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Rendobar uses different rendering engines depending on the job type. Understanding which engine handles your job helps you choose the right approach.

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Two rendering paths

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FFmpeg — Single-input transformations

Most job types use FFmpeg under the hood. FFmpeg excels at operations on individual files: watermarking, transcoding, trimming, format conversion, caption burning, face redaction. FFmpeg-based job types: watermark.add, watermark.remove, transcode, thumbnail, caption.burn, compliance.gdpr.redact, raw.ffmpeg

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Rendley — Multi-clip compositions

For composing new videos from multiple inputs (clips, text, audio, images), Rendobar uses the Rendley SDK. Rendley provides a timeline-based editing model with layers, transitions, and effects. Rendley-based job types: render.rendley

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When to use which

Use caseEngineJob type
Add a logo to a videoFFmpegwatermark.add
Convert MP4 to WebMFFmpegtranscode
Burn subtitlesFFmpegcaption.burn
Blur faces for privacyFFmpegcompliance.gdpr.redact
Combine 5 clips with transitionsRendleyrender.rendley
Add animated text overlaysRendleyrender.rendley
Create a video from images + audioRendleyrender.rendley
Custom FFmpeg commandFFmpegraw.ffmpeg

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The processing pipeline

Regardless of engine, every job follows the same pipeline:
1

Download

Input files are fetched from your provided URLs to the processing server.
2

Probe

FFmpeg’s ffprobe analyzes input metadata (resolution, duration, codecs).
3

Detect (AI jobs)

Face detection, plate detection, or transcription runs on the input.
4

Translate

Job parameters + probe data + detections are translated into an execution plan.
5

Execute

FFmpeg or Rendley processes the job according to the plan.
6

Upload

The output is uploaded to cloud storage.
7

Callback

The API is notified of completion with result metadata.

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Execution plans

The translation step produces an execution plan — either an FFmpeg command specification or a Rendley composition JSON. This separation means:
  • Translators are pure functions with no side effects
  • Plans can be validated before execution
  • The same translator works regardless of where the job runs

Rendering Guide

Rendley composition examples

Raw FFmpeg

Custom FFmpeg commands

Job Types

Full list of operations