Python anim.save Mencoder download/install

Question

I am new to Python animations and I'm trying to save one, following this tutorial:

https://jakevdp.github.io/blog/2012/08/18/matplotlib-animation-tutorial/

Everything works except the saving part:

# save the animation as an mp4.  This requires ffmpeg or mencoder to be
# installed.  The extra_args ensure that the x264 codec is used, so that
# the video can be embedded in html5.  You may need to adjust this for
# your system: for more information, see
# http://matplotlib.sourceforge.net/api/animation_api.html

anim.save('basic_animation.mp4', fps=30, extra_args=['-vcodec', 'libx264'])

I downloaded and extracted Mencoder from here: http://www.videohelp.com/software/MPlayer

but not sure what to do now. I looked online but was unable to find step-by-step instructions from downloading the software to calling it in Python. I am using 64-bit Windows 10. Any help would be much appreciated.

It sounds like you found a solution, but I think you needed to add writer='mencoder' to the save() arguments, and probably remove the extra_args, since they are for ffmpeg. — Gabriel
– Gabriel, Commented Dec 15, 2016 at 10:45

Community · Accepted Answer · 2017-05-23 12:24:53Z

1

I figured it out.

I decided to use FFMPEG instead and downloaded this:

https://ffmpeg.zeranoe.com/builds/

and followed these instructions:

http://www.wikihow.com/Install-FFmpeg-on-Windows

Cannot save matplotlib animation with ffmpeg

Using FFmpeg and IPython

edited May 23, 2017 at 12:24

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answered May 29, 2016 at 20:50

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