The AppImage should include the build version (commit hash) so that bug reports can offer some useful info regarding the version. Currently, the latest AppImage filename is "kdenlive-20.12.3a-x86_64.appimage" which really tells us little, and when you run it and go to Help > About Kdenlive you see "Version 20.12.3" which is very vague.
I don't see the need for release builds to include the commit hash. If you create bug reports with the version and packaging type (like "20.12.3a appimage") the dev team knows where to look (there are git tags for each release version on https://invent.kde.org and in fact 20.12.3a is the same than 20.12.3 concerning the source code, there is just a fix in packaging). The nightly appimage (build from master branch each day) includes a commit hash.
Thanks for you report anyway :-)
A tag is a description of a specific commit, so if the build I was using is made off of a tag, then yes, there is no need for a commit hash. When I opened the issue, I thought I was using a nightly build, but this was incorrect. You are right that nightly builds do include the hash. So all good.