Opening a Riverside project in Premiere Pro

A Riverside project in Adobe Premiere Pro is a file that contains all the editing work, clips, effects, and timeline information for a video you've been working on. To open one, go to File > Open Project, navigate to the folder where your Riverside file is saved (it will have a .prproj extension), select it, and click Open. Premiere Pro will load all your clips, sequences, and edits exactly as you left them.

The process is straightforward, but a few things can go wrong if your project file or linked media files have moved since you last saved. Understanding what Premiere expects and where to find your files will save you time and frustration.

Key Takeaways

  • Riverside project files end in .prproj and contain your editing timeline, effects, and clip references — not the video files themselves.
  • Use File > Open Project to load a saved Riverside project into Premiere Pro.
  • If Premiere cannot find your video clips after opening a project, it will ask you to locate them; moving files to a different folder after saving the project causes this problem.
  • Keep your project file and all linked media in the same folder or a consistent folder structure so Premiere can find everything when you reopen the project.

Where Premiere looks for your project file

When you click File > Open Project, Premiere opens a file browser that defaults to your Documents folder or the last location where you opened a project. You can navigate from there to wherever you saved your .prproj file. Most people store projects in a dedicated folder on their computer — for example, Documents/Video Projects/ or Desktop/Riverside Edits/.

If you're not sure where your project file is, use your computer's search function. On Windows, press Ctrl + F and search for the project name with the .prproj extension. On Mac, press Cmd + Space to open Spotlight, then type the project name. Once you find it, note the folder path so you know where to navigate in Premiere.

What happens when Premiere cannot find your media files

A Riverside project file does not contain your actual video, audio, or image files — it only contains references to them. When you open a project, Premiere looks for those files in the locations where they were when you first imported them. If you've moved your clips to a different folder or external drive since saving the project, Premiere will display a Locate Media dialog.

This dialog lists the files Premiere cannot find. You have two options: locate them one by one by clicking each missing file and browsing to its new location, or click Locate All and point Premiere to the folder where all your media now lives. If your clips are scattered across multiple folders, you may need to locate them individually. Once you've pointed Premiere to the files, it updates the project and remembers those locations for future opens.

Keeping your project and media organized

The easiest way to avoid the Locate Media dialog is to keep your project file and all your video clips in the same folder structure from the start. Create a main project folder — for example, My Riverside Video — and inside it create subfolders like Media, Audio, and Graphics. Save your .prproj file in the main folder, and import all your clips from the subfolders.

If you need to move the entire project to a different computer or external drive, move the whole main folder at once. Premiere will find all the media because the relative paths between the project file and the clips remain the same. Avoid moving individual clips or the project file alone — that breaks the connection Premiere relies on.

Opening recent projects quickly

If you open the same Riverside project regularly, you don't have to navigate through folders each time. Go to File > Open Recent Project and Premiere will show a list of the last projects you've worked on. Click the one you want, and it opens immediately. This list typically shows the 10 most recent projects, and the order updates each time you open a project.

If a project no longer exists on your computer, it will still appear in the recent list until you try to open it — then Premiere will tell you the file cannot be found and remove it from the list automatically.

Troubleshooting when a project won't open

If Premiere shows an error when you try to open a project, the most common cause is that the .prproj file itself is corrupted or was not saved properly. Try closing Premiere completely and reopening it, then attempt to open the project again. Sometimes a stalled process prevents the file from loading.

If the error persists, check that you have write permissions for the folder where the project is stored. On Windows, right-click the folder, select Properties, go to the Security tab, and confirm your user account has full control. On Mac, select the folder, press Cmd + I, click the lock icon at the bottom, and ensure your user account is listed with Read & Write permissions. If the project file is on an external drive or network location, make sure that drive or connection is active before opening Premiere.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I open a Premiere project that was created in an older version?

Yes. Premiere Pro can open projects from several versions back. When you open an older project, Premiere may ask if you want to convert it to the current version — click Convert to proceed. After conversion, you can no longer open that project in the older version of Premiere, so keep a backup if you think you might need to work in an earlier version.

What if my project file is on an external drive that's not connected?

Premiere will not be able to open the project until the drive is connected. Plug in the external drive, wait for your computer to recognize it, then try opening the project again. If the drive is not showing up, check the USB cable and try a different port. On Mac, the drive should appear on your desktop; on Windows, it should show in File Explorer under This PC.

Can I open the same project in Premiere on two computers at the same time?

You can, but it is not recommended. If you edit the project on one computer and save it, then switch to the other computer and save changes there, the second computer's version will overwrite the first. Use cloud storage or external drives to move the entire project folder between computers, and only work on it in one place at a time.

Why does Premiere ask me to locate media every time I open my project?

This usually means your media files are in a location Premiere cannot find automatically — often because they moved after you created the project, or because they're on a drive that takes time to mount. Move all your clips into a subfolder inside your main project folder, re-import them into a new sequence, and save the project. This creates a clearer path for Premiere to follow.