affaan-m/ECC · error · ValueError

all takes must be readable local files

Error message

all takes must be readable local files

What it means

forge() validates its input media before doing any work: the takes list must be non-empty and every entry must be an existing regular file (Path(t).is_file()). If any take is missing, a directory, or the list is empty, it raises ValueError so ffprobe/ffmpeg never see a bad input.

Solutions

1. Verify each take path exists with Path(t).is_file() before calling forge.
2. Use absolute paths in scripts so cwd changes do not break resolution.
3. Check the shell glob actually matched (e.g. ls takes/*.mov) — an unmatched glob passes the literal pattern or expands to nothing.
4. Remove directory entries and broken symlinks from the takes list.

Example fix

# before
forge('noir', takes, out='edit.mp4')  # one take was deleted

# after
from pathlib import Path
takes = [t for t in takes if Path(t).is_file()]
if not takes:
    raise SystemExit('no valid takes')
forge('noir', takes, out='edit.mp4')

from pathlib import Path

def takes_ok(takes):
    return bool(takes) and all(Path(t).is_file() for t in takes)

try:
    forge(genre, takes, out=out)
except ValueError as e:
    if 'takes' in str(e):
        print('check take paths:', [t for t in takes if not Path(t).is_file()])
    raise

When it happens

Trigger: Calling forge with takes=[]; a take path that does not exist (typo, wrong cwd); a take pointing to a directory instead of a file; a broken symlink counted as a take.

Common situations: Shell glob that matched nothing (takes expanded to empty); relative paths resolved from a different working directory when invoked programmatically; files moved or deleted between planning and forging.

Understand the failure class

Background: "File not found" and ENOENT errors: why libraries can't find a file that should exist — this error's family across 50 libraries.

Related errors

• all overlays must be readable local files
• base video must be a readable local file
• output already exists; choose a new --out
• output must have a video suffix distinct from…
• Path does not exist

AI-assisted analysis of affaan-m/ECC@8321021c54 (2026-09-16). Data as JSON: /api/errors/95c466d6e19c5e98. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at skills/taste-application/scripts/forge.py:71

    root: str = "stylepacks",
    base_video: str | None = None,
    base_ratio: float = 0.35,
    overlays: list[str] | None = None,
    overlay_every: int = 4,
    overlay_opacity: float = 0.3,
    duration: float | None = None,
    strength: float = 1.0,
    grade_base: bool = True,
    width: int | None = None,
    height: int | None = None,
    work: str = "out/forge_work",
    plan: list[dict] | None = None,
    fps: float | None = None,
) -> Path:
    out_path = Path(out)
    validate_output(out_path)
    if not takes or any(not Path(t).is_file() for t in takes):
        raise ValueError("all takes must be readable local files")
    if base_video and not Path(base_video).is_file():
        raise ValueError("base video must be a readable local file")
    if any(not Path(o).is_file() for o in (overlays or [])):
        raise ValueError("all overlays must be readable local files")
    if fps is not None and (not math.isfinite(fps) or fps <= 0):
        raise ValueError("fps must be finite and positive")
    sp = pack_mod.load(genre, root=root)
    tgt = grade_mod.load_stats(sp.grade_path)
    cad = cad_mod.load(sp.cadence_path)

    # Geometry comes from the first take unless overridden; everything else is
    # normalized to it so concat does not silently fail on a size mismatch.
    info0 = frame_mod.probe(takes[0])
    W = width or info0.width
    H = height or info0.height
    FPS = fps if fps is not None else info0.fps
    if not math.isfinite(FPS) or FPS <= 0:
        raise ValueError("source fps must be finite and positive; provide --fps")

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