pixelReel

Fabric mod for Minecraft Java Edition 26.3-snapshot-5 that lets you place televisions and cinema screens in your world and watch live TV and on-demand media together with friends.

Live channels come from a Tunarr (or any M3U + XMLTV) playlist. Movies and shows can come from Jellyfin, Emby, or Plex. Each display keeps its own channel or title, multiple screens can play at once, and audio is positional.

Requirements

Requirement	Notes
Java 25+	Required by this snapshot toolchain.
Minecraft 26.3-snapshot-5	Built against this snapshot specifically.
Fabric Loader >=0.19.3	Pinned in gradle.properties.
Fabric API	Use the build matching 26.3 (see gradle.properties).
VLC (64-bit)	Needed on each client for video/audio. Install from videolan.org.

Without VLC, menus, guide, commands, and multiplayer sync still work, but screens show a “video player unavailable” state instead of video.

If VLC is installed in a non-standard location, launch the game with:

-Dpixelreel.vlc.path=C:\Path\To\VLC

Building

Windows:

build-mod.bat

or:

gradlew.bat clean build

The installable JAR is:

build\libs\pixelreel-1.0.0.jar

Use the JAR without -sources.

Dev client:

run-client.bat

Installing

1. Install Fabric Loader for Minecraft 26.3-snapshot-5.
2. Put Fabric API in your mods folder.
3. Put pixelreel-1.0.0.jar in mods.
4. Install 64-bit VLC on every client that should see video.

The mod runs on clients and servers (environment: *). For multiplayer, both sides need the mod. VLC is only required on clients.

Configuration

Created on first launch at config/pixelreel.json.

Tunarr (Live TV / M3U / XMLTV)

Key	Default	Meaning
m3uUrl	""	Tunarr base URL or full M3U URL. A base like http://1.1.1.1:8000 expands to /api/channels.m3u.
xmltvUrl	""	XMLTV guide URL. Auto-filled from a Tunarr base as /api/xmltv.xml when empty.

Jellyfin

Tip: create a dedicated Jellyfin user with access only to Movies and TV Shows, or Anime then use that user’s API key here. I feel it’s simpler and safer than pointing the mod at your admin account.

Key	Default	Meaning
jellyfinUrl	""	Server URL (often port 8096).
jellyfinApiKey	""	API key.
jellyfinUserId	""	Optional user id
jellyfinMoviesEnabled	true	Show movies.
jellyfinTvShowsEnabled	true	Show TV series.
jellyfinLibraryIds	[]	Limit to specific libraries; empty = all.
jellyfinAutoplayNextEpisode	true	Autoplay next episode.
jellyfinLibraryCacheSeconds	600	Library cache lifetime.
jellyfinProgressReportSeconds	30	Playback progress report interval.
jellyfinNextEpisodeCountdownSeconds	10	Countdown before next episode.

Emby

Tip: create a dedicated Emby user with access only to Movies and TV Shows, or Anime then use that user’s API key here. I feel it’s simpler and safer than pointing the mod at your admin account.

Key	Default	Meaning
embyUrl	""	Server URL.
embyApiKey	""	API key.
embyUserId	""	Optional user id.
embyMoviesEnabled	true	Show movies.
embyTvShowsEnabled	true	Show TV series.
embyLibraryIds	[]	Limit to specific libraries; empty = all.
embyLibraryCacheSeconds	600	Library cache lifetime.

Plex

Tip: prefer a Plex account/user that only has access to Movies, TV Shows, and/or Anime, then use that account’s token here instead of a full admin setup.

How to get plexToken

1. Open your Plex web app and sign in.
2. Click any movie or TV show (for example American Dad).
3. Click the three dots → Get Info → View XML.
4. In the address bar of the XML page, find X-Plex-Token= — the value after it is your Plex token.
5. Paste that value into plexToken in in game GUI.

Key	Default	Meaning
plexUrl	""	Server URL (often port 32400).
plexToken	""	Plex token (see steps above).
plexMoviesEnabled	true	Show movies.
plexTvShowsEnabled	true	Show TV series.
plexLibraryKeys	[]	Limit to specific libraries; empty = all.
plexLibraryCacheSeconds	600	Library cache lifetime.

API keys and tokens stay server-side. Clients only receive non-secret public config.

Displays

Block	Size	Audio range
Compact Television	3 × 2	16
Wall Television	6 × 4	24
Ultrawide Monitor	8 × 4	24
Cinema Screen	14 × 8	80
Curved Cinema Screen	16 × 7	80

Using a curved cinema screen is the best way to watch 4k HDR content when creating your own home movie theater. (just my opinion)

All are craftable, appear in the pixelReel creative tab, and are findable by searching television, TV, screen, cinema, or monitor. (need more work on this but for now)

Pixel Glasses are also craftable: wear them for a fullscreen overlay of a nearby playing screen.

Only the active screen area has collision — bezels stay buildable so you can frame screens with your own blocks. Breaking the Center of the controller removes the whole display;
player build is never touched.

• Right-click a display: open the media menu.
• Sneak + right-click: toggle power.
• Video is letterboxed/pillarboxed to the screen aspect (never stretched), it plays its orginial aspect ratio

Commands

Most screen actions use these commands

/tv menu                 open the media menu
/tv channels             list live channels
/tv channel <n or name>  tune a live channel
/tv next | previous      change channel
/tv guide                now/next programme overview
/tv status               power, channel, stream, and volume diagnostics
/tv retry                restart playback
/tv reload               re-download playlist/guide
/tv stop | resume        pause/resume playback
/tv power on|off|toggle  power control
/tv volume <0-100>       per-display volume
/tv rebuild              rebuild screen collision without touching builds
/tv jellyfin status|refresh|configure

Multiplayer

Display state (type, power, channel/media, facing, volume, playback position) is server-auth and synced to every client, including players who join later.

Each client decodes the stream locally with its own VLC. Credentials are never stored in world data

Roadmap

What we have Now

What already works in this snapshot build — crossed out as complete:

• Fabric mod targeting Minecraft 26.3-snapshot-5
• Five display sizes (Compact TV, Wall TV, Ultrawide, Cinema, Curved Cinema)
• Live TV via Tunarr / M3U + XMLTV guide
• Jellyfin, Emby, and Plex integration
• In-game provider config GUIs (Tunarr, Jellyfin, Emby, Plex)
• Poster-based movie & TV browse UI
• Playback controls (power, pause/resume, volume, channel/media select)
• /tv command suite for screen control & diagnostics
• Server-authoritative multiplayer sync (late-join included)
• Client-side VLC decode with positional audio
• Subtitles, letterboxing, and HDR tone mapping
• Pixel Glasses fullscreen overlay
• Craftable displays + creative tab
• Fabric mod targeting Minecraft 1.21.1

Upcoming

Feature	Status	Priority	Notes
Admin remote control	Planned	High	Item or GUI usable from anywhere (not only at the screen). Admins can start, pause, rewind/seek, pick content, and open config for any display.
Personalized screens	Planned	High	Per-player private viewing — each player can have their own channel/title on a shared or personal display without forcing everyone onto the same stream.
Movie scheduler	Planned	Medium	Queue showtimes (date/time + title or channel). Auto power-on, start playback, and optional lobby announcements for cinema nights.
YouTube / streaming integration	Planned	Medium	Play YouTube (and possibly other stream sources) on displays alongside Tunarr and media servers. Exact providers TBD.
Posters as paintings	Planned	Medium	Place movie/show posters in the world as painting-style decor (from library artwork), not only inside the browse menus.
Fabric on stable versions	Planned	High	Port from 26.3-snapshot-5 to older/stable Fabric target 1.20.1.
NeoForge support	Planned	High	First-class NeoForge build so servers/clients on NeoForge can run pixelReel.
Forge support	Planned	Medium	Forge port after (or alongside) NeoForge, depending on version demand.

DISCORD: https://discord.gg/RSWQuEnMj Mincraft Mod 1.21.1: https://github.com/Samarth-programming/PixelReel_1.21.1

Ideas and PRs welcome — especially for loaders, version ports, and the admin remote.