hyperframes

SKILL.md preview

---
name: hyperframes
description: Create HTML-based video compositions, animated title cards, social overlays, captioned talking-head videos, audio-reactive visuals, and shader transitions using HyperFrames. HTML is the source of truth for video. Use when the user wants a rendered MP4/WebM from an HTML composition, wants to animate text/logos/charts over media, needs captions synced to audio, wants TTS narration, or wants to convert a website into a video.
version: 1.0.0
author: heygen-com
license: Apache-2.0
platforms: [linux, macos, windows]
prerequisites:
  commands: [node, ffmpeg, npx]
metadata:
  hermes:
    tags: [creative, video, animation, html, gsap, motion-graphics]
    related_skills: [manim-video, meme-generation]
    category: creative
    requires_toolsets: [terminal]
---

# HyperFrames

HTML is the source of truth for video. A composition is an HTML file with `data-*` attributes for timing, a GSAP timeline for animation, and CSS for appearance. The HyperFrames engine captures the page frame-by-frame and encodes to MP4/WebM with FFmpeg.

**Complement to `manim-video`:** Use `manim-video` for mathematical/geometric explainers (equations, 3B1B-style). Use `hyperframes` for motion-graphics, talking-head with captions, product tours, social overlays, shader transitions, and anything driven by real video/audio media.

## When to Use

- User asks for a rendered video from text, a script, or a website
- Animated title cards, lower thirds, or typographic intros
- Captioned narration video (TTS + captions synced to waveform)
- Audio-reactive visuals (beat sync, spectrum bars, pulsing glow)
- Scene-to-scene transitions (crossfade, wipe, shader warp, flash-through-white)
- Social overlays (Instagram/TikTok/YouTube style)
- Website-to-video pipeline (capture a URL, produce a promo)
- Any HTML/CSS/JS animation that must render deterministically to a video file

Do **not** use this skill for:
- Pure math/equation animation (→ `manim-video`)
- Image generation or memes (→ `meme-generation`, image models)
- Live video conferencing or streaming

## Quick Reference

```bash
npx hyperframes init my-video               # scaffold a project
cd my-video
npx hyperframes lint                        # validate before preview/render
npx hyperframes preview                     # live-reload browser preview (port 3002)
npx hyperframes render --output final.mp4   # render to MP4
npx hyperframes doctor                      # diagnose environment issues
```

Render flags: `--quality draft|standard|high` · `--fps 24|30|60` · `--format mp4|webm` · `--docker` (reproducible) · `--strict`.

Full CLI reference: [references/cli.md](references/cli.md).

## Setup (one-time)

```bash
bash "$(dirname "$(find ~/.hermes/skills -path '*/hyperframes/SKILL.md' 2>/dev/null | head -1)")/scripts/setup.sh"
```

The script:
1. Verifies Node.js >= 22 and FFmpeg are installed (prints fix instructions if not).
2. Installs the `hyperframes` CLI globally (`npm install -g hyperframes@>=0.4.2`).
3. Pre-caches `chrome-headless-shell` via Puppeteer — **required** for best-quality rendering via Chrome's `HeadlessExperimental.beginFrame` capture path.
4. Runs `npx hyperframes doctor` and reports the result.

See [references/troubleshooting.md](references/troubleshooting.md) if setup fails.

## Procedure

### 1. Plan before writing HTML

Before touching code, articulate at a high level:
- **What** — narrative arc, key moments, emotional beats
- **Structure** — compositions, tracks (video/audio/overlays), durations
- **Visual identity** — colors, fonts, motion character (explosive / cinematic / fluid / technical)
- **Hero frame** — for each scene, the moment when the most elements are simultaneously visible. This is the static layout you'll build first.

**Visual Identity Gate (HARD-GATE).** Before writing ANY composition HTML, a visual identity must be defined. Do NOT write compositions with default or generic colors (`#333`, `#3b82f6`, `Roboto` are tells that this step was 

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