There are tons of Python FFmpeg wrappers out there but they seem to lack complex filter support. ffmpeg-python works well for simple as well as complex signal graphs.

Quickstart

Flip a video horizontally:

import ffmpeg
stream = ffmpeg.input('input.mp4')
stream = ffmpeg.hflip(stream)
stream = ffmpeg.output(stream, 'output.mp4')
ffmpeg.run(stream)

Or if you prefer a fluent interface:

import ffmpeg
(
    ffmpeg
    .input('input.mp4')
    .hflip()
    .output('output.mp4')
    .run()
)

Complex filter graphs

FFmpeg is extremely powerful, but its command-line interface gets really complicated rather quickly - especially when working with signal graphs and doing anything more than trivial.

Take for example a signal graph that looks like this:

The corresponding command-line arguments are pretty gnarly:

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -i overlay.png -filter_complex "[0]trim=start_frame=10:end_frame=20[v0];\
    [0]trim=start_frame=30:end_frame=40[v1];[v0][v1]concat=n=2[v2];[1]hflip[v3];\
    [v2][v3]overlay=eof_action=repeat[v4];[v4]drawbox=50:50:120:120:red:t=5[v5]"\
    -map [v5] output.mp4

Maybe this looks great to you, but if you're not an FFmpeg command-line expert, it probably looks alien.

If you're like me and find Python to be powerful and readable, it's easy with ffmpeg-python:

import ffmpeg

in_file = ffmpeg.input('input.mp4')
overlay_file = ffmpeg.input('overlay.png')
(
    ffmpeg
    .concat(
        in_file.trim(start_frame=10, end_frame=20),
        in_file.trim(start_frame=30, end_frame=40),
    )
    .overlay(overlay_file.hflip())
    .drawbox(50, 50, 120, 120, color='red', thickness=5)
    .output('out.mp4')
    .run()
)

ffmpeg-python takes care of running ffmpeg with the command-line arguments that correspond to the above filter diagram, and it's easy to see what's going on and make changes as needed.

Real-world signal graphs can get a heck of a lot more complex, but ffmpeg-python handles them with ease.

Installation

The latest version of ffmpeg-python can be acquired via pip:

pip install ffmpeg-python

It's also possible to clone the source and put it on your python path ($PYTHONPATH, sys.path, etc.):

$ git clone git@github.com:kkroening/ffmpeg-python.git
$ export PYTHONPATH=${PYTHONPATH}:ffmpeg-python
$ python
>>> import ffmpeg

Examples

When in doubt, take a look at the examples to see if there's something that's close to whatever you're trying to do.

Here are a few:

Tensorflow/DeepDream streaming

See the Examples README for additional examples.

Custom Filters

Don't see the filter you're looking for? ffmpeg-python includes shorthand notation for some of the most commonly used filters (such as concat), but it's easy to use any arbitrary ffmpeg filter:

stream = ffmpeg.input('dummy.mp4')
stream = ffmpeg.filter(stream, 'fps', fps=25, round='up')
stream = ffmpeg.output(stream, 'dummy2.mp4')
ffmpeg.run(stream)

Or fluently:

(
    ffmpeg
    .input('dummy.mp4')
    .filter('fps', fps=25, round='up')
    .output('dummy2.mp4')
    .run()
)

Arguments with special names such as -qscale:v can be specified as a keyword-args dictionary as follows:

(
    ffmpeg
    .input('dummy.mp4')
    .output('dummy2.mp4', **{'qscale:v': 3})
    .run()
)

When in doubt, refer to the existing filters, examples, and/or the official ffmpeg documentation.

Frequently asked questions

Why do I get an import/attribute/etc error from import ffmpeg?

Make sure you ran pip install ffmpeg-python and not pip install ffmpeg or pip install python-ffmpeg.

How do I do XYZ?

Take a look at each of the links in the Additional Resources section at the end of this README. If you look everywhere and can't find what you're looking for and have a question that may be relevant to other users, you may open an issue asking how to do it, while providing a thorough explanation of what you're trying to do and what you've tried so far.

Issues not directly related to ffmpeg-python or issues asking others to write your code for you or how to do the work of solving a complex signal processing problem for you that's not relevant to other users will be closed.

That said, we hope to continue improving our documentation and provide a community of support for people using ffmpeg-python to do cool and exciting things.

Why did my audio stream get dropped?

Some ffmpeg filters drop audio streams, and care must be taken to preserve the audio in the final output. The .audio and .video operators can be used to reference the audio/video portions of a stream so that they can be processed separately and then re-combined later in the pipeline.

This dilemma is intrinsic to ffmpeg, and ffmpeg-python tries to stay out of the way while users may refer to the official ffmpeg documentation as to why certain filters drop audio.

As usual, take a look at the Examples (the "Audio/video pipeline" example in particular).

Contributing

One of the best things you can do to help make ffmpeg-python better is to answer open questions in the issue tracker. The questions that are answered will be tagged and eventually incorporated into the documentation, examples, and other learning resources.

If you notice things that could be better in the documentation or overall development experience, please say so in the issue tracker. And of course, feel free to report any bugs or submit feature requests.

Pull requests are welcome as well, but it wouldn't hurt to touch base in the issue tracker or hop on the Matrix chat channel first.

Anyone who fixes any of the open bugs or implements requested enhancements is a hero, but changes should include passing tests.

README.md

ffmpeg-python: Python bindings for FFmpeg

Overview