Shotcut

1. Overview

Video editor that stores projects as MLT XML files.

Category: Media & Creative.

2. Version and scope assessed

Version assessed: Pinned evidence 34dde4fce394652c00d8f7af9ac2ce37dab1ed92.

4. Principle profile

5. Fundamental requirements

6. Evidence and verification

• E1: The official documentation for this entry provides a relevant independent access to essential information lead, but this desk review did not perform a version-pinned export, restore, migration, offline, or consequential-behavior test sufficient to establish the claim beyond the recorded status. (source), confidence medium
• E2: The official documentation for this entry provides a relevant practicable exit and migration lead, but this desk review did not perform a version-pinned export, restore, migration, offline, or consequential-behavior test sufficient to establish the claim beyond the recorded status. (source), confidence medium
• E3: The XML checker resolves relative media against the project directory, collects missing local resources and rewrites selected replacement paths. A changed resource hash resets stream indices and selected metadata. Relinking can therefore alter project interpretation rather than simply restore a missing filename. (source), confidence medium
• E4: The official documentation for this entry provides a relevant continuing authority and custody over already-created work lead, but this desk review did not perform a version-pinned export, restore, migration, offline, or consequential-behavior test sufficient to establish the claim beyond the recorded status. (source), confidence medium
• E5: Autosaves are .mlt files under the application-data autosave directory with an MD5-derived managed-name filename. The helper removes its file on destruction or managed-file change and can locate an existing stale file. This identifies a transient recovery mechanism, not a durable versioned backup or a successful crash-recovery test. (source), confidence medium
• sovereignty: A positive Sovereignty finding requires established E1, E2 and E4 in the declared scope. The existing access/exit/custody record for Shotcut does not establish all three minimums. The prior positive finding is withdrawn; recorded storage and portability strengths remain facts, not a verified failure. (source), confidence medium
• longevity: E3 is not established for Shotcut's existing essential-record scope. The previous Longevity finding is replaced by Not assessed, not a verified failure or a positive placeholder. (source), confidence medium
• locality: The official documentation for this entry provides a relevant locality lead, but this desk review did not perform a version-pinned export, restore, migration, offline, or consequential-behavior test sufficient to establish the claim beyond the recorded status. (source), confidence medium
• transparency: The positive control observations above do not yet establish whole-scope E5. The methodology requires that minimum before a positive Transparency and Control finding; the previous positive finding is therefore withdrawn to Not assessed, not changed to Does not meet. (source), confidence medium
• E3: The XML checker resolves and rewrites missing resource paths, and changed hashes reset selected stream/metadata state. No complete timeline/media/filter/proxy packet has been independently reconstructed with equivalent interpretation or rendering. Relinking source logic alone does not establish project survival. (source), confidence medium
• E5: Autosave lookup and removal identify transient recovery files, not durable version history. Effective save/overwrite, media relink, filter/script authority and usable correction after failed edits or autosave cleanup remain insufficiently covered. (source), confidence medium

7. Migration and recovery

Native storage format: MLT XML project files (.mlt) referencing source media.

Synchronization or runtime model: Local desktop application.

Example export or inspection command (not verified against any particular version or data set): grep -c "<producer" project.mlt

8. Architectural strengths

Established strengths and their scope are recorded in the evidence and assessment findings on this page.

9. Architectural limitations

• Source/retained-input inspection only; no installation or application restore performed.
• A complex timeline reopened/rendered independently, filter/proxy closure, actual crash recovery, older-version opening and media consolidation remain untested.

10. Assessment findings and remaining work

Evidence update: 23 October 2026

• Resolved: The XML checker resolves relative media against the project directory, collects missing local resources and rewrites selected replacement paths. A changed resource hash resets stream indices and selected metadata. Relinking can therefore alter project interpretation rather than simply restore a missing filename. Source.
• Resolved: Autosaves are .mlt files under the application-data autosave directory with an MD5-derived managed-name filename. The helper removes its file on destruction or managed-file change and can locate an existing stale file. This identifies a transient recovery mechanism, not a durable versioned backup or a successful crash-recovery test. Source.
• Open: A complex timeline reopened/rendered independently, filter/proxy closure, actual crash recovery, older-version opening and media consolidation remain untested. E5 needs save/relink/overwrite and filter/script controls, inspectable changes and actual transient-autosave correction boundaries.

Assessment follow-up: These bounded findings are incorporated into the evidence above. Eligibility and principle ratings are deliberately unchanged; their reconciliation and any blank-status fixes are deferred to the next pass. Reproduction details and retained inputs are in evidence/third-pass/batch-11/.

Human-readable criteria: Can a creator archive source material and editable state, reopen the project after version changes, and export important work in interoperable formats?

Rating reconciliation: 24 October 2026

E3 and E5 remain Not Verified for the existing declared scope. Longevity and Transparency and Control are Not assessed pending their required minimums. Sovereignty is also Not assessed because the required access/exit/custody minimums are not all established. This is a targeted evidence decision, not a finding that the product fails. Existing E1, E4 and Locality findings were not re-certified.

Remaining: A complex timeline reopened/rendered independently, filter/proxy closure, actual crash recovery, older-version opening and media consolidation remain untested. E5 needs save/relink/overwrite and filter/script controls, inspectable changes and actual transient-autosave correction boundaries.

Next without installing locally: Inspect a synthetic full project/media/proxy/filter packet with expected timeline and reference output; obtain same-version relink/save/autosave recovery records from upstream or another assessor.

The individual decision and provenance are retained in evidence/rating-reconciliation/batch-11/. Overall: Insufficient evidence.

Individually reconciled in rating batch 11 on 24 October 2026. E3/E5 remain Not Verified for explicit missing coverage; dependent unsupported findings corrected. Previously resolved questions are retained, not counted again. E1/E4/Locality were not re-certified by this targeted review. The assessment procedure is described in the methodology.