Video Editor

A Descript-like video editor that is also an MCP server, powered by the ffmpeg CLI. Draft a video programmatically with Claude (via MCP), then refine clips, overlays and effects in a visual, dark-theme web UI.

Architecture

                       project.json (single source of truth)
                                     │ ProjectStore
                ┌────────────────────┴────────────────────┐
                │            packages/server               │
                │  REST + WebSocket + ffmpeg + MCP (/mcp)   │
                └───────▲───────────────────────▲──────────┘
            live updates│ (WebSocket)            │ MCP over HTTP
                        │                        │
                 packages/web              Claude Code / any MCP client
            timeline + composited preview

• packages/core — shared zod schema, ProjectStore, and the ffmpeg layer (binary resolver, probe, filtergraph compiler, runner).

• packages/server — Express REST + WebSocket backend; uploads, streaming, export, and the MCP server mounted at /mcp (streamable HTTP). Editing tools mutate the same project.json, so changes appear live in the UI.

• packages/web — React UI: project/files panel, multi-track timeline (@xzdarcy/react-timeline-editor) with Select/Cut tools and zoom, and a real-time Canvas2D composited preview.

Related MCP server: ffmpeg-mcp

Quick start

npm install
npm run dev     # starts the backend (:5174) and the web UI (:5173)

FFmpeg

By default the app uses ffmpeg/ffprobe from your PATH. To download and use a bundled binary instead, set:

export FFMPEG_SOURCE=download   # uses ffmpeg-static / ffprobe-static
# FFMPEG_SOURCE=system (default) uses ffmpeg/ffprobe on PATH

MCP server

The MCP server is exposed over HTTP by the backend at /mcp while it runs (npm run dev). Register it with Claude Code:

claude mcp add --transport http video-editor http://localhost:5174/mcp

Tools: get_project, list_media, import_media, add_track, add_clip, move_clip, trim_clip, split_clip, add_text_overlay, add_transition, set_effect, remove_clip, set_transform, set_resolution, rename_project, export_video, render_frame. They edit the same project.json the UI uses, so an open browser updates live.