Aphelion Editor

A node-based video compositor. Build a graph, preview in real time, export from any Viewer.

Aphelion is a desktop suite: node graph, viewport, timeline, media pool, and property inspector. The pipeline is float32 RGB. Export and tracking run off the UI thread. Third-party nodes use the sibling Plugin SDK.

Version 0.1.1. Python 3.11+.

Features

90+ built-in nodes — input/output, generators, color, filters, compositing, transform, keying, roto, tracking, timing, distort, stylize, math
Real-time preview — decode-time proxy (default 960px), optional 640px playback proxy, frame cache and prefetch
Compositing — chroma key, matte edge, spill suppress, bezier roto, point and planar tracking, corner pin, merge/dissolve
Color — grading, exposure, hue/saturation, white balance, levels, vibrance, shadows/highlights, creative looks
Timeline — playback, in/out, keyframed properties (default 1920×1080 @ 30 fps, 10 s)
Projects — .aph JSON with autosave once a path exists
Export — MP4 or PNG sequence from the active Viewer
Plugins — aphelion_sdk drop-ins, wheels, and Preferences → Plugins (enable, disable, reload)

Quick start

cd aphelion-editor
python -m venv .venv
# Windows: .\.venv\Scripts\Activate.ps1
# macOS / Linux: source .venv/bin/activate
pip install -e ".[dev,freeze]"
python main.py

The launcher creates a project, opens a .aph, or restores a recent file. aphelion --version prints the app version.

Full install notes: docs/getting-started.md.

Documentation

Guide	Contents
Getting started	Environment, install, launch
User guide	Workspace, graph, playback, export, shortcuts
Plugins	Folders, preferences, reload
Architecture	Packages, boot, frame pipeline
Packaging	Wheels, freeze, Windows MSI
Development	Tests, typing, logging

CLI

python main.py
python main.py --build
python main.py --build-installer          # Windows MSI → dist/AphelionEditorSetup-0.1.0-win64.msi
python main.py --build-dir path/to/output
aphelion --version

--build-installer includes a freeze. Details: docs/packaging.md.

Layout

aphelion-editor/
  src/           Application packages (ui, core, render, …)
  plugins/       Bundled drop-in plugin modules
  tests/         pytest
  main.py        Source-tree launcher
aphelion-sdk/    Public plugin SDK (sibling package)

UI stays in ui/. Core logic is Qt-free. Frames are float32 RGB in [0, 1].

License

Proprietary. Same for the plugin SDK; see ../aphelion-sdk/pyproject.toml.