Installation

macOS (Recommended)

One command installs everything — Node.js and all Python dependencies including bundled ffmpeg:

brew install theSamPadilla/montaj/montaj

Then install Whisper model weights:

montaj install whisper

Linux / Manual

git clone https://github.com/theSamPadilla/montaj
cd montaj
pip install -e .

This installs Python dependencies (including a bundled ffmpeg). Node.js cannot be installed via pip — install it separately:

# Install Node.js >= 18: https://nodejs.org
montaj install whisper   # whisper-cpp binary + model weights
montaj install ui        # npm deps + UI build

Optional Dependencies

montaj install rvm          # background removal (torch + RVM weights)
montaj install connectors   # pyjwt, requests, google-genai, openai (for API steps)
montaj install credentials  # interactive setup for API keys
montaj install all          # everything above

Dependency Groups

Group	What it installs	Required for
`whisper`	whisper-cpp binary (pinned), base.en model weights	`transcribe`, `rm_fillers`, `rm_nonspeech`, `waveform_trim`, render pipeline
`ui`	npm deps for `render/` and `ui/`; production UI build	`montaj serve`, render engine
`rvm`	torch, torchvision, av (pip) + RVM model weights	`remove_bg`
`connectors`	pyjwt, requests, google-genai, openai	`kling_generate`, `analyze_media`, `generate_image`

Whisper Models

By default, montaj install whisper downloads the base.en model. To install a different model:

montaj install whisper --model medium.en

montaj install whisper is safe to re-run — it skips the binary if already at the pinned version and skips weights if already downloaded.

Upgrade

montaj update            # upgrade everything (whisper binary, pip packages)
montaj update whisper    # re-download whisper binary if pinned version changed
montaj update pip        # pip install --upgrade for all Python packages

System Requirements

Tool	Purpose
`ffmpeg` + `ffprobe`	Core video processing (bundled via pip/brew)
`whisper.cpp`	Local speech-to-text with word-level timestamps
`Python 3.x`	Script + step runtime
`Node.js >= 18`	Render engine (React + Puppeteer) + UI server

Installation

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