Hi,

We are sorry to hear about your project loss especially when you were at the final edit and on a deadline. What you’re seeing does match a corrupted CapCut draft, usually caused by a sudden power loss while the project file was being written.

Below is a step-by-step recovery checklist, starting with the methods that have the highest success rate. Don’t skip steps, and don’t reopen the broken project repeatedly (that can overwrite recoverable data).

When your power went out, CapCut was actively saving the draft. The project file (.json + media index) became partially written, so now CapCut:

• briefly tries to load it (“Loading draft”)

• detects a broken internal path (“invalid address”)

• blocks opening or duplicating it

The media files are almost certainly still safe. The problem is the project metadata.

Step 1: Back up everything first (important)

Before trying fixes:

1. Close CapCut completely

2. Copy the entire CapCut draft folder to a safe location (desktop or external drive)

Default locations

Windows

C:\Users\[YourName]\Documents\CapCut\Drafts

macOS

~/Movies/CapCut/Drafts

Make a copy of the entire Drafts folder.

Step 2: Recover from CapCut auto-backups

CapCut keeps hidden backup versions.

1. Go to your Drafts folder

2. Open the folder named something like:

   1227

3. Look for folders/files such as:

   • backup

   • autosave

   • draft_backup

   • files with timestamps

Try this:

• Rename the current broken folder to:

  1227_broken

• Copy a backup version

• Rename it back to:

  1227

Then reopen CapCut and try opening the project.

Users recover 90–100% of their timeline this way.

Step 3: Manually rebuild the project shell (advanced but effective)

If backups exist but CapCut won’t see them:

1. Create a new empty project in CapCut

2. Close CapCut

3. Open the new project’s draft folder

4. Copy files from 1227_broken except:

   • draft.json (or similarly named corrupted file)

CapCut will regenerate the draft index and reconnect clips automatically.

Step 4: Clear CapCut cache (fixes “invalid address” errors)

This does not delete projects.

1. Open CapCut

2. Go to Settings → Cache

3. Clear:

   • Preview cache

   • Render cache

Restart CapCut and try again.

Step 5: Check missing media paths (very common cause)

If CapCut can’t find one referenced file, it may refuse to load.

Ask yourself:

• Were any clips on an external drive, SD card, or USB?

• Were files moved, renamed, or deleted?

If yes:

• Reconnect the original drive

• Put media back in the exact same folder path

• Restart CapCut

Step 6: Last-resort recovery (timeline rebuild)

If the project file itself is unrecoverable:

• Your original video, audio, and images are still usable

• Open a new project

• Re-import all source media

• CapCut may still show:

  • clip order

  • timestamps

  • proxies

This is painful, but it’s often hours—not days—of work, because trimming decisions can sometimes be inferred from media timestamps.

Step 7: Contact CapCut support

This is worth doing, especially since it was a crash. Write an email to [email protected]

When contacting CapCut, include:

• That the power outage caused corruption

• The exact error: “invalid address”

• Your OS (Windows/macOS)

• Attach the broken project folder (zipped)

They can repair drafts internally.

Very important for the future once this is resolved

After crashes or power loss:

• Immediately duplicate the draft folder manually

• Enable:

  • Auto-save

  • Cloud sync

• Use a UPS (battery backup) if possible

If you can post below information as a reply to this thread:

• Windows or macOS

• Whether you see a backup folder inside 1227

• Whether media was on an external drive

We can give you exact file names to replace and walk you through it step by step.