Quick Guide: How to Use Masks in PowerDirector
Three steps to show one part of a clip and hide the rest.
Updated Oct. 25, 2026 · 1 min read
Steps
For a split screen, put the clip you mask on track 2 and the clip that should show through on track 1, overlapping in time. Where no other clip is playing, the hidden part is black.
1Pick a mask and place it
Click a mask in the grid. The Horizontal mask, the third icon, cuts with one line for a split screen. Drag the green circle at the middle of the line to rotate it, and drag the line itself to move it. The Parallel mask, the fourth icon, uses two lines and keeps the band between them for letterbox bars.
The rest of the grid is preset shapes. For any other shape, click Create a custom mask from an image, the second icon, and drop a file into the Image Mask Tool. A PNG lets you build the mask from its Alpha channel or its Gray level, and other formats use gray levels directly. To remove a mask, choose None, the first icon.
2Soften the edge
Click Advanced at the lower right of the panel and raise Feather Radius so the two clips blend instead of meeting at a hard line.
3Invert the mask
Check Invert mask below Feather Radius to swap which side is kept without moving the mask you just placed.
We tested these steps in PowerDirector 365 version 24.0.7 on Windows.
