"Coming Soon" library for Emby

[Babatom 26]

I wanted to share a little side project I've been working on — a lightweight Docker container that turns your Radarr/Sonarr release calendar into a "Coming Soon" library right inside Emby.

What it does:

• Syncs upcoming releases from Radarr & Sonarr automatically
• Generates a folder structure that you can add as a mixed-content library in Emby — complete with poster art (with badges), backdrop, .nfo metadata (release date, description, genres, rating, cast for movies), and a placeholder .mp4
• Adds visual badges on posters: UPCOMING, a countdown ("5 Days"), and episode badge for shows (e.g. S03E07)
• Cleans up entries that are no longer upcoming
• Runs on a schedule (default every 6h) via Docker

Built for Unraid, but works on any Docker host.

Testet with Emby Beta v4.10.0.17

It's vibe coded — built with AI — so review the code before using it in production. Use at your own risk!

GitHub: https://github.com/mrt187/release-poster-sync

Edited July 5 by Babatom

[Luke 42708]

Thanks for sharing.

[ebr 16483]

On 7/5/2026 at 6:14 AM, Babatom said:

Syncs upcoming releases from Radarr & Sonarr automatically

Hi.  Why not get this info from the metadata providers instead?

[Babatom 26]

52 minutes ago, ebr said:

Why not get this info from the metadata providers instead?

If I'm not mistaken, Emby's metadata providers only work with content that's already in your library. With Radarr/Sonarr, I can track titles I'm interested in — including things I don't own yet. This container simply reads that calendar and displays it as a "Coming Soon" shelf, so I know what's dropping soon without having to check Radarr/Sonarr separately.

[Babatom 26]

21 hours ago, ebr said:

Why not get this info from the metadata providers instead?

— you were right, and I misunderstood at first. v2.0.0 now includes tmdbid/imdbid in the .nfo so Emby fetches cast, trailers, and descriptions itself via TheMovieDb. Thanks for the nudge!

## v2.0.0

- Emby now fetches cast, trailers, and descriptions automatically via TheMovieDb — no TMDB API key required
- Removed yt-dlp trailer download and manual cast fetching
- Added tmdbid/imdbid to .nfo for automatic Emby metadata matching
- Daily sync schedule (00:01) instead of every 6 hours
- XML injection protection for .nfo files
- Cleanup now skipped if Radarr/Sonarr API call fails (prevents accidental wipe)

GitHub: https://github.com/mrt187/release-poster-sync

[sh0rty 760]

This is a really nice addition, currently on Emby stable, I guess it gets real interesting in combination with Home Screen Companion when beta becomes stable.

Thanks for this!

[sh0rty 760]

@Babatom How comes that Plugin finds more radarr/sonarr items than it sets up in posters directory?

 

Edit: Enabled DEBUG, now I see, it's because some releases are in calendar but no digital release date is present atm.

 

2026-07-10T18:40:27.793804153Z [release-poster-sync] Führe initialen Sync aus...
2026-07-10T18:40:27.868121994Z [release-poster-sync] 2026-07-10 20:40:27,867 [INFO] Starte Sync (Zeitraum: heute + 1000 Tage, Ziel: /posters)
2026-07-10T18:40:27.890424108Z [release-poster-sync] 2026-07-10 20:40:27,890 [INFO] Radarr: 25 anstehende Filme gefunden.
2026-07-10T18:40:28.113922910Z [release-poster-sync] 2026-07-10 20:40:28,113 [INFO] Eintrag aktualisiert: Scary Movie (2026)
2026-07-10T18:40:28.294110496Z [release-poster-sync] 2026-07-10 20:40:28,293 [INFO] Eintrag aktualisiert: The Death of Robin Hood (2026)
2026-07-10T18:40:28.317387687Z [release-poster-sync] 2026-07-10 20:40:28,317 [INFO] Sonarr: 40 anstehende Episoden gefunden.
2026-07-10T18:40:28.357901591Z [release-poster-sync] 2026-07-10 20:40:28,357 [INFO] Eintrag aktualisiert: House of the Dragon (2022)
2026-07-10T18:40:28.412035904Z [release-poster-sync] 2026-07-10 20:40:28,411 [INFO] Eintrag aktualisiert: Criminal Minds (2005)
2026-07-10T18:40:28.460470072Z [release-poster-sync] 2026-07-10 20:40:28,460 [INFO] Eintrag aktualisiert: Stuart Fails to Save the Universe (2026)
2026-07-10T18:40:28.515429750Z [release-poster-sync] 2026-07-10 20:40:28,515 [INFO] Eintrag aktualisiert: MobLand (2025)
2026-07-10T18:40:28.588055477Z [release-poster-sync] 2026-07-10 20:40:28,587 [INFO] Eintrag aktualisiert: Law & Order Special Victims Unit (1999)
2026-07-10T18:40:28.644210710Z [release-poster-sync] 2026-07-10 20:40:28,644 [INFO] Eintrag aktualisiert: VisionQuest (2026)
2026-07-10T18:40:28.704611767Z [release-poster-sync] 2026-07-10 20:40:28,704 [INFO] Eintrag aktualisiert: Lupin (2021)
2026-07-10T18:40:28.772221131Z [release-poster-sync] 2026-07-10 20:40:28,771 [INFO] Eintrag aktualisiert: The Lord of the Rings The Rings of Power (2022)
2026-07-10T18:40:28.844725678Z [release-poster-sync] 2026-07-10 20:40:28,844 [INFO] Eintrag aktualisiert: The Rookie (2018)
2026-07-10T18:40:28.850359724Z [release-poster-sync] 2026-07-10 20:40:28,850 [INFO] Cleanup abgeschlossen, 0 Eintrag/Einträge entfernt.
2026-07-10T18:40:28.850375452Z [release-poster-sync] 2026-07-10 20:40:28,850 [INFO] Sync abgeschlossen.
2026-07-10T18:40:28.861881264Z [release-poster-sync] Starte Cron-Zeitplan: 1 0 * * *
2026-07-10T18:40:28.866003166Z [release-poster-sync] time="2026-07-10T20:40:28+02:00" level=info msg="read crontab: /app/crontab.rendered"

 

Edited 17 hours ago by sh0rty

[sh0rty 760]

Keep up the good work.

 

Edited 17 hours ago by sh0rty

[Babatom 26]

Different approach – native plugin!
- A Docker container is no longer required.

Each configured row becomes a real Emby library, created and kept in sync automatically under the plugin's data folder. For every upcoming movie and TV episode the plugin writes a proper library entry — a poster with the release date badged in, a backdrop for the hero image, overview and cast, and the actual trailer downloaded locally and surfaced through Emby's native Trailer button (so it plays inside Emby instead of kicking Apple TV/tvOS users out to YouTube). Because these are ordinary library items, they behave like any other media in EmbyHighlights

• Multiple configurable rows, each its own home-screen library (e.g. a "Digital", a "Physical" and an "In Cinemas" row) with its own release-date type and an "IN CINEMAS" badge where it applies.
• English & German for badges, dates, overview text and the settings page itself.
• No manual dependencies: yt-dlp is auto-downloaded on any Docker image, ffmpeg is optional.
• Runs on a daily schedule; a built-in log viewer means no SSH needed to see what happened.
• Requires Sonarr and/or Radarr. A free TMDB API key is optional (only needed for local trailer downloads).

Beta – feel free to test it and report bugs or suggest improvements.

*It's vibe coded — built with AI — so review the code before using it in production. Use at your own risk!

ComingSoonPlugin.dll