How do I install the Contact Sheet skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add barefootford/contact-sheet in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

Is Contact Sheet safe to use?

This skill has not completed SkillMD's automated safety review yet. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Contact Sheet?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Contact Sheet free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Contact Sheet?

barefootford (@barefootford) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Contact Sheet by barefootford — Agent Skill

Name: Contact Sheet
Author: barefootford

Contact Sheet

Builds a contact sheet from a video clip — evenly spaced frames laid out in a single grid image, each with its hh:mm:ss timestamp burned in. Use when the user asks for a "contact sheet", "grid", "film strip", or wants a one-image overview of part of a clip.

barefootford d454964 2.7 KB Updated Sep 17, 2026

File contents

Skill: Contact Sheet

Builds a contact sheet from a slice of a video clip: 16 evenly spaced frames laid out in a 4x4 grid, each annotated with its hh:mm:ss timestamp.

Prerequisite: ffmpeg with drawtext

This skill burns timestamps onto frames with ffmpeg's drawtext filter. ButterCut resolves ffmpeg from the repo's dependencies/ directory first, then PATH, and raises a clear error when it's in neither place. If a run fails with that missing-ffmpeg error, or with No such filter: 'drawtext' (some PATH builds, notably the stock Homebrew formula, omit drawtext), run the setup skill to install a suitable ffmpeg, then retry the contact sheet.

Run

When the clip belongs to a library, always pass --library so the output lands in the standard place:

# Whole clip
ruby lib/buttercut/contact_sheet.rb <video-path> --library libraries/<lib>

# From <start> to the end of the clip
ruby lib/buttercut/contact_sheet.rb <video-path> <start> --library libraries/<lib>

# Explicit range
ruby lib/buttercut/contact_sheet.rb <video-path> <start> <end> --library libraries/<lib>

<start> and <end> accept seconds (e.g. 12.5) or HH:MM:SS / MM:SS.

Options: --library DIR, --output PATH (exact path; overrides --library).

Frame count is chosen automatically: 16 frames in a 4x4 grid for clips longer than 10 seconds, 4 frames in a 2x2 grid for clips of 10 seconds or less (avoids duplicates).

Portrait clips (iPhone, etc.) are auto-rotated using the source's container rotation metadata so timestamps land right-side-up. Variable-frame-rate sources (screen recordings, some action cams) are detected and routed through the slower seek-and-grab path automatically.

Output location

With --library DIR: saved to <library>/contact_sheets/<clipname>_<descriptor>.jpg.
- <descriptor> is full when covering the whole clip, otherwise HH-MM-SS_to_HH-MM-SS (dashes instead of colons).
- Examples: contact_sheets/DJI_20251126164651_0278_D_full.jpg, contact_sheets/DJI_20251126164651_0278_D_00-00-30_to_00-01-00.jpg.
- The contact_sheets/ directory is created automatically if missing.
Without --library (and no --output): saved next to the source video with the same _<descriptor> suffix. Fine for quick one-off testing, but library work should always pass --library.

After running

Share the output path as a clickable link so the user can open it directly.

---name: contact-sheetdescription: Builds a contact sheet from a video clip — evenly spaced frames laid out in a single grid image, each with its hh:mm:ss timestamp burned in. Use when the user asks for a "contact sheet", "grid", "film strip", or wants a one-image overview of part of a clip.---# Skill: Contact SheetBuilds a contact sheet from a slice of a video clip: 16 evenly spaced frames laid out in a 4x4 grid, each annotated with its hh:mm:ss timestamp.## Prerequisite: ffmpeg with drawtextThis skill burns timestamps onto frames with ffmpeg's `drawtext` filter. ButterCut resolves ffmpeg from the repo's `dependencies/` directory first, then PATH, and raises a clear error when it's in neither place. If a run fails with that missing-ffmpeg error, or with `No such filter: 'drawtext'` (some PATH builds, notably the stock Homebrew formula, omit drawtext), run the `setup` skill to install a suitable ffmpeg, then retry the contact sheet.## RunWhen the clip belongs to a library, always pass `--library` so the output lands in the standard place:```bash# Whole clipruby lib/buttercut/contact_sheet.rb <video-path> --library libraries/<lib># From <start> to the end of the clipruby lib/buttercut/contact_sheet.rb <video-path> <start> --library libraries/<lib># Explicit rangeruby lib/buttercut/contact_sheet.rb <video-path> <start> <end> --library libraries/<lib>````<start>` and `<end>` accept seconds (e.g. `12.5`) or `HH:MM:SS` / `MM:SS`.Options: `--library DIR`, `--output PATH` (exact path; overrides `--library`).Frame count is chosen automatically: 16 frames in a 4x4 grid for clips longer than 10 seconds, 4 frames in a 2x2 grid for clips of 10 seconds or less (avoids duplicates).Portrait clips (iPhone, etc.) are auto-rotated using the source's container rotation metadata so timestamps land right-side-up. Variable-frame-rate sources (screen recordings, some action cams) are detected and routed through the slower seek-and-grab path automatically.## Output location- With `--library DIR`: saved to `<library>/contact_sheets/<clipname>_<descriptor>.jpg`. - `<descriptor>` is `full` when covering the whole clip, otherwise `HH-MM-SS_to_HH-MM-SS` (dashes instead of colons). - Examples: `contact_sheets/DJI_20251126164651_0278_D_full.jpg`, `contact_sheets/DJI_20251126164651_0278_D_00-00-30_to_00-01-00.jpg`. - The `contact_sheets/` directory is created automatically if missing.- Without `--library` (and no `--output`): saved next to the source video with the same `_<descriptor>` suffix. Fine for quick one-off testing, but library work should always pass `--library`.## After runningShare the output path as a clickable link so the user can open it directly.

Frequently asked questions