video-merger

name	video-merger
description	Merge multiple video files or all videos in a directory into a single output file using ffmpeg. Use when user wants to combine clips, stitch recordings, or join video segments.

Video Merger Skill

Merge multiple video files into one using ffmpeg.

Prerequisites

• ffmpeg must be installed on the system.

Usage

Use the provided Python script to merge video files by specifying individual files or a directory.

Commands

Merge individual files:

python3 <path-to-skill>/scripts/merge_videos.py video1.mp4 video2.mp4 -o final_video.mp4

Merge all videos in a directory:

# Merges all supported video files in the specified directory
python3 <path-to-skill>/scripts/merge_videos.py --dir ./my_videos -o final_video.mp4

Merge and sort by time:

python3 <path-to-skill>/scripts/merge_videos.py --dir ./my_videos --sort time -o final_video.mp4

Important Considerations

• Codec Compatibility: The current implementation uses the concat demuxer with -c copy, which is extremely fast because it doesn't re-encode the video. However, it requires all input videos to have the same stream parameters (resolution, frame rate, codecs, etc.).
• Natural Sorting: When using --dir, files are sorted using "natural sort" (e.g., 1.mp4 comes before 10.mp4).
• Supported Extensions: .mp4, .mkv, .avi, .mov, .flv, .wmv, .m4v.

Workflow

1. Identify the list of video files or the directory to be merged.
2. Determine the desired order (individual list, natural name sort, or modification time).
3. Call the merge_videos.py script with the appropriate arguments.
4. If the fast merge fails, inform the user about codec compatibility issues.