Look for an easy way to bulk convert mp4 to animated gif on my Windows PC

Blender can be a pretty interesting option. Most people know Blender as a 3D modeling tool, but it also has a built-in video editor that can work as an MP4 to GIF converter. The best part is that Blender is completely free, open source, and does not add watermarks. It also works offline, so you do not need to upload your videos to any website.

Here's how you'd actually use it as an mp4 to gif converter—step by step:

1. Open Blender – Start with a new general scene.

2. Switch to Video Editing workspace – At the top, change the workspace from "Layout" to "Video Editing".

3. Import your MP4 – Click Add > Movie and select your mp4 file. It'll appear in the timeline.

4. Set the output settings – Go to the Output Properties tab (the printer icon on the right).

• Set Resolution (e.g., 640x480 or keep original).
• Set Frame Rate to whatever your video has.
• Format → choose FF mpeg Video.
• Under Encoding, set Container to "Quick Time" and Video Codec to "H.264" – wait, no, that's not gif yet. Hold on.

5. Actually set it to GIF – In the same Output Properties:

• Under Format, choose PNG (yes, weird, but stay with me).
• Then go to Post Processing and enable Video Sequence.

Now the tricky part: Blender doesn't directly export GIF natively. You actually need to render as an image sequence, then combine it, or use the Add > Image method with a custom script. Honestly, this is where Blender falls short as an mp4 to gif converter.