diff --git a/modules/core.py b/modules/core.py
index c98b7ba..1231d80 100644
--- a/modules/core.py
+++ b/modules/core.py
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ import tensorflow
 import modules.globals
 import modules.metadata
 import modules.ui as ui
-from modules.processors.frame.core import get_frame_processors_modules
+from modules.processors.frame.core import get_frame_processors_modules, process_video_in_memory
 from modules.utilities import has_image_extension, is_image, is_video, detect_fps, create_video, extract_frames, get_temp_frame_paths, restore_audio, create_temp, move_temp, clean_temp, normalize_output_path
 
 if HAS_TORCH and 'ROCMExecutionProvider' in modules.globals.execution_providers:
@@ -222,44 +222,70 @@ def start() -> None:
     if modules.globals.nsfw_filter and ui.check_and_ignore_nsfw(modules.globals.target_path, destroy):
         return
 
-    extraction_start = time.time()
-    if not modules.globals.map_faces:
-        update_status('Creating temp resources...')
-        create_temp(modules.globals.target_path)
-        update_status('Extracting frames...')
-        extract_frames(modules.globals.target_path)
-    extraction_time = time.time() - extraction_start
-    update_status(f'Frame extraction completed in {extraction_time:.2f}s')
-
-    temp_frame_paths = get_temp_frame_paths(modules.globals.target_path)
-    total_frames = len(temp_frame_paths)
-    update_status(f'Processing {total_frames} frames with {modules.globals.execution_threads} threads...')
-    
-    processing_start = time.time()
-    for frame_processor in get_frame_processors_modules(modules.globals.frame_processors):
-        update_status('Progressing...', frame_processor.NAME)
-        frame_processor.process_video(modules.globals.source_path, temp_frame_paths)
-        release_resources()
-    processing_time = time.time() - processing_start
-    fps_processing = total_frames / processing_time if processing_time > 0 else 0
-    update_status(f'Frame processing completed in {processing_time:.2f}s ({fps_processing:.2f} fps)')
-    
-    # handles fps
-    encoding_start = time.time()
+    # Detect FPS early (needed by both pipelines)
     if modules.globals.keep_fps:
         update_status('Detecting fps...')
         fps = detect_fps(modules.globals.target_path)
+    else:
+        fps = 30.0
+
+    video_created = False
+
+    # --- In-memory pipeline (non-map_faces only) ---
+    # Reads frames from FFmpeg pipe, processes in memory, encodes directly.
+    # Eliminates all per-frame PNG disk I/O for a major speed-up.
+    if not modules.globals.map_faces:
+        update_status(f'Processing video in-memory at {fps} fps...')
+        create_temp(modules.globals.target_path)
+
+        processing_start = time.time()
+        video_created = process_video_in_memory(
+            modules.globals.source_path,
+            modules.globals.target_path,
+            fps,
+        )
+        processing_time = time.time() - processing_start
+        release_resources()
+
+        if video_created:
+            update_status(f'In-memory processing + encoding completed in {processing_time:.2f}s')
+
+    # --- Disk-based fallback (required for map_faces, or if pipe failed) ---
+    if not video_created:
+        if not modules.globals.map_faces:
+            update_status('Falling back to disk-based processing...')
+
+        extraction_start = time.time()
+        if not modules.globals.map_faces:
+            create_temp(modules.globals.target_path)
+            update_status('Extracting frames...')
+            extract_frames(modules.globals.target_path)
+        extraction_time = time.time() - extraction_start
+
+        temp_frame_paths = get_temp_frame_paths(modules.globals.target_path)
+        total_frames = len(temp_frame_paths)
+        update_status(f'Processing {total_frames} frames with {modules.globals.execution_threads} threads...')
+
+        processing_start = time.time()
+        for frame_processor in get_frame_processors_modules(modules.globals.frame_processors):
+            update_status('Progressing...', frame_processor.NAME)
+            frame_processor.process_video(modules.globals.source_path, temp_frame_paths)
+            release_resources()
+        processing_time = time.time() - processing_start
+        fps_processing = total_frames / processing_time if processing_time > 0 else 0
+        update_status(f'Frame processing completed in {processing_time:.2f}s ({fps_processing:.2f} fps)')
+
+        encoding_start = time.time()
         update_status(f'Creating video with {fps} fps...')
         video_created = create_video(modules.globals.target_path, fps)
-    else:
-        update_status('Creating video with 30.0 fps...')
-        video_created = create_video(modules.globals.target_path)
-    encoding_time = time.time() - encoding_start
+        encoding_time = time.time() - encoding_start
+        if video_created:
+            update_status(f'Video encoding completed in {encoding_time:.2f}s')
+
     if not video_created:
         update_status('Video encoding failed. No temporary output video was created.')
         clean_temp(modules.globals.target_path)
         return
-    update_status(f'Video encoding completed in {encoding_time:.2f}s')
     
     # handle audio
     if modules.globals.keep_audio:
diff --git a/modules/processors/frame/core.py b/modules/processors/frame/core.py
index 80dd2c0..6e51e5b 100644
--- a/modules/processors/frame/core.py
+++ b/modules/processors/frame/core.py
@@ -1,12 +1,16 @@
+import os
+import subprocess
 import sys
 import importlib
 from concurrent.futures import ThreadPoolExecutor
 from types import ModuleType
 from typing import Any, List, Callable
+
+import numpy as np
 from tqdm import tqdm
 
 import modules
-import modules.globals                   
+import modules.globals
 
 FRAME_PROCESSORS_MODULES: List[ModuleType] = []
 FRAME_PROCESSORS_INTERFACE = [
@@ -107,3 +111,265 @@ def process_video(source_path: str, frame_paths: list[str], process_frames: Call
     with tqdm(total=total, desc='Processing', unit='frame', dynamic_ncols=True, bar_format=progress_bar_format) as progress:
         progress.set_postfix({'execution_providers': modules.globals.execution_providers, 'execution_threads': modules.globals.execution_threads, 'max_memory': modules.globals.max_memory})
         multi_process_frame(source_path, frame_paths, process_frames, progress)
+
+
+def process_video_in_memory(source_path: str, target_path: str, fps: float) -> bool:
+    """Process video frames in-memory using FFmpeg pipes, eliminating disk I/O.
+
+    Reads raw frames from the source video via an FFmpeg decoder pipe, runs each
+    frame through all active frame processors sequentially, and writes the
+    result directly to an FFmpeg encoder pipe.  This avoids extracting frames to
+    PNG on disk, which is the biggest I/O bottleneck in the disk-based pipeline.
+
+    Returns True on success, False on failure (caller should fall back to the
+    disk-based pipeline).
+    """
+    import cv2
+    from modules.face_analyser import get_one_face
+    from modules.utilities import (
+        get_video_dimensions,
+        estimate_frame_count,
+        get_temp_output_path,
+    )
+
+    temp_output_path = get_temp_output_path(target_path)
+
+    # --- Pre-load source face (needed by face_swapper in simple mode) ---
+    source_face = None
+    if source_path and os.path.exists(source_path):
+        source_img = cv2.imread(source_path)
+        if source_img is not None:
+            source_face = get_one_face(source_img)
+            del source_img
+        if source_face is None:
+            print("[DLC.CORE] Warning: No face detected in source image. "
+                  "Face swapping will be skipped.")
+
+    # --- Collect frame processors & reset per-video state ---
+    frame_processors = get_frame_processors_modules(modules.globals.frame_processors)
+    for fp in frame_processors:
+        if hasattr(fp, 'PREVIOUS_FRAME_RESULT'):
+            fp.PREVIOUS_FRAME_RESULT = None
+
+    # --- Video metadata ---
+    try:
+        width, height = get_video_dimensions(target_path)
+    except Exception as e:
+        print(f"[DLC.CORE] Failed to get video dimensions: {e}")
+        return False
+
+    total_frames = estimate_frame_count(target_path, fps)
+    frame_size = width * height * 3
+
+    # --- Build encoder arguments ---
+    encoder = modules.globals.video_encoder
+    encoder_options: List[str] = []
+    is_hw_encoder = False
+
+    if 'CUDAExecutionProvider' in modules.globals.execution_providers:
+        if encoder == 'libx264':
+            encoder = 'h264_nvenc'
+            is_hw_encoder = True
+            encoder_options = [
+                '-preset', 'p4', '-tune', 'hq', '-rc', 'vbr',
+                '-cq', str(modules.globals.video_quality), '-b:v', '0',
+            ]
+        elif encoder == 'libx265':
+            encoder = 'hevc_nvenc'
+            is_hw_encoder = True
+            encoder_options = [
+                '-preset', 'p4', '-tune', 'hq', '-rc', 'vbr',
+                '-cq', str(modules.globals.video_quality), '-b:v', '0',
+            ]
+    elif 'DmlExecutionProvider' in modules.globals.execution_providers:
+        if encoder == 'libx264':
+            encoder = 'h264_amf'
+            is_hw_encoder = True
+            encoder_options = [
+                '-quality', 'quality', '-rc', 'vbr_latency',
+                '-qp_i', str(modules.globals.video_quality),
+                '-qp_p', str(modules.globals.video_quality),
+            ]
+        elif encoder == 'libx265':
+            encoder = 'hevc_amf'
+            is_hw_encoder = True
+            encoder_options = [
+                '-quality', 'quality', '-rc', 'vbr_latency',
+                '-qp_i', str(modules.globals.video_quality),
+                '-qp_p', str(modules.globals.video_quality),
+            ]
+
+    if not is_hw_encoder:
+        if encoder == 'libx264':
+            encoder_options = [
+                '-preset', 'medium',
+                '-crf', str(modules.globals.video_quality),
+                '-tune', 'film',
+            ]
+        elif encoder == 'libx265':
+            encoder_options = [
+                '-preset', 'medium',
+                '-crf', str(modules.globals.video_quality),
+                '-x265-params', 'log-level=error',
+            ]
+        elif encoder == 'libvpx-vp9':
+            encoder_options = [
+                '-crf', str(modules.globals.video_quality),
+                '-b:v', '0', '-cpu-used', '2',
+            ]
+
+    # --- Attempt pipeline (hw encoder first, then sw fallback) ---
+    encoders_to_try = [(encoder, encoder_options)]
+    if is_hw_encoder:
+        # Software fallback
+        sw_encoder = 'libx264'
+        sw_options = [
+            '-preset', 'medium',
+            '-crf', str(modules.globals.video_quality),
+            '-tune', 'film',
+        ]
+        encoders_to_try.append((sw_encoder, sw_options))
+
+    for attempt, (enc, enc_opts) in enumerate(encoders_to_try):
+        # Reset interpolation state on retry
+        if attempt > 0:
+            for fp in frame_processors:
+                if hasattr(fp, 'PREVIOUS_FRAME_RESULT'):
+                    fp.PREVIOUS_FRAME_RESULT = None
+
+        success = _run_pipe_pipeline(
+            target_path, temp_output_path, fps,
+            source_face, frame_processors,
+            width, height, frame_size, total_frames,
+            enc, enc_opts,
+        )
+        if success:
+            return True
+
+        if attempt == 0 and is_hw_encoder:
+            print(f"[DLC.CORE] Hardware encoder '{enc}' failed, "
+                  f"retrying with software encoder...")
+
+    return False
+
+
+def _run_pipe_pipeline(
+    target_path: str,
+    temp_output_path: str,
+    fps: float,
+    source_face: Any,
+    frame_processors: List[Any],
+    width: int,
+    height: int,
+    frame_size: int,
+    total_frames: int,
+    encoder: str,
+    encoder_options: List[str],
+) -> bool:
+    """Run the FFmpeg-pipe read → process → encode pipeline once."""
+
+    # --- Reader: decode source video to raw BGR24 on stdout ---
+    reader_cmd = [
+        'ffmpeg', '-hide_banner',
+        '-hwaccel', 'auto',
+        '-i', target_path,
+        '-f', 'rawvideo',
+        '-pix_fmt', 'bgr24',
+        '-v', 'error',
+        '-',
+    ]
+
+    # --- Writer: encode raw BGR24 from stdin ---
+    writer_cmd = [
+        'ffmpeg', '-hide_banner',
+        '-f', 'rawvideo',
+        '-pix_fmt', 'bgr24',
+        '-s', f'{width}x{height}',
+        '-r', str(fps),
+        '-i', '-',
+        '-c:v', encoder,
+    ]
+    writer_cmd.extend(encoder_options)
+    writer_cmd.extend([
+        '-pix_fmt', 'yuv420p',
+        '-movflags', '+faststart',
+        '-vf', 'colorspace=bt709:iall=bt601-6-625:fast=1',
+        '-v', 'error',
+        '-y', temp_output_path,
+    ])
+
+    reader = None
+    writer = None
+    try:
+        reader = subprocess.Popen(
+            reader_cmd, stdout=subprocess.PIPE, stderr=subprocess.PIPE,
+        )
+        writer = subprocess.Popen(
+            writer_cmd, stdin=subprocess.PIPE, stderr=subprocess.PIPE,
+        )
+    except Exception as e:
+        print(f"[DLC.CORE] Failed to start FFmpeg pipes: {e}")
+        for proc in (reader, writer):
+            if proc:
+                try:
+                    proc.kill()
+                except Exception:
+                    pass
+        return False
+
+    processed_count = 0
+    bar_fmt = ('{l_bar}{bar}| {n_fmt}/{total_fmt} '
+               '[{elapsed}<{remaining}, {rate_fmt}{postfix}]')
+
+    try:
+        with tqdm(total=total_frames, desc='Processing', unit='frame',
+                  dynamic_ncols=True, bar_format=bar_fmt) as progress:
+            progress.set_postfix({
+                'execution_providers': modules.globals.execution_providers,
+                'threads': modules.globals.execution_threads,
+                'mode': 'in-memory',
+            })
+
+            while True:
+                raw = reader.stdout.read(frame_size)
+                if len(raw) != frame_size:
+                    break
+
+                frame = np.frombuffer(raw, dtype=np.uint8).reshape(
+                    (height, width, 3)
+                ).copy()
+
+                # Run frame through every active processor
+                for fp in frame_processors:
+                    frame = fp.process_frame(source_face, frame)
+
+                writer.stdin.write(frame.tobytes())
+                processed_count += 1
+                progress.update(1)
+
+        # Graceful shutdown
+        writer.stdin.close()
+        writer.wait()
+        reader.wait()
+
+        if writer.returncode != 0:
+            stderr_out = writer.stderr.read().decode(errors='ignore').strip()
+            if stderr_out:
+                print(f"[DLC.CORE] FFmpeg encoder error: {stderr_out}")
+            return False
+
+        return processed_count > 0 and os.path.isfile(temp_output_path)
+
+    except BrokenPipeError:
+        print("[DLC.CORE] FFmpeg pipe broken (encoder may not be available).")
+        return False
+    except Exception as e:
+        print(f"[DLC.CORE] In-memory processing error: {e}")
+        return False
+    finally:
+        for proc in (reader, writer):
+            if proc:
+                try:
+                    proc.kill()
+                except Exception:
+                    pass
diff --git a/modules/utilities.py b/modules/utilities.py
index d99e74d..953ef3c 100644
--- a/modules/utilities.py
+++ b/modules/utilities.py
@@ -314,3 +314,35 @@ def conditional_download(download_directory_path: str, urls: List[str]) -> None:
 
 def resolve_relative_path(path: str) -> str:
     return os.path.abspath(os.path.join(os.path.dirname(__file__), path))
+
+
+def get_video_dimensions(target_path: str) -> tuple:
+    """Get video width and height using ffprobe."""
+    command = [
+        "ffprobe", "-v", "error",
+        "-select_streams", "v:0",
+        "-show_entries", "stream=width,height",
+        "-of", "csv=p=0:s=x",
+        target_path,
+    ]
+    output = subprocess.check_output(command).decode().strip()
+    width, height = map(int, output.split("x"))
+    return width, height
+
+
+def estimate_frame_count(target_path: str, fps: float = None) -> int:
+    """Estimate total frame count from video duration and fps."""
+    if fps is None:
+        fps = detect_fps(target_path)
+    command = [
+        "ffprobe", "-v", "error",
+        "-show_entries", "format=duration",
+        "-of", "csv=p=0",
+        target_path,
+    ]
+    try:
+        output = subprocess.check_output(command).decode().strip()
+        duration = float(output)
+        return int(duration * fps)
+    except Exception:
+        return 0