What is B-roll? Meaning, examples and how to make it with AI

Below: A-roll vs B-roll, shot types, a shooting checklist, free footage licenses, generating clips with Text to Video, and when YouTube requires an AI label.

Prices, credits and policies were checked on October 31, 2026 and may change.

What is B-roll footage? (meaning and definition)

B-roll is footage of subjects or locations that supports your main footage. Merriam-Webster defines it as "recorded video of subjects or locations used to provide supplementary material for a film or television show" and dates the first known use to 1983. Wikipedia calls it "supplemental or alternative footage intercut with the main shot," and also lists the spellings B roll, B-reel and B reel.

Adobe's guide puts it even more simply: B-roll is all the footage that isn't the main action. In practice, the main audio (an interview, a voiceover, a creator talking) keeps playing while the picture cuts to something else. That's why B-roll is often shown with no sound or very low sound, according to Wikipedia.

A-roll vs B-roll: what's the difference?

A-roll tells the story and B-roll shows it. Boords frames A-roll as narration and B-roll as illustration, and in an interview the A-roll is simply the person talking. Riverside gives a cooking example: the chef explains the recipe on camera, and the B-roll is ingredient close-ups, chopping and sizzling.

In UGC ads, the term means product-focused footage. Influee describes B-roll as "everything cut in around" the creator's talking head, and says brand briefs often ask for something like 10 B-roll clips of about 10 seconds each, delivered as separate files.

B-roll examples and shot types

The most common B-roll shots are establishing shots, close-up inserts, cutaways, location shots, stock footage, pickups and archival material. Wikipedia and Backstage list overlapping versions of this set.

Why is it called B-roll?

The name comes from film editing with two physical rolls of film. According to Wikipedia, 35 mm film was wide enough to hide splices, but 16 mm film showed them as flaws, so editors put odd-numbered shots on an A-roll and even-numbered shots on a B-roll, each matched by black leader on the other roll. Printing the two together, called checkerboard printing, hid the splice lines.

The meaning shifted later. Until the mid-1970s, news teams shot both main and secondary footage on 16 mm film, with sound coming from the A-roll or narration and silent B-roll images cut in. In the 1980s, linear video editing used an "A" tape deck for main footage and a "B" deck for establishing shots and cutaways.

How to shoot B-roll with a phone or camera

To shoot B-roll, plan a shot list, film each subject from 3-5 angles, and keep most clips to 5-10 seconds. The steps below combine advice from Sony Alpha Academy, Clipchamp and Transom, and they work the same on a phone.

1. Write a shot list: List every point your A-roll makes and one shot that could show it. A simple storyboard helps if you're shooting a sequence.
2. Start wide: Open with a wide exterior or establishing shot so viewers know where they are.
3. Cover 3-5 angles: Film each subject wide, medium and close-up, moving at least 45 degrees between shots (Sony's 45 Degree Rule) so cuts don't look like jumps.
4. Keep clips short: Record 5-10 seconds per clip, but let complete actions, like pouring a drink, run to the end.
5. Compose in layers: Find a foreground object and let people enter and leave the frame, which gives you clean edit points.
6. Shoot more than you need: Aim for about four to six times your final length, so a 1-minute interview gets 4-6 minutes of B-roll.
7. Save clips as separate files: Keep each clip as its own file with its live sound, since editors often use that sound under the main audio.

The 4-6x figure is Clipchamp's rule of thumb, not an industry standard, so you don't need hours of footage for a short Reel. For vertical platforms, shoot B-roll in 9:16 from the start; Influee recommends 9:16 for short-form ads. For camera moves to try, see our camera movements guide.

Where to get free B-roll footage (and the license fine print)

Free B-roll is available on stock sites like Pexels, but free doesn't mean unrestricted. The Pexels license says all photos and videos are free to use, attribution isn't required and you can modify them, and its listed uses include ads and marketing campaigns. It also lists clear prohibitions.

According to Barnimages, Pexels uses its own license rather than CC0, and its clips have no audio. Licenses for other free stock sites weren't confirmed by an official source for this guide, so read each site's license page before using a clip in an ad. Skip cracked apps and "no watermark" download hacks: they can carry malware and break the original license.

How to add B-roll in CapCut, Canva or any editor

Adding B-roll works the same way in almost every editor: place your A-roll on the main track, put the B-roll clip on a track above it, and lower or mute the B-roll's audio so the main voice keeps playing. Cut in on a natural pause or a mentioned object. We didn't verify current menu names in CapCut or Canva, so check each app's help pages; Klakix isn't affiliated with either.

How to make B-roll with AI

AI is good at generic B-roll: product close-ups, pours, packing shots, textures and location-style cutaways that don't need to show a real event. It isn't a substitute for footage of your actual store, a real event or real people. On Klakix, you describe the shot in Text to Video or animate your own product photo in Image to Video.

Our math on dollars: the Mini pack is 75 credits for $5, about 6.7 cents per credit, so a 48-credit Seedance 2.0 Mini clip is about $3.20 and a 20-credit MiniMax H3 Max Turbo clip is about $1.33, plus tax. On the Standard pack (275 credits for $14), the 48-credit clip is about $2.44. If a generation fails, the credits are refunded automatically. See pricing for all packs.

These prompt patterns name the shot size, the action, the light, the camera move and the format, which is the same information a camera operator would need:

• Cafe: Close-up of a barista pouring steamed milk into a latte, a rosetta forming, soft window light, shallow depth of field, slow push-in, vertical 9:16.
• Online shop: Overhead shot of a cardboard box being taped shut on a wooden table, a shipping label pressed on, bright daylight, static camera.
• Car detailing: Macro shot of water beading on freshly washed red paint, reflections sliding across the surface, slow sideways camera move, golden hour.

Know the limits before you start:

• You still edit: Klakix doesn't combine clips, add music to a video or burn in captions (except Viral Clips), so you assemble B-roll in your own editor.
• No 4:5: Klakix doesn't generate 4:5 video; use 9:16, 1:1 or 16:9.
• No faces in Seedance photo input: Seedance image models don't accept photos with human faces.
• No real people: don't generate a real or famous person's likeness; well-known people aren't allowed.
• No free video trial: the 20 free signup credits work only for voiceovers.
• Rights: no visible watermark is added, and commercial use is allowed under the terms of service.

If you already have footage, the Video Upscaler takes old B-roll to Full HD or 4K for 20-60 credits, and Viral Clips cuts vertical clips from a long video for 15 credits.

Do you have to disclose AI B-roll on YouTube?

Yes, if the AI B-roll looks realistic and could be mistaken for a real place or event. YouTube Help requires creators to disclose realistic AI-generated or altered content, and its examples include "AI generated extra footage of a real place, like a video of a surfer in Maui for a promotional travel video."

• Needs disclosure: a real person appearing to say or do something they didn't, altered footage of a real event or place, a realistic scene that didn't happen, and AI music that's the main focus.
• Doesn't need disclosure: clearly unrealistic content, color or lighting filters, sharpening, upscaling or repair, captions, and an AI-extended backdrop that simulates a moving car.
• How to disclose: in YouTube Studio, during upload, open the Attributes section, find "AI use" and select Yes. YouTube then adds a label.

YouTube says disclosing alone won't limit a video's audience or its eligibility to earn money. The YouTube blog defines realistic content as anything a viewer could easily mistake for a real person, place, scene or event; according to reports, the tool rolled out in March 2024. Other platforms have their own rules, so check each one. This is general information, not legal advice.

This post was drafted with AI assistance. Facts were checked against the sources above, and model, credit and price details were checked automatically against the site's current price list.