Video won't open

1. Check the source location and disk status in the clip’s Info (connected, not connected, or Not Found).
2. If the external source isn’t connected, reconnect it. If it says Not Found, the file is missing, not the disk; see below.
3. Try to reach the file with Show in Finder.
4. If the file is there, open another clip and return to this one.
5. If the problem continues, try opening the file in a suitable player on macOS.

Seeing a prepared cover image doesn’t prove that the source video is accessible. If the source is connected but the file won’t open in another player either, it may be missing or damaged. Check Merceq’s explanation for the unreadable file.

An unsupported file format, a disconnected disk, and a file that’s actually missing are different problems. First identify the status shown on the clip, then take the appropriate step.

Difference between “Not Found” and “Not connected”

• Not connected (broken connection symbol on the card, “{disk} not connected”): the clip is on an external disk and that disk isn’t connected now. Connect the disk; the clip will return automatically.
• Not Found (exclamation mark on the card, “File not found; it may have been moved or deleted.”): the disk containing the file is connected, but the file isn’t in that location anymore. It may be on your Mac’s own disk or a connected external disk; for example, macOS may have cleaned files from a temporary folder such as (/tmp), or you may have deleted or moved the file in Finder. If you moved the file, use Find the videos in Notifications to show its new location. If you deleted it, restore it from the Trash or a backup.

In this situation, Space and Lens say “This file is no longer in its location. It may have been deleted or moved.”; save frame and Show in Finder say “File not found; it may have been moved or deleted.” If a clip on your Mac’s own disk won’t play for another reason, the preview only says “This clip couldn’t be played.”; it doesn’t mention a disk.