How to Resize, Move, and Rotate Clips in PowerDirector
Scale a clip, reposition it, spin it, or flip it, all from one panel.
Updated Aug. 19, 2026 · 4 min read
In a hurry? Use the Resize, Move & Rotate quick guide instead.
Once a clip is on the timeline, the next thing you usually want is to change how it sits in the frame. PowerDirector keeps all of that in one panel: scale, position, rotation and flip. Those four together cover most of what a picture-in-picture or a split-screen shot needs, and every one of them can be undone without touching the file you imported.
- In PowerDirector, select a clip and click Edit, or just double-click it, to open the editing panel.
- Under Position / Size / Flip, drag the Scale sliders to resize the clip.
- Change the Position X and Y values, or drag the clip straight in the preview window.
- Use Rotation to spin it.
- Use Horizontal or Vertical to flip it.
Steps to Adjust a Clip in the Frame
Prefer to watch? Here's the whole thing in a two minute video, or follow the written sections below.
Step 1: Open the Editing Panel
Select the clip or image you want to change on the timeline, then click Edit. The panel opens at the top left. Double-clicking the clip gets you there in one move, which is the shortcut most people settle on. Everything in this guide lives under Position / Size / Flip, the first item in the list.
Step 2: Resize the Clip
The two Scale sliders control width and height. Maintain aspect ratio is ticked by default, so moving either slider scales both together and your clip keeps its proportions. Untick it only when you actually want to stretch or squash something, since that will distort faces and straight lines quickly.
Scale a clip down and it shrinks inside the frame with handles around it, which is exactly how you'd start a picture-in-picture shot.
Step 3: Move It Around
Once it's smaller, it probably isn't where you want it. The quickest way is to drag it in the preview window: hover over the clip until the cursor turns into a four-way arrow, then move it.
When you need it exact rather than roughly right, type into the Position X and Y fields instead. That's the one to use when two clips have to line up with each other, since dragging by eye rarely matches twice.
Step 4: Rotate It
Rotation spins the clip around its own center. Drag the slider for a quick tilt, or enter a number for something precise like straightening a horizon.
Step 5: Flip It
The two Flip buttons mirror the clip. Horizontal swaps left and right, which is the one you'll reach for when a subject faces the wrong way for your layout. Vertical turns it upside down. Neither one re-encodes anything, so you can toggle them freely while you decide.
Undo Anything You Don't Like
None of this is permanent. Ctrl + Z steps back through your changes and Ctrl + Y brings them forward again, and the arrows above the timeline do the same thing. Worth knowing before you start experimenting, because it means you can push a setting too far on purpose just to see where the limit is.
Haven't got PowerDirector yet? Scaling, moving and rotating all live in one panel, which makes this a quick first thing to try.
Download PowerDirector Free →FAQ About Resizing and Moving Clips
Maintain aspect ratio has been unticked, so the two Scale sliders are moving independently. Tick it again and set the scale once, and the clip goes back to its proper proportions.
Scaling down doesn't, since you're only using part of the frame you already have. Scaling well past 100% can look soft, because there's no extra detail in the source to enlarge.
These settings belong to the clip you have selected, so adjust one, then repeat the values on the others using the Position and Scale fields. Typing the same numbers is the reliable way to get them to match.