Skip to main content

Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mintlify.com/ter-9001/WannaCut/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

The Project Manager is the first screen you see after launching WannaCut. It acts as your creative home base — a dashboard that lists every production in your workspace as a clickable card. Each card shows a thumbnail preview (if one exists) alongside the project name. From here you can open an existing production, create a brand-new one, or permanently delete one you no longer need. Think of it as the Finder or File Explorer for your video work, but purpose-built for WannaCut projects.

​
Workspace Model

WannaCut organizes all projects under a single workspace folder that you choose in Settings. The chosen path is persisted inside wannacut_settings.json, which lives in the WannaCut settings folder stored in localStorage as wannacut_settings_folder. On every launch, the app reads that JSON to restore your workspace path automatically. Each project is a subdirectory inside the workspace folder. When a project is created, WannaCut scaffolds the following structure for it: 
<workspace>/
└── My Awesome Project/
    ├── videos/              # All imported media assets live here
    ├── extracted_audios/    # Auto-extracted MP3 audio from video clips
    ├── thumbnails/          # FFmpeg-generated frame thumbnails
    └── main1234567890.project   # Timestamped project save file(s)
The videos/ folder is the single source of truth for all your media. Clips on the timeline reference assets by filename inside this folder — no media is duplicated.
Back up your entire workspace folder regularly. A single backup captures every project, all imported media, extracted audio, and every saved project snapshot at once.

​
Creating a Project

Click the New Project button on the Project Manager header to open the New Project modal. You will be prompted for the following fields:
1

Name your project

Type a project name in the Project Name field. This becomes both the display name and the directory name inside your workspace.
2

Choose a resolution

Pick a resolution preset from the dropdown. WannaCut ships with four presets:
PresetWidth × HeightAspect Ratio
1080p (16:9)1920 × 1080Landscape
TikTok (9:16)1080 × 1920Portrait
4K Ultra HD3840 × 2160Landscape
Square (1:1)1080 × 1080Square
3

Set the frame rate

Choose 24 FPS, 30 FPS, or 60 FPS from the Frame Rate dropdown.
4

Create

Click Create Project. WannaCut calls the Tauri backend (create_project_setup) to scaffold the project directory, then opens the editor with an empty timeline.
These choices populate the ProjectSettings interface that drives the entire editing session: 
interface ProjectSettings {
  name: string;
  width: number;
  height: number;
  fps: number;
  backgroundColor: string;
  sampleRate: number;
}
You can change any of these settings later via Settings → Project inside the editor.

​
Auto-Save

WannaCut saves your work automatically so you never need to hit a save button. Internally, a useEffect watches for any change to clips, assets, or the project name. Changes are debounced by 0.5 seconds — meaning the save fires half a second after you stop making edits — to avoid thrashing the disk during rapid interactions like dragging clips. Each save writes a timestamped .project file (for example, main1734567890123.project) into the project directory. The file is a JSON snapshot containing: 
interface ProjectFileData {
  projectName: string;
  assets: Asset[];
  clips: Clip[];
  tracks: Tracks[];
  lastModified: number;
  copyOf?: string; // Pointer to another .project file (for history forks)
}
Because each save creates a new timestamped file rather than overwriting the previous one, you always have a full trail of snapshots to fall back on.

​
Project History

Every timestamped .project file is a complete restorable snapshot. To browse and restore previous versions:
1

Open Settings

Click the Settings gear icon in the editor header.
2

Go to the History tab

Inside the Settings modal, navigate to the History tab. WannaCut lists all .project snapshots for the current project, sorted by timestamp.
3

Restore a version

Click any snapshot to load it. WannaCut parses the JSON and replaces the current timeline state — clips, assets, and tracks — with the data from that snapshot.
Restoring a history version replaces the current in-memory state but does not delete newer snapshots. You can always restore forward again.

​
Deleting Projects

To delete a project from the Project Manager:
  1. Hover over the project card — a × button appears in the top-right corner of the card.
  2. Click × to open the deletion confirmation dialog.
  3. Confirm by clicking Delete.
WannaCut calls the Tauri backend command delete_project, which permanently removes the entire project directory — including all imported media in videos/, extracted audio, thumbnails, and all .project snapshot files.
Project deletion is irreversible. There is no recycle bin or undo. Make sure you have a backup of anything you want to keep before confirming deletion.

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Get started for freeTalk to us