Your files, on your machine
Point it at the folders your films and series already live in and it works out what is what from the file names — seasons, episodes, the lot. Nothing is copied, moved or renamed; the folders stay exactly as you keep them.
[ bitsandbytes presents ]
picturedrome
A media server for the films and series you already have. Install it on the computer that holds them, add your folders, and watch in a browser on anything in the house. Posters and details filled in for you, subtitles found, episodes running on. No account, no subscription, nothing leaving your network.
download · macOS · Apple silicondownload · macOS · Inteldownload · Windowsdownload · LinuxFree. macOS, Windows and Linux.
playingThe Night Shift — Episode 4converting as it plays1080p · 42:10
up nextThe Night Shift — Episode 5starting in 10s1080p
subtitlesEnglish · SDHembedded
libraryFilms · Horror · Series3 folders · 412 titles
everything on your own machine · no account · works with the internet off
01
Install it where the files are
The computer that holds your films and series. It runs quietly in the background; ffmpeg comes inside the app, so nothing else needs installing.
02
Add your folders
Choose the folders, give each library a name, and let it read them. A few hundred films takes a minute or two.
03
Watch from anything on your wifi
Open the address it shows you in a browser on a laptop, tablet or phone. Sign in once; it remembers.
04
The television app is on its way
Chromecast and Fire Stick apps are coming to Google Play and the Amazon Appstore. Until then, a browser on the same network does the job.
[ what it does ]
Plays anything, converting as it goes
Files a browser can play are handed over untouched. Anything else is converted on the fly, one six-second piece at a time, so a film starts in about a second and skipping anywhere is instant — there is no waiting for a whole file to be re-encoded first.
Posters, synopses, ratings
Artwork and details come from TMDB with a free key you enter once in Settings, or from a poster file sitting beside the film if you have one. Without either, every title gets a piece of generated pixel art that is its own — the library never looks half-finished.
Subtitles, embedded or beside the file
Tracks inside an MKV and .srt files next to the video are both found and offered, converted to what the browser understands on the way out. You can also attach a subtitle file by hand to any film or episode.
Libraries the way you keep them
Make as many libraries as you like from any folders — Films, Horror, Kids, Series — and a folder can belong to more than one. The sidebar order is yours to drag around.
Episodes run on
When one episode ends the next is offered with a ten-second countdown, previous and next are on the control bar, and there is repeat for an episode, a film or a whole series. Playlists let you queue anything in any order — a double bill, a night of favourites.
Continue watching, everywhere
Progress is remembered per title, so a film paused on the sofa picks up on the laptop. Watched episodes start from the beginning next time rather than from four seconds before the credits.
Nothing leaves the house
No account with anyone, no subscription, no telemetry, no server of ours in the middle. The app is a small web interface talking to a program on your own computer, and it works with the internet unplugged.
[ in the app ]
[ on the television ]
Chromecast and Fire Stick — coming soon
The television app finds your Picturedrome on the wifi by itself, remembers your sign-in, and is built for a remote: D-pad to seek, select to pause, back to close the controls. It is on its way to Google Play and the Amazon Appstore, and the links will appear here when they are live.
google play · soonamazon appstore · soon
[ questions ]
Is it really free?
Yes. No account, no trial, no premium tier hiding the useful bits. It was written because I wanted a media server that looked and behaved the way I wanted, and there is no reason it should not run on your machine too.
What does it need?
A computer that stays on while you watch — a laptop is fine — with your films on it or on a drive it can reach. macOS 13 or later, Windows 10 or later, or a recent 64-bit Linux. ffmpeg is bundled; nothing else needs installing.
Which files does it play?
Anything ffmpeg can read, which is practically everything: MKV, MP4, AVI, MOV, WebM and the rest, with H.264, HEVC, VP9, AV1 inside. Files the browser can play natively are sent as they are; the rest are converted as they play.
Does it phone home?
No. There is no telemetry and no server of ours in the loop. The only outside connection it ever makes is to TMDB for artwork, and only if you give it a key.
Why does macOS say it cannot be opened, or Windows warn about an unknown publisher?
Because the builds are not signed with a paid certificate yet. On a Mac, right-click the app and choose Open the first time. On Windows, choose More info and then Run anyway. That is the operating system doing its job, not a fault.
When is the Chromecast and Fire Stick app coming?
It is built and running on my own television; what is left is the store listings, and Google Play in particular takes a few weeks to let a new developer publish. This page will carry the store links the day they go live.
Have it.
It is free because it was written for one house and there is no reason it should not run in yours. If it saves you a subscription, there is a coffee button at the top of the page.