- NOTE: Project is in massive rework. *
Initially started as a simple EXR Image Image Sequence Player in Rust. The aim was to actually learn Rust and create something useful. LLMs and agentic applications like Claude Code, Codex, Qwen and the rest provide enormous help here and allow to perform 10x-100x faster, so I started to add some more features upon my friends requests: flexible viewport, layers, timeline, attribute editor, h264/265/ProRes encoding, REST api, multithreaded composing with LRU cache and more.
- Single binary, cross-platform - One executable, no dependencies.
- Download and run on Windows, macOS, or Linux
- Instant scrubbing - Epoch-based cache keeps UI responsive at any speed
- Parallel loading - Work-stealing across CPU cores
- Smart memory - LRU cache with configurable memory limit
- JKL shuttle - Industry-standard transport with speed ramping
- EXR —
vfx-io/exr-core(pure Rust; DWAA/DWAB/HTJ2K-capable pipelines used by Playa) - Images - PNG, JPEG, TIFF, TGA, HDR
- Video - MP4, MOV, AVI, MKV via FFmpeg
- Pixel formats - 8-bit, 16-bit half-float, 32-bit float
- Hardware encoding - NVENC (NVIDIA), QSV (Intel), AMF (AMD)
- Software encoding - H.264, H.265 via libx264/libx265
- Range export - Encode only selected frame range (B/N markers)
- Node-based - FileNode, CompNode, CameraNode, TextNode
- Blend modes - Normal, Screen, Add, Subtract, Multiply, Divide, Difference
- 3D transforms - Position, Rotation, Scale with perspective camera
- Layer effects - Gaussian Blur, Brightness/Contrast, HSV (CPU)
- Interactive gizmos - Move/Rotate/Scale manipulation in viewport
- Smart sequence detection - Load one frame, finds all automatically
- REST API - Remote control via HTTP endpoints
- Custom GLSL shaders - Drop shaders in
shaders/folder - Persistent state - Remembers settings between sessions
Download from Releases:
| Platform | Recommended | Alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Windows | playa-x.x.x-*-setup.exe (see Releases) |
.msi, portable .zip |
| macOS | playa-x.x.x*.dmg |
Code-signed DMG bundles |
| Linux | playa-x.x.x*.AppImage |
.deb package |
Names on the Releases page may include legacy exrs/vfx-exr tags; current default engine is vfx-io / exr-core (pure Rust, DWAA/DWAB-capable).
macOS: All DMG releases are code-signed and notarized.
git clone https://github.com/ssoj13/playa.git && cd playa
python bootstrap.py build # Windows / Linux / macOS (via cargo xtask)
python bootstrap.py build -d # Debug profile
python bootstrap.py testThe build env (MSVC toolchain + vcpkg triplet + PKG_CONFIG_PATH) is set up
automatically by xtask::env_setup — no need to launch a Developer PowerShell
or vcvars64.bat first.
FFmpeg is consumed from vcpkg (vendored Rust wrapper at crates/playa-ffmpeg/).
The workspace ships vcpkg.json + vcpkg-configuration.json pinning FFmpeg to
a specific microsoft/vcpkg revision; install once from the project root:
vcpkg install --x-manifest-root . --x-install-root .vcpkg/installed --triplet x64-windows-static-md-releasextask::env_setup auto-detects the local .vcpkg/ install and pins
VCPKG_ROOT at it, so the global vcpkg state stops mattering for playa.
See crates/playa-ffmpeg/README.md for
Linux / macOS install commands and an explanation of why avdevice / avfilter
are excluded.
# Launch empty (drag-drop files)
playa
# Load sequence (auto-detects all frames)
playa render.0001.exr
# Load with options
playa -f sequence.exr --frame 50 -a -F # Frame 50, autoplay, fullscreenVersion info (-V):
playa 0.1.142
EXR: vfx-io / exr-core (pure Rust, all compressions)
Video: playa-ffmpeg 8.0 (static)
Target: x86_64-windows
| Panel | Hotkey | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Viewport | - | Image display with zoom/pan |
| Timeline | - | Layer timeline with trim/move |
| Project | F2 |
Media pool |
| Attributes | F3 |
Layer properties |
| Encode | F4 |
Video export |
| Settings | F12 |
Preferences |
| Help | F1 |
Keyboard shortcuts |
| Action | Control |
|---|---|
| Zoom | Mouse wheel (centers on cursor) |
| Pan | Middle mouse drag |
| Fit | F |
| 100% | A or H |
| Fullscreen | Z |
| Scrub | Right click + drag |
| Pick layer | Left click (Select mode Q) |
| Key | Tool |
|---|---|
Q |
Select/Scrub |
W |
Move |
E |
Rotate |
R |
Scale |
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
Space |
Play/Pause |
K |
Stop |
J / L |
Jog backward/forward (cumulative) |
Left / Right |
Step 1 frame |
Shift+Arrows |
Step 25 frames |
Home / End |
Jump to start/end |
; / ' |
Prev/Next layer edge |
` |
Toggle loop |
- / = |
Decrease/Increase FPS |
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
B |
Set range start |
N |
Set range end |
Ctrl+B |
Reset to full range |
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
[ |
Align start to cursor |
] |
Align end to cursor |
Alt+[ |
Trim start to cursor |
Alt+] |
Trim end to cursor |
Ctrl+D |
Duplicate layers |
Delete |
Delete layer |
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
F1 |
Help |
F2 |
Project panel |
F3 |
Attributes panel |
F4 |
Encode dialog |
F12 |
Settings |
Z |
Fullscreen |
Ctrl+S |
Save project |
Ctrl+O |
Open project |
- Drag-drop folder or
playa render.0001.exr Spaceto play,J/Lfor shuttle- Mouse wheel to zoom, middle-drag to pan
- Load sequence
- Set range:
B(start),N(end) F4- encode dialog- Select codec, click "Encode"
- Create composition (right-click in Project)
- Drag clips to timeline
- Transform with W/E/R tools
- Adjust blend mode in Attributes (F3)
- Add effects (Blur, Brightness, HSV)
Enable in Settings > Web Server:
curl http://localhost:8080/api/status
curl -X POST http://localhost:8080/api/player/play
curl -X POST http://localhost:8080/api/player/frame/100+--------------------------------------------------+
| PlayaApp |
+--------------------------------------------------+
| Player | Viewport | Timeline |
| (state machine) | (OpenGL) | (layers) |
+--------------------------------------------------+
| EventBus | GlobalCache | Workers |
| (pub/sub) | (LRU + epoch) | (parallel) |
+--------------------------------------------------+
| Project (media pool) | Nodes (File/Comp/Camera) |
+--------------------------------------------------+
How acceleration works:
- User scrubs - SetFrameEvent emitted
- Epoch increments - Previous frame requests marked stale
- Cache check - Return immediately if cached
- Worker dispatch - Job added to work-stealing queue
- Parallel load - Workers compete to process jobs
- Epoch validation - Workers skip stale requests
- Cache insert - Result stored, UI repainted
For detailed architecture, see AGENTS.md.
| Document | Description |
|---|---|
| DEVELOP.md | Build from source, FFmpeg setup |
| AGENTS.md | Architecture, dataflow diagrams |
| CHANGELOG.md | Version history |
Built with Rust. Powered by vfx-io (oiio-rs), playa-ffmpeg, egui, and the Rust ecosystem.
Icon: Flaticon by Yasashii std
For build instructions, see DEVELOP.md. For architecture details, see AGENTS.md.