DEV Community

Cody Marsengill
Cody Marsengill

Posted on

ASCII Colorizer: Convert Images and Videos into Colored Terminal Art

#terminal #cli #python #asciiart

View on GitHub

ASCII Colorizer is a Python-based command-line tool for converting images and videos into colorful ASCII art, rendered directly in your terminal using ANSI escape sequences. It supports both CPU and GPU processing and runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows.

This tool is built for developers, system tweakers, terminal hobbyists, or anyone who wants to animate or visualize media in a unique, resourceful way without leaving the terminal.

Key Features

  • Image & Video Input: Supports JPG, PNG, GIF, MP4, AVI, WebM, and more
  • TrueColor & 256-Color Support: Works with modern terminals
  • GPU Acceleration (Optional): Leverage CUDA with PyTorch for performance
  • Adaptive Optimization: Frame skipping and detail control for smooth playback
  • CLI First: Fully scriptable and configurable through the command line
  • Cross-Platform: Runs on Python 3.12+ across all major operating systems

Getting Started 

git clone https://github.com/Cod-e-Codes/ascii-colorizer.git
cd ascii-colorizer
pip install -r requirements.txt
pip install -e .
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Optional GPU support (requires NVIDIA CUDA):

pip install torch torchvision --index-url https://download.pytorch.org/whl/cu121
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Example Usage

Convert an Image 

ascii-colorizer --file image.png --width 100
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Play a Video as ASCII Animation 

ascii-colorizer --file clip.mp4 --fps 15
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Use GPU Acceleration 

ascii-colorizer --file clip.mp4 --gpu
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Save Output to File 

ascii-colorizer --file image.jpg --save ascii_output.txt
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Performance Tuning

You can improve rendering speed and quality by adjusting playback parameters or enabling GPU mode:

ascii-colorizer --file video.mp4 --fast --adaptive
ascii-colorizer --file video.mp4 --gpu --gpu-batch-size 8
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Need to benchmark your system?

ascii-colorizer --file image.jpg --gpu --benchmark
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

When to Use This

  • Display system logos and short videos in your terminal
  • Create media-rich terminal dashboards or ambient art
  • Animate media while running tools like neofetch or htop
  • Generate colorful ASCII output for fun or live demos
  • Turn large displays or LED matrices into live ASCII screens

Requirements

  • Python 3.12+
  • A terminal with ANSI TrueColor support
  • Optional: CUDA-compatible GPU (for acceleration)

Try It

This project is actively maintained and open to contributions. If you're interested in terminal graphics, performance benchmarking, or novel input/output interfaces, give ASCII Colorizer a try.

GitHub: https://github.com/Cod-e-Codes/ascii-colorizer

Top comments (0)