OpenCut

A free, open-source video editor for web, desktop, and mobile.

Why OpenCut? 🎯

• Privacy First 🔒 - Your videos stay on your device
• Completely Free 💰 - Every basic feature of CapCut is paywalled now
• User-Friendly ✨ - People want editors that are easy to use - CapCut proved that
• No Watermarks 🚫 - Professional results without branding

✨ Features

• Timeline-based editing - Professional multi-track timeline
• Multi-track support - Audio, video, and overlay tracks
• Real-time preview - See changes instantly
• No subscriptions - One-time setup, lifetime use
• Cross-platform - Web, desktop, and mobile support

🏗️ Architecture

  graph TD
    A[OpenCut Editor] --> B[Web App]
    A --> C[Desktop App]
    A --> D[Mobile App]

    B --> E[Next.js Frontend]
    B --> F[Timeline Canvas]
    B --> G[Preview Panel]

    E --> H[Zustand Stores]
    H --> H1[Editor State]
    H --> H2[Timeline State]
    H --> H3[Media State]
    H --> H4[Playback State]

    F --> I[Multi-track Timeline]
    I --> I1[Video Tracks]
    I --> I2[Audio Tracks]
    I --> I3[Overlay Tracks]

    G --> J[Real-time Preview]
    J --> K[DOM Rendering]
    J --> L[Binary Rendering Future]

    M[Storage System] --> N[IndexedDB]
    M --> O[OPFS File System]
    N --> P[Projects & Settings]
    O --> Q[Media Files]

    R[Processing] --> S[FFmpeg.js]
    R --> T[Background Removal]
    R --> U[Transcription]

🚀 Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Node.js (v18 or later)
• Bun (npm alternative)
• Docker (optional, for database)

Quick Setup

# 1. Fork and clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/OpenCut.git
cd OpenCut

# 2. Navigate to web app
cd apps/web

# 3. Copy environment variables
cp .env.example .env.local

# 4. Install dependencies
bun install

# 5. Start development server
bun dev

Environment Variables

# Database (matches docker-compose.yaml)
DATABASE_URL="postgresql://opencut:opencutthegoat@localhost:5432/opencut"

# Authentication
BETTER_AUTH_SECRET="your-generated-secret-here"
BETTER_AUTH_URL="http://localhost:3000"

# Redis
UPSTASH_REDIS_REST_URL="http://localhost:8079"
UPSTASH_REDIS_REST_TOKEN="example_token"

Docker Development

# Start database and Redis services
docker-compose up -d

# Run database migrations
bun run db:migrate

# Start development server
bun run dev

📁 Project Structure

apps/
├── web/               # Main Next.js application
├── desktop/           # Tauri desktop app
├── bg-remover/        # Python background removal
└── transcription/     # Audio transcription service

src/
├── components/        # React components
├── stores/           # Zustand state management
├── hooks/            # Custom React hooks
├── lib/              # Utilities and services
└── types/            # TypeScript definitions

🎬 Video Editing Workflow

  sequenceDiagram
    participant User
    participant Timeline
    participant Preview
    participant Storage
    participant FFmpeg

    User->>+Timeline: Import Media
    Timeline->>+Storage: Store in OPFS
    Storage-->>-Timeline: File Reference

    User->>+Timeline: Add to Track
    Timeline->>+Preview: Update Preview
    Preview-->>-User: Real-time Feedback

    User->>+Timeline: Apply Effects
    Timeline->>+Preview: Render Changes
    Preview-->>-User: Updated Preview

    User->>+Timeline: Export Video
    Timeline->>+FFmpeg: Process Timeline
    FFmpeg->>+Storage: Generate Output
    Storage-->>-User: Download Ready

🤝 Contributing

We welcome contributions! Focus areas include:

✅ Recommended Areas:

• Timeline functionality improvements
• Project management features
• Performance optimizations
• Bug fixes and UI improvements
• Documentation and testing

⚠️ Avoid for Now:

• Preview panel enhancements (undergoing refactor)
• Export functionality changes
• Preview rendering optimizations

Quick Start for Contributors

# 1. Fork and clone
git clone https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/OpenCut.git

# 2. Create feature branch
git checkout -b feature/your-feature-name

# 3. Follow setup in CONTRIBUTING.md
# 4. Make changes and test
# 5. Submit pull request

🏢 Sponsors

Thanks to our sponsors for supporting open-source software:

📚 Resources

• GitHub Repository
• Getting Started Guide
• Development Setup
• Contributing Guide
• Security Policy
• Code of Conduct

📄 License

MIT License - Free for commercial and personal use.