suckless-cut
suckless-cut recreates selected LosslessCut features in the mpv video player through a Lua script.
About suckless-cut
suckless-cut is an open-source Lua script for the mpv video player (not mpv.net) that recreates features its author liked from LosslessCut. It lets you set in and out points with the keyboard, collect them as "indexes," and then run an external program—smoothie or ffmpeg—to produce cut copies of the video. The script targets keyboard-driven workflows and avoids the loading times associated with a Chromium-based interface.
It supports multiple segments, playlists of simultaneously open files, and displays cut segments as fake chapters. Installation is manual: you place suckless-cut.lua in your mpv scripts folder or launch mpv with --script pointing at the file. Export mode is cycled between smoothie and ffmpeg, and cutting mode between split (separate files per cut) and trim (merging cuts per video). The source notes that smoothie exports do not contain audio, and that easy keyboard seeking across keyframes is still a to-do.
Key features
- Sets in and out points with keyboard shortcuts, not a mouse
- Stores multiple cut segments as navigable indexes
- Renders cuts by invoking external smoothie or ffmpeg processes
- Cycles cutting modes: split into separate files or trim and merge
- Supports playlists with several files open at once
- Displays cut segments as fake chapters in mpv
Best for: mpv users on Linux or Windows who prefer a keyboard-only, command-line-oriented video cutting workflow over a graphical editor.
Good for
- Entirely keyboard-controllable, with no Chromium or JavaScript involved
- Free and open source under the GPL-3.0 license
- Runs inside mpv, which the author describes as a snappier video player
Watch out for
- smoothie exports do not contain audio, so ffmpeg must be used first for those cuts
- Keyboard keybinds for seeking across keyframes are still listed as a to-do
- Requires mpv (not mpv.net) and manual placement of the Lua script
suckless-cut at a glance
- Category
- Design & Creative › Video Editing & Animation
- Type
- Open-source project
- Pricing
- Not confirmed. Check the site
- Platforms
- Linux, Windows
- Open source
- Yes · Source code
- Language
- English
- Last checked
- Oct 6, 2026 · Online when checked
- Listed
- Oct 5, 2026
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suckless-cut FAQ
How do I install suckless-cut?
Place suckless-cut.lua in your mpv scripts folder, or run mpv with --script="/path/to/suckless-cut.lua". The scripts folder location depends on your mpv configuration, and on Windows an mpv install via Scoop puts it under %USERPROFILE%\scoop\apps\mpv\current\portable_config.
Which export programs can it use?
smoothie and ffmpeg. Ctrl+r runs your default export program on the current indexes, and K cycles export modes. Note that smoothie exports contain no audio.
How can I cut at keyframes?
Move your cursor over the seekbar and use the mouse scroll wheel to seek across keyframes, then set start and end points there. The README notes that finding or adding keyboard keybinds for this is still a to-do.
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