affaan-m/ECC · error · ValueError

CapCut draft replacement is unsafe; choose a new name

Error message

CapCut draft replacement is unsafe; choose a new name

What it means

export_draft never permits replacing an existing CapCut draft. Passing overwrite=True (or allowing a draft name collision with replacement) aborts the export, because overwriting a CapCut draft directory can destroy user editing work. The error tells you to pick a fresh draft name.

Solutions

1. Choose a new, unique draft `name` for the export (add a timestamp or version suffix)
2. Set overwrite=False and ensure no draft with that name exists in the drafts folder
3. Delete or rename the existing draft manually in CapCut if it is truly disposable, then re-export with a fresh name
4. Make your script generate names like f"draft-{time.strftime('%Y%m%d-%H%M%S')}"

Example fix

// before
export_draft(files, name='my-edit', overwrite=True)

// after
export_draft(files, name=f"my-edit-{int(time.time())}", overwrite=False)

drafts_dir = Path(drafts)
assert not overwrite, 'export_draft never permits overwriting drafts'
assert not (drafts_dir / name).exists(), f'draft {name!r} already exists; pick a new name'

try:
    export_draft(files, name=name, overwrite=False)
except ValueError as e:
    if 'unsafe' in str(e):
        export_draft(files, name=f'{name}-{int(time.time())}', overwrite=False)

When it happens

Trigger: Calling export_draft with overwrite=True, or with a `name` that already exists in the target drafts folder while replacement would be required (create_draft uses allow_replace=False).

Common situations: Re-running an export script twice with the same draft name; scripting batch exports that reuse names; assuming overwrite=True would behave like ffmpeg's -y flag.

Understand the failure class

Background: "already exists" / EEXIST / FileAlreadyExistsException: what the 'file already exists' error means and how to fix it — this error's family across 37 libraries.

Related errors

• At least one video is required
• Draft name must be a plain file name
• application bundle differs from its bound evidence
• AuraUntrusted
• cannot upload, file does not exist

AI-assisted analysis of affaan-m/ECC@8321021c54 (2026-09-16). Data as JSON: /api/errors/816f00b49256276c. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at skills/taste-application/scripts/tasteforge/media/capcut.py:57

                raise ValueError("Invalid concat file entry")
            files.append((path.parent / fields[1]).resolve())
    return files


def export_draft(
    files,
    drafts,
    name,
    width=1920,
    height=1080,
    fps=30,
    overwrite=False,
    cc=None,
    probe=duration_of,
):
    geometry(width, height, fps)
    if overwrite:
        raise ValueError("CapCut draft replacement is unsafe; choose a new name")
    if not re.fullmatch(r"[A-Za-z0-9][A-Za-z0-9_. -]{0,99}", name) or name.endswith(
        "."
    ):
        raise ValueError("Draft name must be a plain file name")
    if not files:
        raise ValueError("At least one video is required")
    prepared = []
    for filename in files:
        path = Path(filename).resolve(strict=True)
        duration = probe(path)
        if not math.isfinite(duration) or duration <= 0:
            raise ValueError(f"Invalid media duration: {path.name}")
        prepared.append((str(path), duration))
    if cc is None:
        import pycapcut as cc
    folder = cc.DraftFolder(str(drafts))
    script = folder.create_draft(name, width, height, fps=fps, allow_replace=False)
    script.add_track(cc.TrackType.video)

View on GitHub (pinned to 8321021c54)