nebula

Nebula is an open-source broadcast automation and media asset management (MAM) system aimed at television, radio and VOD platforms. According to the README, it has been in production since 2012 in 24/7 broadcast environments and is used by TV and production companies worldwide. This repository contains the core Nebula server, consisting of a Python backend and a React frontend, plus a Dockerfile for building a server image. Related repositories mentioned include nebula-tutorial (example docker-compose, default settings and plugins), nebula-worker (Python application for media processing on worker machines) and firefly (a desktop client for linear broadcast planning, scheduling and playout). The README notes that Firefly is being phased out but remains supported, as the web interface now has full feature parity. Key capabilities described: - Media asset management: a media catalog based on EBU Core metadata, covering genre, editorial format, atmosphere, rights, relations and technical metadata, with a fast search engine. Low-resolution previews support editorial review, trimming and sub-clip creation. - Video and audio cross-conversion and normalization: preliminary media analysis and normalization including metadata extraction, aspect ratio fixing, crop and rotation detection, frame rate and size normalization, and EBU R128 loudness correction. Automatic cross-conversion servers transcode for playout, web, low-res proxies and previews; h.264 and HEVC can use NVIDIA nvenc GPU acceleration. Conversions can be rule-based or triggered from the UI. - Linear scheduling: drag-and-drop macro- and micro-scheduling, including live events, and the ability to schedule assets that are not yet finished, with automatic pairing once media is created. An optional Dramatica module supports program planning and automatic playlist creation based on editorial format, genre, tempo and atmosphere. - Playout control: control of CasparCG or other playout servers via custom plugins, autonomous broadcasting with timed block starts, and operator intervention through Firefly or the web interface. A plug-in interface handles secondary events such as CG, router or studio control and recorder control. - Publishing: API linkage to company websites, with automatic upload of media to web or social networks after broadcast. - Statistics and reporting: generation of statistics and reports for collective rights management societies (e.g. OSA, DACS) as xls files. - Management and monitoring: a web interface for service and job monitoring, user management and simplified MAM access without Firefly. System metrics are exposed in Prometheus format and can be visualized and alerted on with Grafana. The README emphasizes long-term active development, a multi-year roadmap and a focus on common broadcast tasks rather than unused features. Nebula is developed and maintained by imm studios, z.s., and licensed under the GNU General Public License v3 or later. Support channels include a Discord group, professional support from Nebula Broadcast, user documentation and GitHub issues.