handbrake-encode

A unified video encoding script that wraps HandBrakeCLI with smart defaults for high-quality encodes.

Automatically selects x264 or x265 based on source resolution, detects HDR, picks the best audio tracks, and manages encoding jobs in background screen sessions that survive SSH disconnects.

Requirements

• HandBrakeCLI
• mediainfo
• screen

WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux)

Fully supported. The script detects WSL automatically and uses HandBrakeCLI.exe from your Windows PATH. Pass WSL paths as normal (e.g. /mnt/c/Drop/movie.mkv) — path conversion to Windows format is handled internally.

Usage

# Single file
./encode.sh -f movie.mkv

# All .mkv files in a directory (sequential queue)
./encode.sh -d /path/to/movies/

# Anime mode (adjusts tune and bitrate)
./encode.sh -a -f anime.mkv

# Use a fast scratch drive for encoding
./encode.sh -e /mnt/SSD -f movie.mkv

Flags

Flag	Description
-f FILE	Single file to encode
-d DIR	Encode all .mkv files in directory sequentially
-a	Anime mode (tune + lower bitrate)
-e DIR	Scratch directory for encoding (default: /mnt/SSD)

How it works

Codec selection

The source resolution is detected via mediainfo. The codec is chosen automatically:

• Height < 2160: x264 (H.264 High profile, Level 4.1, two-pass placebo)
• Height >= 2160: x265 10-bit (HEVC Main10, Level 5.1, CRF 16, HDR10; film veryslow, anime slower)

No dimensions are hardcoded -- source resolution is preserved as-is.

Bitrate table

Tier	Height	Codec	Film	Anime	VBV Buffer
720p	< 1080	x264	7010	2460	20000
1080p	1080-2159	x264	14020	4920	30000
2160p+	>= 2160	x265	18700	6560	40000

Audio selection

Intelligently selects audio tracks using mediainfo:

1. Finds the first lossless track (DTS/TrueHD/MLP)
2. Finds the first AC-3 compatibility track
3. Passes both through without re-encoding

Encode directory workflow (-e)

When a scratch directory is specified:

1. Copies the source file to the scratch drive
2. Encodes there (faster on SSD/tmpfs)
3. Validates the output by comparing duration to source (within 5%)
4. On success: moves output back to the original directory, deletes both the copy and original
5. On failure: keeps the original, cleans up scratch artifacts

If the scratch directory does not exist at runtime, a warning is printed and the encode proceeds alongside the source file instead of aborting.

Screen sessions and queueing

All encodes run inside a detached screen session, so they survive SSH disconnects. In directory mode, files are processed sequentially. A PID file (/tmp/encode.pid) prevents concurrent encodes.

# Check on a running encode
screen -r encoding

License

GNU General Public License -- see source for details.