Exporting & Sharing Your Video
Export turns your timeline into a finished file. FilmCraft uses its own H.264 and AAC encoders (no FFmpeg).
Exporting a video
- Open Export mode.
- Choose Media File.
- Pick a destination and format (details below).
- Click Export. Background jobs let you keep editing while it renders.
Formats you can export
- H.264 MP4 with AAC — the universal choice for web, YouTube, and sharing.
- Apple ProRes 422 HQ — high-quality master files.
- Motion JPEG in QuickTime.
- MXF OP1a / OP-Atom (DNxHR, ProRes, or H.264) — broadcast interchange.
- PNG sequences, animated GIF, and WAV.
Note: H.264 is the only software delivery codec for now. H.265/HEVC export works only through a hardware encoder (NVIDIA on Windows, VideoToolbox on Mac). For most school work, H.264 MP4 is exactly what you want.
Render previews
The render bar above the timeline marks segments green, yellow, or red. Rendered previews are cached by content, so re-rendering after a small edit only redoes what changed — and undo brings the green back.
Interchange (moving projects)
FilmCraft can read and write industry timeline formats: FCP 7 XML, FCPXML, OpenTimelineIO, CMX 3600 EDL, AAF, and OMF 2.0. That means you can hand a timeline to another editor (or bring one in) without re-cutting. Note: native .prproj import isn’t available yet — use FCP7 XML or AAF to move between Premiere and FilmCraft.
Try it yourself
Export your finished video as H.264 MP4, then play it back outside FilmCraft to confirm it looks and sounds right.
Course on media.sacaa.org — free for any visitor, no login required. Work through lessons in order.