A video can begin as a voice note, acquire a song, gain an illustrated scene and later become a chapter. By the time the project is ready for its next format, the creator may have several near-identical files and only a memory of which one was approved.
Record the project while it is still small
A source ledger is simply a working list connecting the finished piece to the material used to make it. Start with the project name, asset filename, version, creator or source, intended use and location. Add the date of the decision that made a particular version final.
For a music video, that could mean the chosen audio master, lyrics, character reference, scene images, captions and final export. For a book adapted from the video, add which scene supports each chapter and where new explanatory writing has been introduced.
Separate the source from the interpretation
A scene may show a floating laboratory without explaining its cooling system. If a later chapter proposes engineering details, record that as an extension of the concept. It should not be presented as something demonstrated by the original footage.
This distinction helps preserve creative continuity. It also makes collaboration easier: an editor can see what must stay faithful to the original and what is still open for development.
Keep permission evidence with the asset
Where an asset comes with permission or licence information, keep the relevant record and date beside its entry. A source ledger does not determine legal ownership or replace a licence. It makes the evidence easier to find when deciding whether an asset is suitable for a later use.
The same applies to AI-assisted work. Record the tool and meaningful human revisions if those details will help reproduce or explain the result. Never assume an old draft is the same as the version actually published.
Use the ledger at each handover
Before adapting the project, check that the listed files open, that the final versions are identifiable and that missing materials are flagged. A modest, maintained record is more useful than a complicated archive nobody updates.
The MaryChuks perspective: a creative universe grows more coherently when its origins remain traceable. Which project would be hardest to reconstruct from your current folders?
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