python-media 0.2.1

In-memory video processing library powered by FFmpeg

pymedia

In-memory video processing library for Python, powered by FFmpeg. No temporary files, no subprocesses — everything runs in-process via ctypes.

pip install python-media

from pymedia import extract_audio, get_video_info, trim_video

Features

Video operations

• Convert format — remux to mp4, mkv, webm, avi, mov (fast, no re-encoding)
• Trim video — cut a time segment
• Mute video — strip all audio tracks
• Compress video — re-encode with H.264 at a target quality (CRF)
• Resize video — change resolution
• Rotate video — rotate 90°, 180°, or 270°
• Change speed — speed up or slow down playback
• Merge videos — concatenate two videos sequentially
• Reverse video — play video backwards
• Video to GIF — convert video (or a segment) to animated GIF

Audio operations

• Extract audio — pull audio as mp3, wav, aac, or ogg
• Adjust volume — increase or decrease audio volume level

Frames

• Extract frame — grab a single frame as JPEG or PNG
• Extract frames — grab multiple frames at a regular interval
• Create thumbnail — smart thumbnail from 1/3 into the video

Metadata

• Get video info — duration, resolution, codecs, fps, bitrate, etc.
• Set metadata — write a tag (title, artist, comment, year, …)
• Strip metadata — remove all metadata tags

Installation

pip install python-media

No extra dependencies needed — FFmpeg is bundled inside the package.

Usage

from pymedia import (
    get_video_info,
    extract_audio, adjust_volume,
    convert_format, trim_video, mute_video,
    compress_video, resize_video, video_to_gif,
    rotate_video, change_speed, merge_videos, reverse_video,
    extract_frame, extract_frames, create_thumbnail,
    set_metadata, strip_metadata,
)

with open("video.mp4", "rb") as f:
    data = f.read()

# ── Info ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────
info = get_video_info(data)
print(info["duration"], info["width"], info["height"])

# ── Audio ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────
mp3 = extract_audio(data, format="mp3")
louder = adjust_volume(data, factor=2.0)   # double volume
quieter = adjust_volume(data, factor=0.5)  # half volume

# ── Format / basic edits ──────────────────────────────────────
webm = convert_format(data, format="webm")
clip = trim_video(data, start=0, end=10)
silent = mute_video(data)

# ── Re-encode ─────────────────────────────────────────────────
small = compress_video(data, crf=28, preset="fast")
resized = resize_video(data, width=1280)

# ── Transforms ────────────────────────────────────────────────
rotated = rotate_video(data, angle=90)          # 90, 180, 270, -90
fast = change_speed(data, speed=2.0)            # 2x faster
slow = change_speed(data, speed=0.5)            # half speed
merged = merge_videos(data, other_data)
backwards = reverse_video(data)

# ── GIF ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
gif = video_to_gif(data, width=320, fps=10, start=0, duration=3)

# ── Frames ────────────────────────────────────────────────────
frame = extract_frame(data, timestamp=5.0, format="jpeg")
frames = extract_frames(data, interval=1.0)     # one frame per second
thumb = create_thumbnail(data)                  # frame from 1/3 in

# ── Metadata ──────────────────────────────────────────────────
tagged = set_metadata(data, key="title", value="My Video")
clean = strip_metadata(data)

API reference

Video info

get_video_info(video_data) -> dict

Returns a dict with keys: duration, width, height, fps, video_codec, audio_codec, bitrate, sample_rate, channels, has_video, has_audio, num_streams.

Audio

Function	Description
extract_audio(data, format="mp3")	Extract audio track. Formats: mp3, wav, aac, ogg
adjust_volume(data, factor)	Multiply audio volume. 2.0 = louder, 0.5 = quieter

Video transforms

Function	Description
convert_format(data, format)	Remux to mp4, mkv, webm, avi, mov, flv, ts
trim_video(data, start, end)	Cut to time range (seconds)
mute_video(data)	Remove all audio streams
compress_video(data, crf=23, preset="medium")	Re-encode H.264. CRF 0–51, lower = better quality
resize_video(data, width=-1, height=-1, crf=23)	Resize, maintaining aspect ratio
rotate_video(data, angle)	Rotate 90, 180, 270, or -90 degrees
change_speed(data, speed)	2.0 = 2× faster, 0.5 = half speed
merge_videos(data1, data2)	Concatenate two videos
reverse_video(data)	Play backwards (audio dropped)
video_to_gif(data, fps=10, width=320, start=0, duration=-1)	Animated GIF

Frames

Function	Description
extract_frame(data, timestamp=0.0, format="jpeg")	Single frame as JPEG or PNG
extract_frames(data, interval=1.0, format="jpeg")	List of frames at regular intervals
create_thumbnail(data, format="jpeg")	Frame from 1/3 into the video

Metadata

Function	Description
set_metadata(data, key, value)	Set a tag (title, artist, comment, year, …)
strip_metadata(data)	Remove all metadata tags

Supported formats

Function	Formats
extract_audio	mp3, wav, aac, ogg
convert_format	mp4, mkv, webm, avi, mov, flv, ts
extract_frame / extract_frames / create_thumbnail	jpeg, png
compress_video / resize_video / rotate_video / reverse_video	H.264 mp4 output
video_to_gif	GIF

Platform support

Platform	Status
Linux (x86_64)	Pre-built wheel
Linux (ARM64)	Pre-built wheel
macOS (arm64, Apple Silicon)	Pre-built wheel (requires macOS 14+, macOS 15 supported)
macOS (x86_64, Intel)	Pre-built wheel (cross-compiled via Rosetta 2, requires macOS 14+, macOS 15 supported)
Windows (x86_64)	Pre-built wheel (FFmpeg bundled via delvewheel)

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! pymedia is open source and we appreciate help from the community.

Setting up the development environment

1. Fork the repo on GitHub and clone your fork:

git clone https://github.com/<your-username>/pymedia.git
cd pymedia

2. Install FFmpeg dev libraries for your platform (required only for development):

# Ubuntu / Debian
sudo apt install gcc pkg-config \
    libavformat-dev libavcodec-dev libavutil-dev \
    libswresample-dev libswscale-dev

# macOS
brew install gcc pkg-config ffmpeg

# Windows
# Download the latest shared build from https://github.com/BtbN/FFmpeg-Builds/releases
# (pick ffmpeg-master-latest-win64-gpl-shared.zip), extract to C:\ffmpeg, and install pkg-config:
choco install pkgconfiglite -y
# Then add C:\ffmpeg\bin to your PATH and set:
# PKG_CONFIG_PATH=C:\ffmpeg\lib\pkgconfig

3. Create a virtual environment and install in dev mode:

# Linux / macOS
python3 -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate
pip install -e .
pip install pytest

# Windows (PowerShell)
python -m venv .venv
.venv\Scripts\Activate.ps1
pip install -e .
pip install pytest

4. Install pre-commit hooks (optional but recommended — runs black, isort, flake8 before every commit):

pip install pre-commit
pre-commit install

5. Run the tests:

pytest tests/ -v

Making changes

1. Create a branch for your change:

git checkout -b my-feature

2. Make your changes. If you're adding a new feature:

   • Add the C function in src/pymedia/_lib/pymedia.c
   • Add ctypes bindings in src/pymedia/_core.py
   • Add the Python wrapper in the appropriate module (audio.py, video.py, frames.py, transforms.py, metadata.py, or info.py)
   • Export it from src/pymedia/__init__.py
   • Add tests in tests/

3. Rebuild after any C changes:

pip install -e .

4. Run tests and lint:

pytest tests/ -v
black src/ tests/
isort src/ tests/
flake8 src/ tests/

If you installed pre-commit hooks (step 4 of setup), formatting and lint checks run automatically on git commit.

5. Commit and push:

git add <files>
git commit -m "Short description of the change"
git push origin my-feature

6. Open a Pull Request on GitHub.

Project structure

src/pymedia/
├── __init__.py      # Public API exports
├── _core.py         # ctypes bindings (loads libpymedia.so)
├── audio.py         # extract_audio, adjust_volume
├── video.py         # convert_format, compress, resize, trim, mute, to_gif
├── transforms.py    # rotate_video, change_speed, merge_videos, reverse_video
├── frames.py        # extract_frame, extract_frames, create_thumbnail
├── metadata.py      # set_metadata, strip_metadata
├── info.py          # get_video_info
└── _lib/
    ├── pymedia.c      # All C code (FFmpeg operations)
    └── libpymedia.so  # Built automatically by `pip install` (libpymedia.dylib on macOS, libpymedia.dll on Windows — not committed to git)

Guidelines

• Keep Python wrappers thin — heavy lifting goes in the C code
• Every new feature needs at least one test
• Tests must not require external files — generate test data in tests/conftest.py
• Run pytest tests/ -v before submitting a PR and make sure all tests pass
• Format code with black and isort before opening a PR

Reporting bugs

Open an issue at https://github.com/moinakmalkhan/pymedia/issues with:

• What you did
• What you expected
• What happened instead
• Your OS and Python version

License

MIT