A Quest for an App That Can Play Video Clips Randomly

Question

A Quest for an App That Can Play Video Clips Randomly

HI! I’m looking for an app that can recreate some functions in iTunes. I’ll spell out what I’m looking for ideally and then describe how I’m using it (which some of you might enjoy!). I’m open to different solutions for this.

I want an app that I can use on both my Mac and my iPhone.

I want to be able to upload video clips to the phone, via the Mac.

I want to play these clips on my phone randomly, in a loop.

Here’s what I need it for: I’m not a Lego guy, but my son was and had a ton of surplus. I saw someone on YouTube re-purpose an old iPhone, making a Lego movie theater. So, I built off of that and made this primitive model…

https://f.io/Otjdzszl

The iPhone is old, and I have an old Mac mini still running Mojave. So, I loaded it up over 100 films, which I designated as “Music Video” in iTunes; made a playlist of them; and hit Shuffle. It’s in my basement, and every time I walk by, it’s always a nice distraction. (Unlike the sample I made, there’s no sound playing.) It’s like an aquarium: it does its thing and has no interest in what I’m doing. So, I just walk by and get entertained for a few seconds. Also, I’ve occasionally made playlists for specific reasons, i.e. when David Lynch passed on, I had a list of many of his films and several episodes of Twin Peaks, which I ran for a few days. (And just to ink the deal on my Nerd Cred: I call this the GCC Echelon, which was where I first saw Jaws 50 years ago!)

But my Mojave days are about to end, which means I will no longer be able to use iTunes. Based on what I’ve spelled out, does anyone have any suggestions, either for a specific app or a workaround that will achieve the same end result? The randomness is crucial, as you can imagine.

Thanks!

Mac mini, macOS 14.7

Posted on Oct 16, 2025 2:10 PM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

Phil0124

Level 10

216,830 points

Oct 16, 2025 2:39 PM in response to Stephen Altobello1

I'm a bit confused.

Why exactly does the end of Mojave mean you have to stop doing what you are currently doing?

You have not mentioned how you are connecting the iPhone to Mac in the basement, but I'm assuming you are using Home Sharing. That still works on current macOS versions.

As for Apps, something like VLC should work on the iPhone to get videos onto it and create playlists you can shuffle.

Not sure why you need it to run on the Mac though. The transfer can be performed over the Finder in newer Macs using the file Sharing option.

click here ➜ Use the Finder to share files between your Mac and your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch - Apple Support

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Answer 2

Phil0124

Level 10

216,830 points

Oct 17, 2025 7:39 AM in response to Stephen Altobello1

Stephen Altobello1 wrote:

Thanks for the swift reply!

"Why exactly does the end of Mojave mean you have to stop doing what you are currently doing?"

Only that I use iTunes, for the sake of loading the videos onto my iPhone. Then using iTunes on the iPhone to play the clips.

You can use Finder (on a new Mac) or iTunes / Devices app on Windows to load videos onto the iPhone like iTunes does.

click here ➜ Sync content between your Mac and iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch - Apple Support

"As for Apps, something like VLC should work on the iPhone to get videos onto it and create playlists you can shuffle."

I should experiment with VLC some more. I find it to be an inefficient UI, even though I appreciate that it can play any kind of file I throw into it. I wish IINA had an iPhone app version, as I find that as a player on my Mac to be very flexible. And I like the playlist ability.

Other apps you may want to look art are

KMPlayer

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/kmplayer/id835776444

Infuse

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/infuse/id1136220934

I think the shuffle option is behind a paywall though.

I'll read the link you shared, for sure! Thanks!

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Answer 3

Oct 16, 2025 4:02 PM in response to Phil0124

Thanks for the swift reply!

"Why exactly does the end of Mojave mean you have to stop doing what you are currently doing?"

Only that I use iTunes, for the sake of loading the videos onto my iPhone. Then using iTunes on the iPhone to play the clips.

Home Sharing is tempting but my WiFi is very poor, and I have much better success with the files living on the phone itself.

"As for Apps, something like VLC should work on the iPhone to get videos onto it and create playlists you can shuffle."

I should experiment with VLC some more. I find it to be an inefficient UI, even though I appreciate that it can play any kind of file I throw into it. I wish IINA had an iPhone app version, as I find that as a player on my Mac to be very flexible. And I like the playlist ability.

I'll read the link you shared, for sure! Thanks!

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Answer 4

Oct 16, 2025 6:05 PM in response to Stephen Altobello1

Phil0124 thanks again for your suggestions, as I think it addresses what I was looking for.

Is there an alternative to VLC, however? I've been toying around with it on my phone for a while now, and the shuffle mode is very frustrating. It plays some clips several times in a row, and once it's done the list, it repeats the list in the same order as the first time. Some cursory Googling shows that this function in VLC has always been buggy. I'm willing to give it a try, but I'd like an alternative to try as well. If anyone has suggestions, I'd be most grateful.

Thanks!

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