Minecraft Vanilla Video Player

You must load both the Data Pack and the Resource Pack to use them

你必须同时装载数据包和资源包和才能使用

by WindWaves_Sea

This article is also published on the author's Blog, Bilibili, and the GitHub repository.

Preface

This project provides a datapack-based solution to play image sequences in vanilla Minecraft, achieving a "pseudo-video" playback effect.

Key features of this datapack:

Automatically calculates frame rates and batch processes frame files.
Provides adaptive frame rates to improve performance.
Offers interfaces for quick configuration and playback of image sequences from resource packs.
Utilizes variables to rapidly add and play sequences.

Warning

By default, this datapack uses the head slot to trigger the equipment overlay. If you do not wish to use the head slot, you must manually modify the code (required for V2.0).

The resource pack includes a transparent model for the overlay item to achieve a seamless visual effect without appearing as a physical item.

Image Sequence: Refers to a series of individual static image files (e.g., .png) saved from each frame of a video or animation, arranged in numerical order.

Download

You can download the prerequisite package from Modrinth or GitHub.

Video Requirements

Videos must be converted into a PNG image sequence.

Playing 60FPS Video with Tick Rate Acceleration

It is recommended to use 20FPS videos. If you must use 60FPS, you need to set the game tick rate to 60:

/tick rate 60

Playing 60FPS Video with Frame Interpolation

In the video configuration, set frame_rate: 60.

Dialog Box

The menu can be opened using the hotkey G or via the game menu. To play a video, you must use the G key or the following command:

dialog show @s animations:open_menu

Players need to select the video resolution:

1920*1080 (16:9)
2560*1080 (16:10)

Note: Please select your language in the language settings before using the video playback page.

Configuration

Parameter Analysis

frame_zero: Defines the leading zeros in the filename. For video0000.png, use {frame_zero: "000"}.
frame: Controls the current frame being played (e.g., {frame: 1}).
path: The path to the items in the resource pack (e.g., {video: "text_video/"}).
name: The name matching the frame prefix. Should match the storage name.
blender: Set to true if using Blender-exported sequences.
frame_rate: Custom frame rate for servers (requires function-permission-level=3). Also used for adaptive frame rate logic.
sound: The sound event defined in sounds.json.
sound_switch: true/false to enable or disable audio.
max_frame: Total number of frames in the video.
slot: The equipment slot for the overlay (head, body, chest, etc.).
resolution: Configuration for multi-resolution support.

Examples

Function Configuration


data merge storage video:school \
{video:\
{frame_zero:"000",\
frame:"0",\
path:"animation:school/",\
name:"school",\
blender_name:"",\
frame_rate:"60",\
sound:"",\
sound_switch:false,\
max_frame:740,\
blender:true,\
slot:"head",\
resolution:{\
switch:false,\
default_size:1,\
size_list:{\
1:true,\
2:false,\
3:false,\
4:false\
}\
},\
language:{\
default_language:"en-us",\
en-us:"School",\
zh-cn:"学校"\
}\
}\
}

function animations:video_add/main with storage video:school video

sounds.json


 {
  "video_text":{
  "sounds":[
	{
	 "name": "animation:video/video_text",
	 "stream": true,
	 "volume": 0.8,
	 "weight": 1
	}
	]
	},
	"":{
	 "name": "",
	 "stream": true,
	 "volume": 0.8,
	 "weight": 1
	}
 }

Mechanism

Based on the research of camera_overlay components. It maps each frame of the video to a specific item model used as a full-screen GUI overlay.

Commands

Start Playback: /function animations:start {video_name:"name"}
Stop: /function animations:stop
Pause: /function animations:pause
Resume: /function animations:continue_play
Clear All Video Configs: /function animations:video_list/delete_all

About Image Sequences

How to Export

Adobe Animate: File > Export > Export Image Sequence.
Premiere Pro: File > Export > Media (Select PNG Sequence).
Aseprite: File > Export > Save As (Include numbers in filename).

Recommended Resolution

Since Minecraft supports adaptive textures, it is recommended to export at 960 * 540 to save disk space and reduce resource pack size.

Notes & Known Issues

Due to Mojang's engine limitations, images that have been played may remain in memory and are not easily cleared, which can lead to "Out of Memory" errors.

Bug Reference: MC-277837
Usage is not recommended on systems with very low RAM.****

Vanilla Video Player