Part 1. What are Anime AMVs?

An AMV, short for Anime Music Video, is a short video made by fans where scenes from anime shows or movies are edited together with a song. It's not an official release by studios or musicians - just something fans make for fun or to show creativity.

These videos usually use clips from one or more Japanese animations or games and match them perfectly to the rhythm, lyrics, or mood of the music. In Japan, they're often called MADs, which means "Music Anime Douga".

Most anime AMVs are shared online on sites like AnimeMusicVideos.org or YouTube, where fans around the world post their work. In the U.S. and Europe, anime fans love making AMVs with strong visuals to show emotion or hype up a scene. The main idea behind every AMV is to celebrate the original anime and make the scenes feel fresh again through music.

Part 2. How to Make Better Anime AMVs? 9 Tips and Tricks for Video Editors

Have you ever made an anime AMV edit thinking it was clean, then scrolled past someone else's edit that was so good it made yours look like straight-up garbage? So bad that you started questioning being an editor in the first place? Yeah, we've all been there. It's a never-ending cycle. But if that's you, you can create amazing anime AMVs no matter the tool or editing software you are using with the following 9 key pointers.

But it is important that you know about video editing software to do this kind of anime AMV creation. So here it goes.

1. Clip Selection

Clip selection makes up most of the anime AMVs. It's about choosing the clips you'll use, and this can ultimately make or break the edit depending on your style. Flow edits can be really fast, while vibe edits are usually slower and clearer.

If you're making a mograph edit, animation doesn't matter as much. What you should do is pick clips with a clear subject and the best animation possible. Yes, some anime have poor animation, but you need to consider this if you want to make better edits. There are many websites where you can get free clips for editing, but make sure to watch plenty of AMV editors to understand how their clips flow and why they flow, which leads to the next stage.

2. Twixing

Twixing mostly affects the motion of your clip, but it can also influence how transitions flow into one another. The reason clip selection matters so much is that if it's bad, your Twixers will suffer too.

You also need to know about graphs and how important they are. Many editors simply copy what's shown, even when it doesn't fit their clips. Sometimes your clips might not benefit from a speed ramp and work better with smoother graphs or extra keyframes between clips. It all depends on your style and type of edit. Avoid graphs that warp your clips. Anime and other types of footage aren't really meant to be twisted like that, but there are two ways to avoid this.

3. Interpolating

The first way to fix warping is by duplicating your clip in its pre-comp, trimming the duplicate until the part of the clip stops warping, and then changing the frame interpolation setting from motion weighted blend to nearest. The issue with this method is that it only works for fast-paced parts of a clip.

The next option is interpolating. In simple terms, interpolating increases the frame rate of your clip by adding new frames between existing ones using AI. You can do this with apps like Flow Frames, but that program often lowers clip quality and can be frustrating to download, especially when the servers are down. It's also about 4 gigabytes, which is larger than After Effects.

A better alternative is using scripts. The best scripts to use are Anime Scripter and others of its kind. These are smaller than Flow Frames and maintain your clip quality.

The best part is that they're automated, so everything is handled for you. Unlike Flow Frames, where you must manually export, import, and process clips, these scripts do it all with one click. They also include extra tools for sharpening and upscaling your clips. Try them out. They save a lot of time.

4. Transitions

Transitions are what happen between one clip and the next, and they define how smooth your Anime AMVs edit feels. You don't even need full clips for an edit to count as one. Transitions aren't just about scaling, positioning, or rotation. They combine many methods. You can use transforms with scale, position, rotation, or opacity keyframes, or even use overlays, one framers, or effects that reveal or tear into the next clip.

The issue with most editors' transitions isn't that they're bad, but that they don't make sense. So, make sure your transitions connect logically. If your clip is zooming in or out, use scales. If it moves sideways, use positioning and maybe rotation or a one-frame offset.

Keep your graphs smooth, too, because messy backgrounds can make transitions look awkward.

Don't forget to hide your tiles. If your edit is starting or ending, use reveals such as opacity, dissolves, wipes, or fractal noise. If the clip has a big impact, use one framers. It all depends on your style and the type of edit. Let your transitions make sense. Watch other editors, see what they do, and keep editing even if it's rough at first. Over time, your transitions will improve once you get the basics right.

5. Effects

If you talk about effects, you could go on all day. The thing is, though, effects really depend on your style and edit, and you can't really give a clear way of how to use them. What you should do, though, is be creative. It is okay to try out new effects, but don't overdo it. Keep it simple.

Now, everybody says this, and you see it everywhere, but it's honestly the truth. What people don't tell you, though, is that if you see an effect that catches your eye when looking for one, or you see it in another edit, note it down and try it out. It might honestly become your favorite effect. And what this does, in turn, is build your style, which is so important.

You might have only edited with one style before, using the same effects in each edit. If you do not experiment with effects and even other styles that other people use, you'd only be editing with particles and blurs in your edits. But if that's what you're going for, it's okay. Here are your favorite effects that you use in almost every edit. And if you see a video titled "My Favorite Effects," just click on it and study it.

6. Compositing

Compositing is something you should learn while making anime AMVs, even if it's just the basics, because it can add so much more realism to your edits.

The issue with compositing, though, is that people don't understand how it works, especially with AMVs. Compositing, in simple terms, is combining external elements like overlays, textures, and even whole 3D environments to create one result. You can start with the background. Backgrounds are not the subject, so add at least some blur to them if they're too complex.

However, it depends on the scene. Next is the middle ground, which consists of the subject alone when it comes to anime. The subject is basically what everyone is looking at. You should do this using a depth map to add depth of field in your edits. Now, some of you might be scratching your heads on what this is, but it's basically the depth information of your clip and is shown in black and white most of the time. You can use scripts to generate these, but the Anime Scripter, the script mentioned earlier, already has this feature and is fully automated. The effect you use for depth of field is S_Zlur from the Sapphire plug-in. Wait for the depth map to finish generating. Put it under your clip or hide it. Just make sure it's in the same comp. Then create an adjustment layer, add Zlur on it, and play around with the focal depth and depth of field until you get something that looks good.

Sometimes the script gives you flickering, so the best alternative to this is S_Freelance, which again is from the Sapphire plug-in. Just position your focal point offset, and it's already done for you. The result you get from using a depth map is usually more accurate.

7. Foreground

Next is the foreground. The foreground is usually anything that's in front of the subject. This includes overlays and even light sources.

This is usually the part where most people ruin their scenes, and it happens by adding too many overlays. The subject is the main focus, not your overlay pack, unless you're going for a specific look. You can also use Triton to change the whole look of your scene, but that's in the next stage.

8. Color Correction

There's no such thing as a bad color correction. The point of making a CC is creating one that you like, one that you can use in every edit confidently. That's the real flex. Focus on making a CC that works with your effects and compositing, and even one that hides your mistakes.

Because you might be a victim of this, too, the whole point of making a CC is for the edit to look better. If you still struggle with making a CC in 2025, just download a bunch of free ones and see which one works with yours. But make sure to learn why those color settings, curves, or LUTs you experiment with actually work.

Don't go too crazy, as said before, because in this case, you could even mess up the quality of your clip and add unnecessary compression or overexposure. The point is, don't make a CC that you don't like. If there's a CC that you're trying to achieve from someone else, study it carefully, because your CC really contributes to your style. And as said before, your style is very important.

9. Sound Design

Sound design is underrated because if your sound design is goofy, it holds back your edits a lot. Even if you don't add any sound effects, it still matters. The thing is, adding sound effects in your edit is based on common sense. If your edit is fast-paced, you should use whooshes. If you have a scene with fire, add fire whooshes and ambiance instead. However, sound design in anime AMVs is more than just adding sound effects. It's about making your edit great because before you see something, you hear it.

Part 3. The Best Anime AMVs You Should Not Miss This Year

The "best" fan-made AMVs are subjective, but major anime conventions host annual contests where top creations are recognized. The winners from these 2025 competitions are highly regarded in the AMV community.

Here are some of the winning fan-made AMVs from major 2025 conventions:

Award-Winning AMVs from 2025 Contests

These videos have been recognized in specific categories at major events like SacAnime Summer 2025 and Otakon 2025:

• Best in Show (Otakon 2025): "Smooth Criminal"
• Best in Show (SacAnime Summer 2025): "Anime Weather Report" by Dreamerjordi (also won 2nd place in Fun category)
• Action (1st Place, SacAnime Summer 2025): "LET'S GO | Anime Mix" by CalvinCShinobi

• Drama (1st Place, SacAnime Summer 2025): "Desolation" by Kireblue
• Comedy (1st Place, SacAnime Summer 2025): "Gyrographia" by Obsidian Zero, Xophilarus
• Judge's Choice (SacAnime Summer 2025): "Uprising" by ShinRyu

Highly-Rated Recent Fan-Made AMVs

These videos, while some may have been released in late 2024 or early 2025, have garnered significant attention and praise within the AMV community for their editing quality and creativity:

• "Baddy on the Floor" by Purple Bell (Winner of "Favorite AMVs of 2024" list published in Jan 2025)
• "Perfect Day" by janken
• "Makoto Shinkai" by vivafringe

• "Double Take" by BecauseImBored1 (praised for its massive four-year effort in finding anime "dopplegangers")
• "The Argonauts" by MegaAMV (noted for its unique use of the Fibonacci sequence for cuts and intense content)
• "Turn Your Head" by Kyapture (a character profile of Asuka from Evangelion, praised for its deep characterization)
• "Rewrite The Stars -「4K AMV」- Anime MV" by various editors (a popular anime mix)

These award-winning AMVs can often be found on YouTube by searching for their titles and editors, sometimes on convention-specific channels like SacAnime AMV.

Part 4. FAQs of Anime AMVs

Conclusion on Anime AMVs

At the end of the day, anime AMVs are just fans having fun - mixing drama, action, and music to create pure magic. You don't need a studio or budget, just some clips, a song, and a vision. It's creativity at its finest, where every frame hits perfectly to the beat.