Pure C++20 Core Library for AI-Powered Video Editing
The foundational "fat core" powering ArcVideo — zero UI dependency, maximum portability.
ArcVideoFoundation is the platform-agnostic core library extracted from the ArcVideo non-linear video editor. It provides all the fundamental data types, algorithms, and abstractions needed for professional video editing — without any dependency on Qt or any other UI framework.
| Principle | Description |
|---|---|
| Zero UI Dependency | Pure Standard C++20. No Qt, no GUI frameworks, no window system coupling. |
| Fat Core | Handles the heavy lifting: time math, color processing, audio buffers, SIMD optimization. |
| FFI Ready | Designed for future extern "C" boundary — enabling consumption from C#, Rust, Python, etc. |
| Subdirectory Friendly | Works standalone or as add_subdirectory() in a parent CMake project. |
foundation/
├── include/arcvideo/foundation/ # Public API headers
│ ├── foundation.h # Umbrella header
│ ├── render/ # Audio/video data types
│ │ ├── audioparams.h # Audio channel layout, sample rate
│ │ ├── pixelformat.h # Pixel format definitions
│ │ ├── samplebuffer.h # Audio sample buffer management
│ │ └── sampleformat.h # Audio sample format (int16, float, etc.)
│ └── util/ # Core utilities
│ ├── bezier.h # Bézier curve evaluation
│ ├── color.h # RGBA color + HSL conversion
│ ├── cpuoptimize.h # SSE/NEON SIMD dispatch
│ ├── log.h # Lightweight logging
│ ├── math.h # Math helpers
│ ├── rational.h # Exact rational numbers (via FFmpeg AVRational)
│ ├── stringutils.h # String formatting, split, trim
│ ├── timecodefunctions.h # Timecode ↔ time conversion (NDF, DF, seconds)
│ ├── timerange.h # Time ranges and range lists
│ └── value.h # Type-erased value container
├── src/ # Implementation files
├── docs/ # Build guide
├── tools/ # SlnBridge.ps1 build automation
├── CMakeLists.txt # Standalone CMake project
└── CMakePresets.json # VS 2026 + FASTBuild presets
- CMake 4.2+, Visual Studio 2026, vcpkg
- vcpkg packages:
imath,ffmpeg
# Configure
cmake --preset windows-vs
# Build
cmake --build build/vs --config Debug
# Or use the one-command tool
.\tools\SlnBridge.ps1 -OpenSee docs/BUILD_GUIDE.md for the full setup guide.
add_subdirectory(foundation)
target_link_libraries(your-target PRIVATE ArcVideo::Foundation)#include <arcvideo/foundation/foundation.h>
using namespace arcvideo::foundation;
rational fps(24000, 1001); // 23.976 fps
TimeRange clip(rational(0), rational(10));
Color red(1.0, 0.0, 0.0, 1.0);ArcVideoFoundation exists to enable complete UI/core separation:
┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ UI Layer (Swappable) │
│ ┌─────────────┐ ┌──────────────────┐ │
│ │ Qt Widgets │ │ Avalonia (C#) │ │
│ │ (Current) │ │ (Future) │ │
│ └──────┬───────┘ └────────┬─────────┘ │
│ │ extern "C" │ │
│ ───────┴───────────────────┴────────── │
│ ArcVideoFoundation │
│ Pure C++20 · Zero UI · SIMD · FFI │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘
- Now: Qt widgets call foundation directly via C++ linkage
- Future: C# Avalonia UI consumes foundation through a flat C API (Silk.NET / P/Invoke)
- Result: Zero-copy GPU texture sharing, UI migration without core rewrite
| Library | Purpose | Required |
|---|---|---|
| Imath | VFX-standard math (half, vectors) | ✅ |
| FFmpeg (libavutil) | Rational numbers, channel layouts | ✅ |
| OpenTime | RationalTime interop | Optional |
This project is a fork of Olive Video Editor and is licensed under the GNU General Public License v3.0. See LICENSE for details.
Copyright (C) 2023 Olive Studios LLC and contributors.