remotion-dev/remotion · error · Error

Error in remotion.config.ts file: ${result.errors .map((

Error message

Error in remotion.config.ts file: ${result.errors
				.map((error) => error.text)
				.join('\n')}

What it means

Thrown by prepareConfigFile when esbuild reports one or more errors while bundling remotion.config.ts/js. The message joins all esbuild error.text values with newlines, surfacing syntax errors, unresolved imports, or type errors encountered during config bundling.

Source

Thrown at packages/cli/src/load-config.ts:39

		throw new Error(
			`Could not find a tsconfig.json file in your project. Did you delete it? Create a tsconfig.json in the root of your project. Copy the default file from https://github.com/remotion-dev/template-helloworld/blob/main/tsconfig.json. The root directory is: ${remotionRoot}`,
		);
	}

	const virtualOutfile = 'bundle.js';
	const result = await BundlerInternals.esbuild.build({
		platform: 'node',
		target: 'node16',
		bundle: true,
		entryPoints: [resolved],
		tsconfig: isJavascript ? undefined : tsconfigJson,
		absWorkingDir: remotionRoot,
		outfile: virtualOutfile,
		write: false,
		packages: 'external',
	});
	if (result.errors.length > 0) {
		throw new Error(
			`Error in remotion.config.ts file: ${result.errors
				.map((error) => error.text)
				.join('\n')}`,
		);
	}

	const firstOutfile = result.outputFiles[0];

	if (!firstOutfile) {
		throw new Error('No output files found in the config file.');
	}

	const code = new TextDecoder().decode(firstOutfile.contents);
	return {code, remotionRoot, resolved};
};

export const executeConfigFile = ({code, remotionRoot}: PreparedConfigFile) => {
	let str = code;

View on GitHub (pinned to 78fe4bb3fd)

Solutions

1. Read the joined error text in the message - it pinpoints the line/column in remotion.config.ts.
2. Fix the syntax/import error and re-run.
3. If an import cannot be resolved, install the package or remove the import.
4. Run `npx tsc --noEmit remotion.config.ts` to get richer TS diagnostics.

Example fix

// before - remotion.config.ts
import { Config } from './wrong-path';
// after
import {Config} from '@remotion/cli/config';

import {build} from 'esbuild';

const preflightConfig = async (entry: string) => {
  const result = await build({
    entryPoints: [entry],
    bundle: true,
    write: false,
    platform: 'node',
    logLevel: 'silent',
  });
  if (result.errors.length > 0) {
    throw new Error(`remotion.config.ts has errors:\n${result.errors.map(e => e.text).join('\n')}`);
  }
};

await preflightConfig(configPath);

try {
  await renderMedia(...);
} catch (err) {
  if (err instanceof Error && err.message.startsWith('Error in remotion.config.ts file:')) {
    // surface esbuild text, fix the config, then retry
  }
  throw err;
}

When it happens

Trigger: A syntax error in remotion.config.ts; importing a module that does not exist or is not installed; referencing a Node builtin that esbuild cannot resolve under packages:'external'; TypeScript type errors that esbuild surfaces.

Common situations: Editing remotion.config.ts and introducing a typo; calling Config methods that do not exist; importing from a package not yet installed; switching Remotion versions where a Config API was renamed.

Related errors

• Could not find a tsconfig.json file in your project. Did you
• No output files found in the config file.
• setImageSequence accepts a Boolean Value
• outputLocation must be a string but got ${typeof newOutputLo
• Studio server port should be a number. Got ${typeof port} ($

AI-assisted analysis of remotion-dev/remotion@78fe4bb3fd (2026-08-12). Data as JSON: /api/errors/fd0b7f033418385c. Report an issue: GitHub.