Video Intake And Storyboard

Video Intake And Storyboard

Use this skill before building scenes. The goal is to transform conversational direction into a spec that another agent can execute without guessing.

Intake Pass

1. Extract hard facts.

   • Scene number or section.
   • Duration and target frame rate/resolution.
   • Narration text and phrase timestamps.
   • Reference images or final-frame targets.
   • Asset locations.
   • Explicit "do not touch" boundaries.
   • Required transition from previous or next scene.

2. Extract style constraints.

   • Desired aesthetic.
   • Colors, typography, materials, and motion language.
   • Forbidden looks or effects.
   • Brand consistency rules.

3. Extract approval state.

   • Approved scenes.
   • Work-in-progress scenes.
   • Existing renders to preserve.
   • Current known issues.

4. Identify missing decisions.

   • Ask only if the answer changes the implementation.
   • Prefer concrete choices: crop/no crop, caption style, transition direction, final-frame priority, music volume behavior.

Scene Spec Rules

• Use templates/scene-spec.md for each scene.
• Write beats as timestamped visual actions, not vague animation mood.
• Include what must appear by exact timestamps.
• Include what must not appear early.
• Include first-frame and final-frame requirements.
• Include proof timestamps for later QA.

Storyboard Rules

• Use templates/storyboard.md for multi-scene work.
• Mark approved scenes as locked.
• Note carryover dependencies when one scene begins from another scene's final frame.
• Track which audio clip controls each scene duration.
• Track which caption/script file is authoritative.

Prompt Patterns That Reduce Iteration

Prefer prompts that include:

• Final frame target.
• Exact time when important elements appear.
• What should be visible before and after that timestamp.
• Which existing scenes must remain untouched.
• Whether style can change or must be reused.
• Whether audio is reference-only or must be overlaid.

Avoid treating these as optional:

• First-frame continuity.
• Carryover frame updates.
• Caption timing source.
• Music tail timing.
• Product-demo crop safety.

Output

Produce a filled scene spec or storyboard, plus a short list of decisions still needed. If all decisions are derivable from assets and prior context, proceed without asking.

Scene Spec Quality Bar

A scene spec is ready to implement when it answers:

• What happens in the first frame.
• What happens in the final frame.
• What changes over time.
• What narration or audio drives timing.
• What exact timestamp matters most.
• What prior scene must remain untouched.
• What assets are required.
• What style must be reused.
• What visual references control layout.
• What proof frames will demonstrate success.

Separate Specific Content From Pattern

When converting prompts, split notes into:

• Project-specific content: names, logos, narration, product UI, brand copy, private filenames.
• Reusable pattern: camera swipe, chart draw, caption preview, crop safety, music ducking, final-frame proof.

Only reusable patterns belong in future skills or examples.

Timestamp Handling

Treat timestamps as production constraints:

• "At 5s" means visible by that global or local time.
• "Start around 3s" means animation may begin slightly earlier if it must be visible by 3s.
• "Land by 10s" means final state should be reached at or before 10s.
• "Hold for 3s" means no major layout change during that hold.
• "Do not appear before" means set initial state and reveal only after the cue.

Always record whether timestamps are local to a scene or global to the full video.

Reference Image Handling

For a reference image:

• Identify what must match: composition, color, size, text, position, or only concept.
• Identify what may differ: exact copy, real data, logo art, camera crop, or animation path.
• Work backward from final frame.
• Plan a final-frame proof.
• Plan a next-scene carryover proof if the next scene begins from this frame.

Approval Boundaries

Capture phrases like:

• "Do not modify Scene 01."
• "Treat this as approved."
• "Do not regenerate from scratch."
• "Keep style, typography, colors, and components."
• "Only update this transition."
• "Use the attached image only as reference."

These are constraints, not suggestions.

Useful Clarifying Questions

Ask only if not discoverable:

• Is the audio final or reference-only?
• Should the final frame match the image exactly or directionally?
• Is the raw screen recording allowed to show its canvas?
• Should captions appear during silent sections?
• Should music rise during pauses or stay low?

Storyboard Failure Modes

Watch for:

• Scene durations that do not match audio durations.
• A scene that depends on an uncreated prior final frame.
• A reference image that conflicts with written timing.
• A user saying "ignore this reference" after it was already used.
• A final scene change that requires earlier caption or audio updates.

Handoff Format

For implementation, hand off:

• Filled scene spec.
• Filled storyboard when multi-scene.
• Asset list.
• Locked scene list.
• Open questions.
• Recommended implementation skill order.