Support

This page covers Wemli's travel-film editor and on-device journey board on iPhone.

Most questions about Wemli come down to four things: a permission that is switched off, a map feature that needs the internet, a photo that lives only in iCloud, or an export that is still rendering. The steps below cover each of them.

Quick start: build a first film

1. Create a journey. On the Journeys screen, tap the round + button. Start blank, use the editable example journey, import a route, or build one from your dated travel photos.
2. Add stops. Open the journey, then use the route tools to search for a place or tap the map to drop a stop. Reorder or rename stops from the stop menu, and set how you travel each leg (drive, rail, flight, sail, walk, ride).
3. Attach photos. Choose Add photos to use Apple's system picker (up to 24 photos in a journey), or use Capture for a new photo. You can also start from Find travel photos and let the dates and locations in your library suggest the route.
4. Choose the look. Pick a map art direction, a film framing (9:16, 1:1 or 16:9), a pace, how long each photo holds, a soundtrack or your own audio, and where each photo sits in time.
5. Add narration (optional). Record your own voice, pause and review it, then place it in the film. You can still adjust music volume afterwards.
6. Preview, export, keep it. Preview the real chapter sequence, tap Create film, pick 720p or 1080p, then Save to Photos or Share your film.

Permissions: what Wemli asks for and when

Wemli asks for access only when you use the feature that needs it. Launching the app and its entry animation request nothing. Four permissions exist in total:

Tracking permission and analysis

Wemli uses Adjust for installation attribution and session measurement from launch. The Privacy Policy explains what is processed and why.

Photos: adding, finding and limited access

Adding photos does not show my library

Add photos uses Apple's system picker. It shows only images and only the ones you choose are copied into your journey. If the picker looks empty, check that the photos exist on this device rather than only in iCloud, and try again with a connection available.

Find travel photos: granting selected access only

Selected-photo access is fully supported. When you have granted access to selected photos, open the photo options menu in the Travel days screen and choose Choose more photos to add more of your library to that selection. Wemli then works with what you have allowed.

A photo could not be imported

1. If the original is stored in iCloud and not on the device, make sure you have a connection and try that photo again.
2. Select fewer photos at once and import them in a second pass.
3. If a photo still cannot be read, choose another one — a converted or unusual file may not be readable.

A photo has no location, so it does not create a stop

Only photos that carry a location can suggest a stop. In the Travel days screen, the photo options menu has a With locations only switch so you can see exactly which photos will contribute a location.

Maps, place search and roads

Map tiles, map snapshots, place search and road directions all need an internet connection. Drafts, photos, music and films stay on the device and need no connection.

• Place search finds nothing. Check your connection — Wemli tells you when search needs one. You can always add a stop by tapping directly on the map instead.
• Follow roads is unavailable or fails. Apple's road coverage varies by region, and a leg must be a drive or a walk to be matched. If a leg cannot be matched, Wemli keeps the current route and names the stops that failed. Try again later, or import a recorded GPX track for that leg.
• Using OpenStreetMap routes. If the app is configured with an OpenStreetMap-based routing service, the Follow roads menu offers it in addition to Apple Maps. Wemli asks for your agreement first, because the two stop coordinates are sent to that service; photos and music are never sent. Choose Keep current route to decline.
• Rail, flight, sail and ride legs. These are drawn as illustrative connections unless you supply a recorded track. They are not live timetables.

Narration and music

• The microphone will not start. Check Microphone access in Wemli's Permissions screen and in device settings, then try again. Recording stops on its own if you leave the app, so keep Wemli in front while you record.
• My recording sounds wrong in the film. Music is automatically softened around your voice in preview and export. Use the music volume control if you want a different balance, and preview before exporting.
• Importing my own music. Import an audio file from the mood controls. The file is copied into the app so it stays available; make sure you have the right to use it.
• Remove a narration. Open the narration controls for the film and choose Remove narration, then confirm the change.

Preview and export

The film will not export

1. Make sure the journey has at least two visible stops; the preview and export controls stay inactive below that.
2. Check that you have free storage on the device. Rendering writes a temporary file next to the final one.
3. If exporting a long or high-resolution film, keep the app in the foreground until the progress indicator finishes.
4. Map frames are part of the film. If the map cannot be prepared, the export stops rather than producing a film without its map — check your connection and try again.
5. If it still fails, cancel the export, close the journey and reopen it, then try once more.

What the export produces

Films are rendered locally as H.264 MP4 at 24 fps, in 720p or 1080p and in the framing you chose (9:16, 1:1 or 16:9), with your music mixed in. Nothing is uploaded to render it.

Save to Photos does nothing

1. Tap Save to Photos; if access is off, the app asks you to allow adding to Photos or to use Share instead.
2. To enable it: Wemli Settings → Permissions → Open device settings → allow Photos.
3. If the save fails, use Share your film and save the MP4 to Files or another destination you prefer.

Hiding the first and last stops

The Hide first & last stops option hides the first and last stops, their connecting legs and their photos. It needs at least four stops to be available, and Wemli switches it off automatically if you drop below that. It does not edit your narration, so review your voice recording before sharing a film of a private route.

Importing and exporting tracks

• Supported imports: GPX and GeoJSON (including JSON). KML, KMZ, FIT and TCX are not supported in this build.
• A track will not import: check the file is one of the supported formats and is not unusually large, then try again. Imported tracks need at least two valid points.
• Export a track: open the journey's options menu and choose Prepare GPX, then Share GPX. The file is handed to the system share sheet so you can save or send it.

Your data: deleting things and finding your version

• Delete a draft: on Journeys, open the journey's options and choose Delete draft to remove its project entry. Imported media may remain in app storage. On the journey board, open a draft and confirm Delete draft to remove that board record.
• Delete a finished film: on the Library screen, open the film's options menu and choose Delete film.
• Remove private creative files: removing the app removes its private project, media and film storage. Copies in Photos, Files, sharing destinations and backups are separate. App removal does not erase provider-held measurement records or promise removal of system-retained installation identifiers.
• Find your app version: open Settings inside Wemli. The version and language are listed at the top, for example Version 1.0.0.
• Nothing syncs between devices. The local film studio does not sync drafts or films between devices. Save or share what you want to keep.

What Wemli does not do

• The travel-film editor and journey board do not require an account or an in-app purchase.
• The editing and journey-board tools do not display advertisements. Wemli uses Adjust for installation attribution and usage analysis — see Tracking permission and analysis above and the Privacy Policy.
• No cloud sync or server-side backup of your drafts and films.
• No live location recording on this build — bring a recorded GPX track if you want a real recorded path.
• No KML, KMZ, FIT or TCX import, and no AI generation of films.
• No camera on a device without one; photo-based journeys still work.

Still stuck? Contact us

If the steps above did not solve it, write to us. Please include:

• Your app version (Wemli → Settings → Version) and your device model.
• The iOS version your device is running.
• What you were doing when the problem happened, and the exact wording of any message Wemli showed.
• Whether the problem involves a permission, the network, the photo library, narration, or export.