| name | creative-brief |
| description | This skill should be used when the user asks to "write a creative brief", "build a motion brief", "the client doesn't know what they want", "turn this vague client request into a brief", "what questions should I ask the client", or "make a brief I can get sign-off on". It turns a fuzzy client ask into a structured, sign-off-ready motion design brief and the exact clarifying questions to send back. |
| version | 0.1.0 |
Creative Brief
Convert a vague client ask ("we need a cool animated explainer") into a structured, sign-off-ready creative brief, and generate the exact clarifying questions to send when the client cannot articulate what they want.
When to use
Use when starting any motion project, when a client request lacks the detail needed to scope or quote, when a brief needs to be drafted for client approval, or when a "make it cool" request must be translated into concrete direction. A locked brief is the contract for creative intent; everything downstream (estimate, scope, revisions, delivery) depends on it.
Core principle
A brief is not a wish list — it is a decision document. Every project decision should trace back to one line in the brief. The job is to interrogate eleven dimensions until each has a concrete, written answer, then lock it with a sign-off line. Vague answers are not acceptable; convert each one into a specific, testable statement.
Decision tree — how far to take the brief
The judgment is how much rigour this brief needs and what to do with each gap. Don't over-process a one-day social cutdown; don't under-process a broadcast campaign.
Is the creative intent already clear and agreed in writing?
├─ YES → write a 1-page lightweight brief, confirm, proceed. Don't re-interrogate.
└─ NO → run full 11-dimension interrogation.
│
For each dimension, classify the answer:
├─ Concrete & testable → record it, move on.
├─ Vague ("cool", "modern") → run vague-translator → offer bounded choice.
├─ Blank → pull matching clarifying question (by gap).
└─ Contradictory / 3 messages → force-rank, surface the conflict to the
decision-maker, do NOT average them.
│
Can you proceed without the answer?
├─ Cosmetic gap → write best assumption, flag [ASSUMPTION — confirm].
└─ Scope/cost-defining → BLOCK. No budget, no air date, no single message,
gap (budget, no named placements = stop and resolve before
date, message, design. These set the price and the spec.
distribution)
Rule of thumb: gaps that change the price or the spec are blockers; gaps that only change execution detail become flagged assumptions.
The 11 interrogation dimensions
Capture a concrete answer for each. If the client cannot answer, send the matching clarifying question (see references/clarifying-questions.md).
- Business goal — what the business needs to change (awareness, sign-ups, sales, comprehension). Must be measurable, not "engagement."
- Audience — who watches, where their head is at, their objection. Specific persona, not "everyone."
- Core message — the ONE thing a viewer must remember. One sentence. If there are three, the brief is not done.
- Tone / feel — 3-5 adjectives plus a "but not" (e.g. "playful but not childish"). Tie to reference frames.
- Mandatories — brand assets, logo lockup rules, colour/font system, legal disclaimers, super/endcard, clearcast/regulatory needs.
- Deliverables — exact count, durations, and versions (e.g. 1× 30s hero, 3× 6s cutdowns, 1× static endframe).
- Distribution — exact placements (IG Reels, paid YouTube pre-roll, trade-show loop, broadcast). This drives spec and aspect ratios.
- References — 2-4 links with a note on what to steal from each ("the pacing here, not the colour"). Also anti-references.
- Timeline — final air date working backwards through delivery, revisions, animation, design, script/board, kickoff.
- Budget — a real number or a band. "No budget yet" is a red flag to resolve before design starts.
- Success metric — how success is judged 30 days post-launch. Defines "done well," not just "done."
Question bank by gap (which question fixes which hole)
Match the gap to the single highest-leverage question. Full send-ready bank in references/clarifying-questions.md.
| Gap in the ask | The one question that closes it |
|---|
| No measurable goal | "If this works, what number on a dashboard moves?" |
| Audience = "everyone" | "Who must act first? That's the audience." |
| Three messages | "Rank these 1-3; the brief carries #1, the rest become later assets." |
| Tone with no guardrail | "Pick 3-5 words — then the important one: what must it NOT feel like?" |
| Vague tone ("modern") | Run vague-translator → "Closer to A (calm/slow) or B (punchy/fast)?" |
| No mandatories listed | "Send logo files, brand guide, fonts, colours, and any legal super." |
| Fuzzy deliverables | "Exactly how many videos, what durations, which ratios/versions?" |
| "Social" (no platform) | "Which exact placements — Reels, TikTok, pre-roll, web hero, TV?" |
| No / endless references | "Send 2-4 you love (one line each on what to steal) + 1 you hate." |
| No date | "What's the hard air date, and who gives the final yes?" |
| No budget | "Projects like this run X-Y — which end are we?" |
| No success metric | "30 days out, what makes this a win?" |
Workflow
- Intake. Read the raw client ask. Extract whatever maps to the 11 dimensions; mark the rest as gaps.
- Triage gaps. For each blank or vague dimension, pull the matching clarifying question. Group them into one consolidated email — never drip-feed questions across days.
- Draft the brief. Fill the template below. Where the client was vague, write the best assumption and flag it
[ASSUMPTION — confirm].
- Pressure-test. Check the message is singular, the tone has a "but not," deliverables have counts and durations, and distribution maps to real specs.
- Send for sign-off. Include the sign-off block. No design work begins until it is returned approved.
The brief template
PROJECT BRIEF — [Project name] Date: ___ Version: ___
Client: ___ Main contact (decision-maker): ___ Prepared by: ___
1. BUSINESS GOAL
We are making this so that: [measurable change]
2. AUDIENCE
Primary: [persona, context, mindset, key objection]
3. CORE MESSAGE (the one thing)
After watching, the viewer thinks/does: [one sentence]
4. TONE / FEEL
It feels: [adj, adj, adj] — but NOT [adj, adj]
5. MANDATORIES
Logo: [lockup + rules] Colour/Type: [system]
Legal/super/endcard: [required text] Regulatory: [Y/N — body]
6. DELIVERABLES
[count × duration × ratio × format] (full list in delivery section)
7. DISTRIBUTION
Placements: [exact channels + paid/organic]
8. REFERENCES
• [link] — take: [what to steal]
• Anti-ref: [link] — avoid: [what]
9. TIMELINE (back from air date)
Air: ___ Final delivery: ___ Rev rounds: ___ Animation: ___
Design/boards: ___ Script: ___ Kickoff: ___
10. BUDGET
[number or band] — covers: [scope]
11. SUCCESS METRIC
30 days out, success = [metric + target]
ASSUMPTIONS TO CONFIRM
• [ASSUMPTION] ...
SIGN-OFF
This brief is the agreed creative intent. Changes after sign-off are
handled as change requests.
Approved by: __________ Title: ______ Date: ______
Handling "I don't know what I want"
Do not ask the client to design. Offer bounded choices instead of open questions:
- Replace "What tone do you want?" with "Closer to A (calm, premium, slow) or B (punchy, bold, fast)?"
- Replace "Any references?" with "Of these three styles, which is nearest — and what's wrong with it?"
- Force a single message: "If the viewer forgets everything but one line, which line?"
- Anchor budget with a band: "Projects like this usually land between X and Y — which end are we?"
Convert every vague adjective using the translator in references/vague-translator.md ("clean" → which of: minimal layout / lots of negative space / limited palette / slow easing?).
Worked examples
GOOD — a core-message line that closes decisions:
After watching, the viewer thinks: "Invoicing that takes 30 seconds."
One sentence, one idea, testable. Every scene can be checked against it; pacing, copy, and the endcard all trace back to this line. Full start-to-finish brief in references/worked-example.md.
ANTI-PATTERN — the "kitchen-sink" brief that guarantees revisions:
Goal: drive engagement and awareness and sign-ups. Audience: everyone who'd love our product. Message: we're innovative, affordable, easy to use, and trusted. Tone: modern, cool, fun but professional. Make it pop.
Why it fails: no measurable goal, no real audience, four competing messages, a tone with no guardrail, and an untranslated "pop." Nothing here can be approved or disproven, so round 1 becomes a discovery session on the client's dime. The fix is the entire workflow above: force one goal, one audience, one message, one "but not," and translate "pop" into a bounded choice before any design.
Common mistakes
| Symptom | Why it happens | Fix |
|---|
| Brief reads like a wish list | Captured the client's words verbatim instead of decisions | Convert every line to a concrete, testable statement |
| Round 1 turns into "what do you actually want?" | Started design with blockers unresolved | Block on goal/budget/date/message/platform before design |
| Tone keeps drifting in reviews | No "but not" guardrail set | Add the guardrail adjective; it prevents ~80% of tone revisions |
| Three messages, muddy film | Averaged competing messages instead of ranking | Force-rank; carry #1, park the rest as future assets |
| Spec/quote keeps changing | Distribution left as "social" | Pin exact placements — they define ratio, length, and price |
| Client "approves" then reopens it | No sign-off block / decision-maker unclear | Identify the single decision-maker; lock with the sign-off line |
| References pull in five directions | Endless refs, no "take" notes | Cap at 4, require a "what to steal" note + 1 anti-reference |
Deliverable spec — what a good brief contains
The output is a one-page document (the filled template) plus, when gaps exist, one consolidated clarifying email. A good brief:
- Fits roughly one page — long enough to decide, short enough to read.
- Has a concrete, testable answer in every one of the 11 dimensions (or a flagged
[ASSUMPTION]).
- Carries exactly one core message and a tone with a "but not."
- Lists deliverables with counts, durations, and ratios, and distribution as named placements.
- Names the single decision-maker and ends with the sign-off block.
Before you finish — checklist
Related frameworks
The brief sets intent; two sibling skills turn that intent into motion direction — reference them, don't restate them here:
motion-art-direction — once tone is locked (dimension 4), pick a named Motion Personality preset there and cite it in the brief so everyone animates to the same numeric feel.animation-principles — the Three Pillars (intent → tone → craft) are the upstream version of this brief's logic; the Primary/Secondary/Ambient motion layers and the 1/3 Rule belong in execution, not the brief — don't pull them in here.
Quick reference
| Symptom | Move |
|---|
| "Make it pop / cool / modern" | Run the vague-translator; offer 2 bounded options |
| Three core messages | Force-rank; brief carries one, others become future assets |
| No budget given | Anchor with a band before any design |
| "Everyone" is the audience | Ask who must act first; that is the audience |
| No air date | Set delivery date first, schedule backwards |
| Endless references | Cap at 4 + require a "take" note + 1 anti-reference |
| Tone with no "but not" | Add the guardrail adjective; it prevents 80% of revisions |
Reference files
references/clarifying-questions.md — the full bank of send-ready clarifying questions, one set per dimension, plus the consolidated intake email template.references/vague-translator.md — vague-adjective → concrete-question lookup table and the bounded-choice question patterns.references/worked-example.md — a real vague ask turned into a completed brief, start to finish.
