videopython
Minimal, LLM-friendly Python library for programmatic video editing, processing, and AI video workflows.
Full documentation: videopython.com
Disclaimer: This project started as a hand-written hobby project, but most of the code is now produced by LLM agents. Humans still drive direction, approve changes, and own design decisions.
Installation
# Install FFmpeg first (macOS: brew install ffmpeg | Debian: apt-get install ffmpeg)
pip install videopython # core video/audio editing
pip install "videopython[ai]" # + ALL local AI features (GPU recommended)
pip install "videopython[ai,mcp]" # + MCP server for agent-driven editing
Python >=3.11, <3.14. AI features run locally — no cloud API keys required, but model weights are downloaded on first use. LLM-driven editing and scene captioning use a local Ollama server (ollama pull qwen3.6:27b). See the install guide for FFmpeg, Ollama, and hardware details.
Quick start
An edit is a plan — a dict (or JSON) validated and executed against the source files:
from videopython.editing import VideoEdit
edit = VideoEdit.from_dict({
"segments": [{
"source": "raw.mp4",
"start": 10.0,
"end": 20.0,
"operations": [
{"op": "resize", "width": 1080, "height": 1920},
{"op": "color_adjust", "saturation": 1.15, "contrast": 1.05},
{"op": "fade", "mode": "in", "duration": 0.5},
],
}],
})
edit.validate() # dry-run via metadata, no frames loaded
edit.run_to_file("output.mp4") # streams ffmpeg decode → effects → encode
run_to_file() streams, so memory stays bounded even for hour-long sources. Walk through it in Tutorial 1.
Automatic editing (local LLM)
Give AutoEditor your clips and a brief; a local Ollama vision model selects and orders the shots, and you get back a runnable VideoEdit:
from videopython.ai import AutoEditor, OllamaVisionLLM
editor = AutoEditor(planner=OllamaVisionLLM(model="qwen3.6:27b")) # ollama pull qwen3.6:27b
edit = editor.edit(
["clip_a.mp4", "clip_b.mp4", "clip_c.mp4"],
brief="A punchy 15-second teaser; lead with the most dynamic shot.",
)
edit.run_to_file("teaser.mp4")
The model picks scenes by id from a catalog built from scene detection + captions, so its temporal imprecision never reaches the render. See Let a local LLM edit for you.
AI generation
from videopython.ai import TextToImage, ImageToVideo, TextToSpeech
image = TextToImage().generate_image("A cinematic mountain sunrise")
video = ImageToVideo().generate_video(image=image)
audio = TextToSpeech().generate_audio("Welcome to videopython.")
video.add_audio(audio).save("ai_video.mp4")
LLM & AI agent integration
Putting an LLM in the loop works three ways, differing in who owns the model:
- Bring your own LLM — videopython gives your model the JSON Schema and a structured refine loop; your model authors the plans. Guide
AutoEditor— a local Ollama vision model is the planner. Guide- MCP server —
videopython-mcpexposes the pipeline as Model Context Protocol tools, so an agent like Claude drives editing with its own model. Guide
Mode 1 in brief: every operation is a Pydantic model whose fields are the JSON wire format, so VideoEdit.json_schema() hands your model a ready-made tool schema — a discriminated union over every LLM-exposed op (pass strict=True for provider grammar modes). Plans parse permissively and own their numeric bounds at validation, so a refine loop converges fast:
edit.check(meta)— collect every structured error in one pass, not just the firstedit.repair(meta)— auto-clamp mechanical violations (overruns, negatives) with a changelogedit.normalize_dimensions(meta, target)— make heterogeneous segments concat-compatible
Why it is built this way: LLM-first design.
Features
videopython.base—Video,VideoMetadata,FrameIterator,Transcription, and shared result types (BoundingBox,FaceTrack,SceneBoundary, ...). No AI dependencies.videopython.audio—Audiowith overlay, concat, normalize, time-stretch, silence detection, segment classification.videopython.editing—Operation/Effectfoundation,VideoEditplan runner with JSON Schema + streaming execution. Transforms (resize, crop, fps, speed, freeze, silence removal; cutting is the segment's own start/end) and effects (blur, zoom, color grading, vignette, Ken Burns, fade, overlays, animated subtitles).videopython.ai(install with[ai]) — generation (TextToVideo,ImageToVideo,TextToImage,TextToSpeech,TextToMusic), understanding (AudioToText,AudioClassifier,SceneVLM,FaceTracker,ObjectDetector,SemanticSceneDetector), theFaceTrackingCroptransform, theObjectDetectionOverlayeffect, and the full-pipelineVideoAnalyzer. Scene captioning and dubbing translation run on a local Ollama model.videopython.ai.auto_edit—AutoEditor+OllamaVisionLLM: plan and render an edit from sources + a one-line brief.videopython.ai.dubbing—VideoDubberfor voice-cloned revoicing with timing sync.videopython.mcp(install with[ai,mcp]) —videopython-mcp, an MCP stdio server exposing the auto-edit pipeline so an agent drives editing.
Documentation
The docs follow Diátaxis: four sections, each answering a different kind of question.
| Tutorials | Learn by doing — start here if you are new |
| How-to guides | Recipes for a specific goal |
| Reference | Classes, operations, parameters, wire format |
| Explanation | Why the library is shaped the way it is |
Development
See DEVELOPMENT.md for local setup, testing, docs, and the release workflow.
Metadata
Release files for videopython 0.55.2
For a detailed explanation of source distributions (sdists) and built distributions (wheels), please see the package formats documentation.
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| File | Size | Uploaded | |
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| videopython-0.55.2.tar.gz | 1.1 MB | Details |
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| File | Interpreter | ABI | Platform | Reset |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| videopython-0.55.2-py3-none-any.whl | Python 3 | none | any | Details |
Total release size: 2.3 MB
Release files / videopython-0.55.2.tar.gz
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