How to Cut a Script to Time: The Math and the Method

Start With the Math, Not the Gut Feel

Every script-cutting conversation I've had with creators starts the same way: "I have a 90-second spot and my script is running 2 minutes. What do I cut?" The first step isn't editing — it's arithmetic. You need a target word count before you touch a sentence.

The Words-Per-Minute Formula

Most on-camera speakers deliver at a natural pace of 130-150 words per minute (WPM). News anchors push toward 150-180. Conversational instructional video tends to sit at 120-135. The exact number is personal — you'll calibrate it by recording and timing a passage you've read out loud.

To find your target word count:

1. Convert your time limit to seconds (e.g., 90 seconds = 90)
2. Divide by 60 to get minutes (90 ÷ 60 = 1.5 minutes)
3. Multiply by your WPM (1.5 × 130 = 195 words)

That number — 195 words for a 90-second script at 130 WPM — is your target. Not a guideline, a constraint. Count your current word count and calculate the gap. If you're at 310 words, you need to cut 115 words, approximately 37%.

That number will feel like a lot. It's usually not as catastrophic as it sounds, because most overwritten scripts repeat themselves more than the writer realizes.

The Four-Level Cutting Hierarchy

Cut in this order, from largest impact per effort to smallest:

Level 1 — Cut Entire Sections First

Before you touch individual sentences, ask: does this section need to exist in this video? Overlong scripts usually have at least one section that is supporting detail, historical context, or a tangent that the core message doesn't require. Cut the whole section. This is the fastest way to get to your word count without painful line-by-line surgery.

For a 3-minute video, you might have 4 sections. If you need to cut 30%, try cutting one section entirely before you touch the other three. You'll often find the remaining content is actually stronger because it flows directly from point to point without the detour.

Level 2 — Remove Redundant Statements

Most writers state the same idea twice: once to introduce it, and once to reinforce it. In a written document, that repetition aids comprehension. In a spoken video script, it pads runtime. Find every place you've said the same thing twice and cut the weaker of the two instances.

Signal phrases to look for: "In other words...", "What I mean by that is...", "To put it another way...", "As I mentioned earlier...". These are almost always expendable.

Level 3 — Compress Verbose Sentences

Once you've removed entire sections and duplicate statements, work at the sentence level. For each sentence, ask: can this be said in fewer words without losing meaning? Usually the answer is yes.

• "The reason why this matters is because..." → "This matters because..."
• "In order to do this properly, you will need to first..." → "Start by..."
• "What you're going to want to do is..." → "Do this:"
• "There are a number of different ways that you can..." → "You can..."

These micro-compressions add up fast. In a 400-word script, finding and eliminating 10-15 of these constructions can save 30-50 words.

Level 4 — Cut Throat-Clearing Openings and Padded Closings

The most common wasted words are at the start and end of scripts. Open in medias res — in the middle of the idea — rather than warming up to it. Cut any version of "Today I want to talk to you about..." "So, as we wrap up here, I just want to say..." "Thanks so much for watching, and if you got something out of this..." These exist because they make the writer comfortable, not because they serve the viewer.

The Read-Aloud Test: How to Verify You've Hit Your Target

Word count math is a proxy for time — actual delivery time depends on your pace, pauses, and emphasis. After cutting to your target word count, do a full read-aloud at your actual recording pace. Time it with a stopwatch (not a mental estimate). If you're within 5-10% of your target, you're ready to record.

This is also where using Telepront becomes practical: paste your revised script, start voice-scroll, and the app will track your reading and give you real-time position feedback. You'll know within 15 seconds if your pace is too fast (you're racing to fill your time) or too slow (you're going to overshoot your limit).

What Not to Cut

Cutting is not just word reduction — it's prioritization. There are things you should protect even if they don't compress well:

• Specific examples and proof: Abstraction is cheap. Concrete examples do work. If you have a specific statistic or a real case study, that's often more valuable than the explanatory text surrounding it.
• Your unique perspective: The one line where you say something that only you would say — your take, your metaphor, your counter-intuitive claim — is usually the line people remember. Protect it.
• Pause words: Words that exist to create natural rhythm — "Here's the thing" before a reveal, "Think about it" before an implication — these have timing function, not just semantic function. Cut the padding, not the beats.

The Rule of Thirds for Script Cutting

As a general rule, if a script needs to be cut by more than one-third of its current length, you're not editing a script — you're rewriting it. At that point, it's faster and more effective to start from your core message and rebuild from scratch with the word count constraint in front of you, rather than trying to extract a short script from a long one.