Elemental MediaConvert

Get started with Elemental MediaConvert on LocalStack
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  3 minute read  

Introduction

Elemental MediaConvert is a file-based video transcoding service with broadcast-grade features. It enables you to easily create high-quality video streams for broadcast and multiscreen delivery.

LocalStack allows you to mock the MediaConvert APIs in your local environment. The supported APIs are available on our API coverage page, which provides information on the extent of MediaConvert’s integration with LocalStack.

Getting started

This guide is designed for users new to Elemental MediaConvert and assumes basic knowledge of the AWS CLI and our awslocal wrapper script.

Start your LocalStack container using your preferred method. We will demonstrate how to create a MediaConvert job, list jobs, create a queue, and list all queues using the AWS CLI.

Create a job

Create a new file named job.json on your local directory:

{
  "Role": "arn:aws:iam::000000000000:role/MediaConvert_Default_Role",
  "Settings": {
    "Inputs": [
      {
        "VideoSelector": {},
        "AudioSelectors": {
          "Audio Selector 1": {
            "DefaultSelection": "DEFAULT"
          }
        },
        "TimecodeSource": "ZEROBASED",
        "FileInput": "s3://testbucket/input.mp4"
      }
    ],
    "OutputGroups": [
      {
        "Name": "File Group",
        "OutputGroupSettings": {
          "Type": "FILE_GROUP_SETTINGS",
          "FileGroupSettings": {
            "Destination": "s3://testbucket/output.mp4"
          }
        },
        "Outputs": [
          {
            "VideoDescription": {
              "CodecSettings": {
                "Codec": "H_264",
                "H264Settings": {
                  "RateControlMode": "QVBR",
                  "SceneChangeDetect": "TRANSITION_DETECTION",
                  "MaxBitrate": 5000000
                }
              }
            },
            "AudioDescriptions": [
              {
                "CodecSettings": {
                  "Codec": "AAC",
                  "AacSettings": {
                    "Bitrate": 96000,
                    "CodingMode": "CODING_MODE_2_0",
                    "SampleRate": 48000
                  }
                },
                "AudioSourceName": "Audio Selector 1"
              }
            ],
            "ContainerSettings": {
              "Container": "MP4",
              "Mp4Settings": {}
            }
          }
        ],
        "CustomName": "output"
      }
    ],
    "TimecodeConfig": {
      "Source": "ZEROBASED"
    },
    "FollowSource": 1
  }
}

You can create a MediaConvert job using the CreateJob API. Execute the following command to create a job using a job.json file:

$ awslocal mediaconvert create-job --cli-input-json file://job.json

The following output would be retrieved:

{
    "Job": {
        "AccelerationSettings": {
            "Mode": "DISABLED"
        },
        "AccelerationStatus": "NOT_APPLICABLE",
        "Arn": "arn:aws:mediaconvert:us-east-1:000000000000:jobs/1727963943858-7bdace",
        ...
        "Role": "arn:aws:iam::123456789012:role/MediaConvert_Default_Role",
        "Settings": {
            "FollowSource": 1,
            "Inputs": [
                {
                    "AudioSelectors": {
                        "Audio Selector 1": {
                            "DefaultSelection": "DEFAULT"
                        }
                    },
                    ...
                }
            ],
            "OutputGroups": [
                {
                    "CustomName": "output",
                    "Name": "File Group",
                    ...
                }
            ],
            "TimecodeConfig": {
                "Source": "ZEROBASED"
            }
        },
        "Status": "SUBMITTED",
        ...
    }
}

List the jobs

You can list all MediaConvert jobs using the ListJobs API. Execute the following command to list all jobs:

$ awslocal mediaconvert list-jobs

Create a queue

You can create a MediaConvert queue using the CreateQueue API. Execute the following command to create a queue named MyQueue:

$ awslocal mediaconvert create-queue  
    --name MyQueue  
    --description "High priority queue for video encoding"

The following output would be retrieved:

{
    "Queue": {
        "Arn": "arn:aws:mediaconvert:us-east-1:000000000000:queues/MyQueue",
        "CreatedAt": "2024-10-03T19:30:04.015501+05:30",
        "Description": "High priority queue for video encoding",
        "LastUpdated": "2024-10-03T19:30:04.015501+05:30",
        "Name": "MyQueue",
        "PricingPlan": "ON_DEMAND",
        "ProgressingJobsCount": 0,
        "Status": "ACTIVE",
        "SubmittedJobsCount": 0,
        "Type": "CUSTOM"
    }
}

List the queues

You can list all MediaConvert queues using the ListQueues API. Execute the following command to list all queues:

$ awslocal mediaconvert list-queues

Current Limitations

Currently, the service mocks the submission of encoding jobs to either the default queue or a custom-created queue. While actual transcoding is not performed, job completion is emulated.

Job status progresses after a brief wait, and EventBridge events are emitted when the job state changes, allowing users to determine if a job has finished. This delay can be disabled by setting MEDIACONVERT_DISABLE_JOB_DURATION=1, which causes processing jobs to complete almost instantly.

Last modified October 3, 2024: add docs on elemental mediaconvert (#1509) (c397234b4)