Clip

/clip

Cut a video into short clips + reframe. Subtitles are not this skill's job — after cutting, the srt skill styles them (see the handoff below).

Entry points

• Explicit timecodes ("cut 2:00–3:00 of this video") → cut the local file directly: --video "<file>" --ranges "2:00-3:00,...". No STT, no key, no credits.

• AI highlight selection on an STT project → --plan then --clips (the flow below). Needs the project's transcript + word timestamps.

• Raw video, "find the good moments" (no timecodes given) → you can't pick highlights without a transcript, so ask the user which they want:

  • STT (proper selection, uses credits): run the srt skill's STT first to create the project, then clip it with --plan/--clips.
  • Free (no STT): the user gives the timecodes and you cut them with --video --ranges.

  Proceed with their choice — don't run STT (which bills credits) without asking.

Core rules

• Only the worker sees the raw key — never open, echo, or pass it as an argument.
• The key gate applies only to --project/--plan/--clips. --video --ranges and --sidecars are fully offline — never run a key check/registration for them.
• Run in the background — encoding takes time.
• This skill shares the dubbing skill's libraries: the dubbing folder must be installed next to clip.

Flow

Phase 1 — plan. node scripts/clip.mjs --project <seq> --plan prints the summary's section map (topic guide) plus the full sentence transcript, each line as order [start-end] text.

Phase 2 — pick, then cut. Read the transcript and choose clips, each { "title": "...", "start_order": N, "end_order": M }. Rubric:

• Hook first — start on a sentence that grabs attention (question, bold claim, funny/surprising line).
• End where the moment resolves, not at the first complete sentence. Ride the beat to its end — the whole reaction, follow-through, and any secondary punchline. Read a few sentences past the apparent ending; keep them if still the same reaction.
• Cut at the transition — end just before the energy drops or the tone shifts (excited reaction → calm narration).
• Peak — favour funny / surprising / emotional / quotable moments; the high point often sits a sentence or two after the literal reveal.
• Length 30–90s — the worker warns when outside; prefer the full arc over a premature cut.
• Title — describes the moment; becomes the file name (01_<title>.mp4).

Sections are chapter-length — use the section map only as a guide, then tighten to a hook.

Run: node scripts/clip.mjs --project <seq> --clips '<json>' [--out folder] (--clips also accepts @path). Landscape (16:9) sources are reframed to 9:16 (drama-shorts letterbox); portrait sources are kept. The worker writes the clips plus a clips.json manifest (records each clip + the transcript slice needed for subtitles later). Relay [progress]; deliver the files from [clips-output].

Subtitles → hand off to the srt skill

Subtitles are off by default. After cutting, tell the user clips are ready and ask whether to add subtitles. If they want subtitles, show the presets first — never jump straight to one, exactly as the srt skill's styling flow does: the interactive gallery (select + Apply) in the Claude app, or the static ../srt/assets/style_presets.png + node ../srt/scripts/style.mjs --list-presets menu elsewhere. Let the user pick a preset or describe a style (short-form presets like karaoke/bold-punch suit clips). Only after they pick:

1. Write the sidecars: node scripts/clip.mjs --sidecars "<out>/clips.json" — add --karaoke only for a karaoke preset (it also writes <clip>.timestamps.json for measured word timing; a plain preset needs just the .srt).
2. Style each clip with the srt skill: node ../srt/scripts/style.mjs "<clip>.mp4" "<clip>.srt" --preset <id> (append --word-timestamps "<clip>.timestamps.json" for karaoke). See the srt skill's "Style & burn subtitles" section.

Add --host <runtime> for telemetry (silent), same as the other workers.

Config (env)

Same as /dubbing / /srt (PERSO_API_BASE/PERSO_MEDIA_BASE — https perso.ai hosts only, PERSO_SPACE_SEQ, XP_API_KEY, PERSO_NO_TELEMETRY, …).