From cf5e79e919144200294fb9fed22a222592a0aeea Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Maze <167211895+mazeincoding@users.noreply.github.com>
Date: Sun, 17 May 2026 18:07:21 +0200
Subject: docs: readme
---
README.md | 157 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
1 file changed, 157 insertions(+)
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This is the original OpenCut codebase. It's archived and no longer maintained.
The rewrite is happening at [opencut-app/opencut](https://github.com/opencut-app/opencut).
+
+## Sponsors
+
+Thanks to [Vercel](https://vercel.com?utm_source=github-opencut&utm_campaign=oss) and [fal.ai](https://fal.ai?utm_source=github-opencut&utm_campaign=oss) for their support of open-source software.
+
+
+ 
+
+
+
+ 
+
+
+## Why?
+
+- **Privacy**: Your videos stay on your device
+- **Free features**: Most basic CapCut features are now paywalled
+- **Simple**: People want editors that are easy to use - CapCut proved that
+
+## Project Structure
+
+- `apps/web/`: Next.js web application
+- `apps/desktop/`: Native desktop app built with GPUI (in progress)
+- `rust/`: Platform-agnostic core: GPU compositor, effects, masks, and WASM bindings. We're actively migrating business logic here from TypeScript.
+- `docs/`: Architecture and subsystem documentation
+
+## Getting Started
+
+### Prerequisites
+
+- [Bun](https://bun.sh/docs/installation)
+- [Docker](https://docs.docker.com/get-docker/) and [Docker Compose](https://docs.docker.com/compose/install/)
+
+> **Note:** Docker is optional but recommended for running the local database and Redis. If you only want to work on frontend features, you can skip it.
+
+### Setup
+
+1. Fork and clone the repository
+
+2. Copy the environment file:
+
+ ```bash
+ # Unix/Linux/Mac
+ cp apps/web/.env.example apps/web/.env.local
+
+ # Windows PowerShell
+ Copy-Item apps/web/.env.example apps/web/.env.local
+ ```
+
+3. Start the database and Redis:
+
+ ```bash
+ docker compose up -d db redis serverless-redis-http
+ ```
+
+4. Install dependencies and start the dev server:
+
+ ```bash
+ bun install
+ bun dev:web
+ ```
+
+The application will be available at [http://localhost:3000](http://localhost:3000).
+
+The `.env.example` has sensible defaults that match the Docker Compose config — it should work out of the box.
+
+### Desktop setup
+
+Desktop is opt-in. If you're only working on the web app, skip this entirely.
+
+If you want to get ready for `apps/desktop`, see [`apps/desktop/README.md`](apps/desktop/README.md). It's a two-step setup: Rust toolchain first, then desktop native dependencies.
+
+### Local WASM development
+
+Only needed if you're editing `rust/wasm` and want the web app to use your local build instead of the published package.
+
+**Prerequisites** — install these once before anything else:
+
+```bash
+# Rust toolchain
+curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -sSf https://sh.rustup.rs | sh
+
+# build the WASM package
+cargo install wasm-pack
+
+# reruns the build on file changes, used by bun dev:wasm
+cargo install cargo-watch
+```
+
+1. Build the package once from the repo root:
+
+ ```bash
+ bun run build:wasm
+ ```
+
+2. Register the generated package for linking:
+
+ ```bash
+ cd rust/wasm/pkg
+ bun link
+ ```
+
+3. Link `apps/web` to the local package:
+
+ ```bash
+ cd apps/web
+ bun link opencut-wasm
+ ```
+
+4. Rebuild on changes while you work:
+
+ ```bash
+ bun dev:wasm
+ ```
+
+To switch `apps/web` back to the published package, run:
+
+```bash
+cd apps/web
+bun add opencut-wasm
+```
+
+### Self-Hosting with Docker
+
+To run everything (including a production build of the app) in Docker:
+
+```bash
+docker compose up -d
+```
+
+The app will be available at [http://localhost:3100](http://localhost:3100).
+
+## Contributing
+
+We welcome contributions! While we're actively developing and refactoring certain areas, there are plenty of opportunities to contribute effectively.
+
+**🎯 Focus areas:** Timeline functionality, project management, performance, bug fixes, and UI improvements outside the preview panel.
+
+**⚠️ Avoid for now:** Preview panel enhancements (fonts, stickers, effects) and export functionality - we're refactoring these with a new binary rendering approach.
+
+See our [Contributing Guide](.github/CONTRIBUTING.md) for detailed setup instructions, development guidelines, and complete focus area guidance.
+
+**Quick start for contributors:**
+
+- Fork the repo and clone locally
+- Follow the setup instructions in CONTRIBUTING.md
+- Working on `apps/desktop`? See [`apps/desktop/README.md`](apps/desktop/README.md) for setup
+- Create a feature branch and submit a PR
+
+## License
+
+[MIT LICENSE](LICENSE)
+
+---
+
+
+
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