Download: the Original vs the Play Version

Quick answer: When a segment is delivered, two files are kept. The play version is what the player on the site and the share page stream: same resolution, smaller, quick to start. The original is the full-quality file: it is what Download gives you, and what the assembled episode is built from. So the download is larger than what you watched, and looks at least as good. Download sits under the player for a segment and on the assembled episode’s row for the full cut; on a phone, Share… hands the file to another app.

Still from “Neon Debt”, an AI short drama generated end-to-end by SceneMixer (7 characters, 1 episode) — Sample: “Neon Debt” — Game Engine Realism, 1 episode, produced end-to-end by SceneMixer from the script · watch the episodes

What comes out lists the resolution, frame rate and audio; this page is only about the two files.

Two files per clip

The player streams the play version so a segment starts at once and scrubs smoothly. Download fetches the original. Both come from the same generation; nothing is re-rendered when you download. If the play version is missing for a clip, the player falls back to the original, which starts a little slower.

Where Download is

A segment: select it on the timeline; Download is under the player next to Share. The assembled episode: Composite History lists every cut; each row has play, Download and Share. The asset library: Assets → Videos lists every clip across projects with a download on each. Assembling and sharing.

The preview pane of a finished segment with share and download controls — Under the player for a segment; on the assembled episode's row for the full cut.

The badge

Whether the file carries the corner badge was decided when the clip was generated. On a free account the original and the play version both carry it; on a paid plan with the badge switched off, neither does. Downloading does not add or remove it. The badge switch.

Sizes

Roughly: a fifteen-second 480P segment is a few megabytes as an original and less as a play version; 720P and 1080P scale up. An assembled ninety-second episode at 720P is tens of megabytes. The numbers depend on the picture, so check the file after downloading.

If Download plays instead of saving

Some browsers open a video inline when the link is on another domain. The Download button uses an address that asks the browser to save; if yours still plays it, right-click the player and choose save, or use Share… on a phone. If a video will not play or download.

	Play version	Original
Used by	The player on the site, the share page	Download, the assembled episode
Resolution	Same as the original	As generated
Size	Smaller	Larger
Badge	As decided at generation	As decided at generation

FAQ

Which file does Download give me?

The original-quality file, not the lighter one the player streams.

Why is the download bigger than what I watched?

You watched the play version; the download is the original.

Is the assembled episode built from originals?

Yes. The play versions are only for watching on the site.

Does downloading remove the badge?

No. The badge was decided when the clip was generated.

Where do I download the whole episode?

Composite History in the editor: each cut has a Download.

Watch the light one, keep the full one

The player is for looking; Download is for keeping.

Start creating

Updated September 26, 2026