Originally published at ffmpeg-micro.com

You've got a Notion database full of product names, launch dates, and promo copy. Every time you add or update a row, someone has to manually open a video editor, swap in the new text, export, and upload. That process takes 15 minutes if you're fast.

There's a better way. Connect Notion to Make.com, hit the FFmpeg Micro API on every row change, and get a rendered video back automatically.

Why Notion + Make + FFmpeg Micro

Notion works well as a lightweight CMS. Make.com watches for changes in that Notion database and fires off actions. FFmpeg Micro handles the actual video rendering via a simple REST API.

The full loop: Notion row updates, Make picks it up, Make calls FFmpeg Micro with the row data as a text overlay on a template video, and the rendered file URL comes back in the response.

The FFmpeg Micro API Request

The @text-overlay option burns text directly onto your template video:

{
  "inputs": [
    {"url": "{{1.properties.Template Video URL.url}}"}
  ],
  "outputFormat": "mp4",
  "options": [
    {
      "option": "@text-overlay",
      "argument": {
        "text": "{{1.properties.Title.title[0].plain_text}}",
        "style": {
          "fontSize": 48,
          "charsPerLine": 20,
          "lineSpacing": 12,
          "x": "(w-text_w)/2",
          "y": "(h-text_h)/2"
        }
      }
    }
  ]
}

Test it outside of Make with curl:

curl -X POST https://api.ffmpeg-micro.com/v1/transcodes \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "inputs": [{"url": "https://storage.example.com/template.mp4"}],
    "outputFormat": "mp4",
    "options": [{"option": "@text-overlay", "argument": {"text": "Product Launch: Acme Widget", "style": {"fontSize": 48, "charsPerLine": 20, "x": "(w-text_w)/2", "y": "(h-text_h)/2"}}}]
  }'

Common Pitfalls

• Triggering on every edit: Gate renders behind a Status value like "Ready to Render"
• Template not accessible: FFmpeg Micro fetches via URL, so ensure it's publicly reachable
• Text overflow: Set reasonable charsPerLine values for your template
• Make.com timeouts: Bump HTTP module timeout to 60+ seconds

FAQ

Does Make.com trigger on new rows or just updates? Both. Use "Watch Database Items" for updates or "Watch Database Items (Created)" for new rows.

How long does a render take? 3-8 seconds for a 30-second template with text overlay.

What formats work? Any format FFmpeg can decode as input, including MP4, MOV, WebM, and AVI.