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Invalid Import Troubleshooting

What does "invalid take" mean?

When you import a folder of videos into a project, Genesis scans and validates every video file before accepting the take. If any check fails, the take is flagged as invalid and cannot be imported. The reason is shown in the take list next to the take name.

No video data is lost — the files are never modified. You simply need to fix the underlying problem and re-import.

1 - Take name not found

  1. Error message: Take name not found

  2. What happened: Genesis parses the take name from each video filename. If it cannot extract a recognisable take name from any file in the folder, the take is marked invalid.

  3. Troubleshooting Checklist:

    1. Filenames must follow the convention camXX_<takename>.<ext> — for example cam01_scene01_take03.mp4

    2. Check there is no leading/trailing whitespace, special characters, or non-ASCII characters in the filename
    3. All videos in the same folder must share the same take name segment

2 - Camera ID number is invalid

  1. Error message: Camera ID number is invalid

  2. What happened: Genesis found a camera ID prefix in the filename (e.g. cam) but the numeric portion that follows is missing or non-numeric.

  3. Troubleshooting Checklist:

    1. Camera IDs must be numeric: cam01, cam02, …, cam16 — not camA, cam_left, etc.
    2. Leading zeros are fine (cam01), but the number itself must be a valid integer
    3. Rename the offending files and re-import

3 - Duplicate camera IDs

  1. Error message: Two or more videos have the same camera ID

  2. What happened: Two files in the same take suffix both parsed to the same camera ID (e.g. two files both named cam03_take01.mp4).

  3. Troubleshooting Checklist:

    1. Each camera must produce exactly one video file per take
    2. Check for accidental duplicates (e.g. a file copied twice, or two cameras sharing the same ID in camera settings)
    3. Remove the duplicate and re-import, or rename so each file has a unique camera ID

4 - Video file cannot be opened / Video is unreadable

  1. Error messages:

    1. Failed to open the video file

    2. Video is unreadable

  2. What happened:
    1. Cannot be opened - the file exists but Genesis cannot open the container at all. Common causes: corrupt file, unsupported container format, file is still being written.
    2. Unreadable -  the file opened but frame data cannot be decoded. Common causes: codec not supported, partial transfer, or storage failure mid-recording.
  3. Troubleshooting Checklist:
    1. Confirm the file transfer from camera/SD card is fully complete before importing
    2. Try playing the file in VLC or another media player - if it will not play, the file is corrupt
    3. Check supported formats in the Genesis documentation (MP4/MOV with H.264 or H.265 are recommended)
    4. Re-export or re-copy the file from the original camera/card, then re-import

If only some cameras fail while others succeed, focus on the specific files that failed. Partial SD card corruption or incomplete copies are the most common cause.

5 - Video has too few frames

  1. Error message: Video has too few or invalid number of frames: {N}

  2. What happened: The video contains 5 frames or fewer. Genesis requires more than 5 frames to process a take.

  3. Troubleshooting Checklist:
    1. This usually means a recording was started and stopped almost immediately, or the camera stopped early
    2. Check the camera did not run out of battery or storage mid-recording
    3. Re-record the take — there is no way to recover a clip that is genuinely too short

6 - Videos have different resolutions

  1. Error message: Video files have different resolutions

  2. What happened: All cameras in a take must record at the same resolution. Genesis detected at least one camera with a different width or height.

  3. Troubleshooting Checklist:
    1. Open your camera app or review device settings — all cameras must be set to the same resolution before recording
    2. Common mismatch: one camera left on a different preset from a previous session
    3. Re-record with matching resolution settings on all cameras
    4. If mixing camera models, ensure the chosen resolution is supported by all models in the rig.

7 - Inconsistent frame rates

  1. Error message: Video framerate inconsistent with others. The fps difference {N} is more than 1

  2. What happened: The FPS difference between two cameras is greater than 1. For example, one camera at 24 fps and another at 30 fps would trigger this.

Note: A small tolerance of up to ~1 fps is allowed to account for minor clock drift between devices. A difference of 2+ fps indicates a genuine misconfiguration or performance issue.

Troubleshooting Checklist:

  • Confirm all cameras are set to the same frame rate in their settings before recording
  • Watch out for cameras that auto-switch frame rate based on lighting (e.g. anti-flicker mode)
  • Re-record with matching fps across all cameras

General diagnostic steps

  • Using ffprobe to inspect a video file If you have ffprobe installed (part of the FFmpeg package), run the following in a terminal to inspect a video file: 
    ffprobe -v error -show_streams -show_format "path/to/your/video.mp4"

    Key fields to look for:

    • codec_name — video codec (should be h264 or hevc)
    • width / height — resolution
    • avg_frame_rate — frame rate as a fraction (e.g. 60/1 = 60 fps)
    • nb_frames — total frame count