app-sizzle

# App Sizzle — GPT-Image-2 Enhanced iOS App Teaser Generate a polished 15-second app teaser from real app screens. Each selected screen is passed through GPT-image-2 before Seedance so compressed captures become cleaner references without inventing UI. ## Cost transparency gate Before any paid MCP call, call `identity_balance({verbose: true})` once. Surface the current balance, recent burn rate, and remaining runway, then gate the run with this exact message: > Estimated cost: about 3,000-4,000 credits (~$30-$40) for a typical run with screenshot enhancement plus Seedance video. This exceeds $5, so Reply `proceed` to continue or `cancel` to stop. Do not call any paid MCP tool until the user replies `proceed`. If the user replies `cancel`, stop without generating. For non-interactive `--quick` or `--config` callers, require `cost_ack=proceed` in the config; if it is absent, stop with the estimate instead of spending credits. **Generation contract:** use `resolution="1080p"`, `duration=15`, and `sound=True`. Skip `fast=true` because it caps Seedance at 720p. The skill owns duration and sound so the user only has to supply app identity, screens, logo, and aspect ratio. The visual aesthetic is **derived from the app's personality** — not defaulted to liquid glass. The agent reads the app's soul from its icon, screenshots, and category, then chooses a treatment. The user provides the app identity and assets; the agent decides everything else (mode, prompt, camera, style). --- ## Pre-generation wall-clock guard Start a timer at skill start once the required app identity and screen/logo source are available and the cost gate has passed. Time spent waiting for the user's `proceed` reply, or for non-interactive `cost_ack=proceed`, is not prep time and must not trigger this guard. If required inputs or real assets are missing, stop at Stage 0 or Stage 0.5 and ask for them; do not bypass the asset gate. For runs with required inputs in hand, the first paid generation call is the GPT-image-2 `generate_image_edit` enhancement pass, and it must be invoked within 5 minutes of skill start. If you have not invoked the first `generate_image_edit` enhancement within 5 minutes of skill start, stop before any paid generation call and report `failed_pre_generation_timeout` with what you have so far: fetched assets, selected screens, feature map, arc, enhancement-prompt status, Seedance prompt draft if any, and the exact blocker. Do not keep refining analysis, enhancement wording, prompt wording, or camera language. Print a single-line progress checkpoint after each prep stage and right before the paid generation call: - `Stage 1/3 done — assets sourced and screened, analyzing screenshots.` - `Stage 2/3 done — feature map and arc written, locking enhancement prompts.` - `Stage 3/3 done — enhancement prompts locked, calling GPT-image-2 now.` Feature-map and enhancement-prompt writing is maximum 2 passes before the first `generate_image_edit` call. After the max 2 passes, ship what you have to `generate_image_edit`; do not continue polishing enhancement wording, screen analysis, or arc language. Seedance prompt writing is maximum 2 passes after enhancements complete; then ship what you have to `generate_reference_video`. ## Long-running task_status polling When any long-running generation or edit call returns a `task_id` with or without an initial status, including `{task_id}`, `{task_id, status: "queued"}`, or an initial `queued`, `running`, or `processing` status, record the task id and start time immediately. - Call `task_status({task_id})` in a tight loop until terminal (`completed | failed | cancelled`). No manual sleep and no Bash polling; the worker holds each status call open. - Emit ONE visible progress line every 60s while status is `queued`, `running`, or `processing`: `Seedance i2v queued for {N}m {S}s... still processing`. Replace the provider/stage label when polling Kling, GPT-image-2, overlay, or edit tasks. - On `completed`, unwrap the returned result URL and continue. - On `failed` or `cancelled`, surface failure to the user with `task_id`, status, and the last status message. - After 15 min total from the original submit, call `task_cancel({task_id})` if the task is still non-terminal, then surface failure to the user. If cancel reports the task is already terminal, call status once more and report that terminal result. - Do not submit a duplicate request while the original task is still `queued`, `running`, or `processing`. ## Mode: Reference-to-Video Primary: `generate_reference_video(provider="seedance", resolution="1080p")` with 3–5 screenshots + the app icon/logo as the final reference. Fallback to `provider="kling", quality_mode="pro"` (= 1080p) when: - Seedance returns non-audio `partner_validation_failed` (celebrity faces, screen-recording UI) - Seedance returns `insufficient_balance` - Seedance stays queued/running until it returns a timeout such as `seedance timed out after ...` Do not treat generated-audio moderation as an immediate Kling fallback. See the Seedance generated-audio moderation recovery runbook in Generate Video first. Kling prompt uses `<<<image_1>>>` … `<<<image_5>>>` tokens instead of `@Image1` … `@Image5`. Drop the `resolution` param (Kling uses `quality_mode` instead). See Gotchas. --- ## Stage 0 — Asset Sourcing If invoked with empty args and no relevant prior context, print this menu verbatim and stop. Do not call tools until the user supplies the app identity and screen source. ``` To make your app promo, I need: 1. App name + one-line description of what it does (e.g. "Nova — an AI journaling app for iOS") 2. Where should I pull the app screens from? — iOS App Store: give me the App Store URL or app name → I'll use `fetch_appstore_screens` to fetch screenshots, metadata, and icon — Web app / website: give me the URL → I'll capture it with Pika MCP — Local files / URLs: drop the paths and I'll upload them 3. Brand logo — path or URL (preferred) or skip to use the App Store icon The logo anchors the end card and prevents Seedance from hallucinating brand text. If you don't have a logo file, use the fetched App Store icon as the fallback. 4. Aspect ratio: 16:9 (landscape/YouTube) / 9:16 (Reels/TikTok) / 1:1. Optional: `variants=16:9,9:16,1:1` to export multiple deliverables from one render. ``` If the trigger message or prior context already supplies part of this, ask only for the missing required fields before touching any tool. These are the only questions the user needs to answer; the agent decides mode, prompt, camera, and style. Once answered, the agent: 1. Sources the screens (MCP App Store fetch / website capture / upload local files) 2. **Analyzes each screen** (Stage 1) — reads every screenshot, maps UI → feature 3. **Designs the narrative arc** (Stage 2) — builds a 15s story structure before touching the prompt 4. Selects the 3–5 best screens for the promo (ordered by narrative role) 5. Uploads logo + screens to get public URLs 6. Writes the screen-specific prompt (Template A or B) 7. Generates at 1080p --- ## Stage 0.5 — Asset Gate Before calling any generation tool, verify both assets are in hand: | Asset | Required | If missing | |-------|----------|------------| | Real app screenshots (≥1 actual sourced image) | Yes | Stop and ask for screenshots | | Brand logo OR app icon | Yes | Use the `fetch_appstore_screens` icon when App Store sourcing is used; otherwise stop and ask for a logo/icon | If either is missing, tell the user exactly what's needed and wait. Real assets are what keep the teaser grounded; text-to-video placeholders make Seedance invent UI. Avoid: - Generate using text-to-video as a substitute when screens were expected - Describe imaginary UI in the prompt ("a dark dashboard with…") without a real reference image - Proceed with "I'll use a placeholder for now" - Make up what the app looks like from its name or description The only acceptable path forward is real assets from the user. If MCP fetching or capturing failed (App Store returned nothing, website screenshot errored), report what happened and ask the user to provide the screens manually. Never invent them. ### Avatar-type probe for human or character assets App screenshots and app icons are the only default visual anchors. App-sizzle is not a founder/creator-face skill, so a missing screen or logo is never filled with a user avatar. Before any paid `generate_image_edit` or `generate_reference_video` call, run this Avatar-type probe only when a user-supplied screen, logo, promo image, mascot, founder photo, or character asset includes a prominent person or character that would become an enhancement or video reference. For ordinary app screenshots with incidental faces, prefer a different screenshot or crop the face before upload. Call `analyze_media` once on that asset: ``` query: "Classify this image for paid video generation. Is it a photograph of a real human face, an AI-generated realistic portrait, a stylized / illustrated character, or a recognizable trademarked / copyrighted character such as Batman, Pikachu, or Mickey Mouse? Return strict JSON only: { \"avatar_type\": \"real_human\" | \"ai_realistic\" | \"stylized_illustrated\" | \"recognized_ip\", \"recognized_character\": string | null, \"moderation_risk\": \"low\" | \"medium\" | \"high\", \"recommendation\": \"proceed\" | \"warn\" | \"reject\" }. Use null for `recognized_character` when no specific character is recognized; never write \"none\", \"unknown\", or explanatory prose in that field." ``` Route from the result: - **recognized IP / copyright risk** -> **STOP only when** `avatar_type` is `"recognized_ip"`, or `recognized_character` names a specific character (for example `"Batman"`), or when both `moderation_risk` is `"high"` and `recommendation` is `"reject"`. Treat `recognized_character: null`, empty string, `"none"`, `"unknown"`, `"n/a"`, and low/medium `moderation_risk` as not enough to stop by themselves. Run this check before the real/stylized routes. A chibi Batman is still Batman even when `avatar_type` is stylized / illustrated. - **real human / AI-generated realistic** -> proceed only if this is a legitimate app screenshot or user-supplied promo asset; otherwise ask for app UI instead. - **stylized / illustrated** -> proceed with a visible warning that stylized characters may reduce Seedance reliability, but do not substitute them for missing screens. - **trademarked / copyrighted** -> **STOP** before generation. Surface this message: `The supplied avatar appears to be a trademarked character ([X]). Most video providers will moderate this and refuse to generate. Pass --avatar <real-looking-photo-url> to override.` For app-sizzle, ask for non-IP app screenshots/logo instead of using the avatar override as a screen substitute. --- ## Screen Sourcing ### iOS App Store Use Pika MCP `fetch_appstore_screens`; do not use a local scraper. It accepts a full App Store URL, numeric app ID, or app-name search term: ``` fetch_appstore_screens( query: <app_store_url | numeric_app_id | search_term>, country: "us", max_screens: 10, include_icon: true ) ``` Expected result shape: ``` { "app_url": "https://apps.apple.com/...", "metadata": { "name": "...", "subtitle": "...", "description": "...", "category": "...", "icon_url": "https://..." }, "icon": { "url": "https://cdn.pika.art/...", "source_url": "https://is...mzstatic.com/...", "filename": "appstore-icon.png", "mime_type": "image/png", "width": 1024, "height": 1024 }, "screenshots": [ { "url": "https://cdn.pika.art/...", "source_url": "https://is...mzstatic.com/.../1290x2796bb.png", "filename": "appstore-screen-01.png", "mime_type": "image/png", "width": 1290, "height": 2796 } ], "count": 1 } ``` If `fetch_appstore_screens` returns no screenshots, report the error and ask the user for 3-5 real screenshots plus a logo/icon. Do not fall back to Playwright/headless App Store capture and do not invent UI. After App Store assets are fetched, pick the 3–5 screens that show the core UI. Skip: - Pure text/splash screens (no UI) - Blank or loading states - Screens with faces (may trigger content policy) **Screen selection principle — maximize visual contrast.** Each selected screen should look as different as possible from the others: dark vs. light background, UI-dense vs. photo-heavy, micro close-up vs. wide grid, minimal vs. busy. If all your screens look similar, Seedance blends them into a visual mush. What made Dazz Cam work: 3D camera grid + Polaroid output + VHS panels + fisheye orb — four completely distinct visual worlds. What makes teasers fail: four screens of the same UI at slightly different scroll positions. ### Web App / Website (auto-capture) Use Pika MCP's capture tool: ```python capture_website(url="https://example.com", mode="screenshot") # Returns image_url — use directly as a reference ``` Call once per distinct page/view you want to include. ### Local Files User provides paths → upload each via Pika MCP (see Asset Upload section below). --- ## Stage 1 — App Analysis After sourcing screens, **read every screenshot** using Claude's vision before writing a single word of prompt. This is the most important step — skip it and you get a generic glass blob with no story. For each screenshot, record: - **What UI is shown** — e.g. "chat input with suggested prompts", "video timeline with AI edit chips", "agent result card showing a generated clip" - **What feature it represents** — e.g. "creation entry", "agent at work", "output/share" - **Emotional register** — is this the power moment, the ease moment, the aha moment? Also pull the app metadata from the `fetch_appstore_screens` result, or from the user-provided description: - App name, subtitle, one-line value prop - Category and target user **Output of Stage 1:** A numbered feature map: ``` Screen 1 — [filename]: Shows [X UI]. Represents [Y feature]. Moment: [hook/build/reveal]. Screen 2 — [filename]: ... ... ``` After the map, score each screen for **visual uniqueness**: does it look completely different from the others you've mapped? Prefer screens with distinct color palettes, distinct layout density, and distinct subject matter. A great set has maximum visual spread — the hook should feel nothing like the build, which should feel nothing like the reveal. Do NOT proceed to Stage 2 until this map is written out. --- ## Stage 2 — Narrative Architecture Every 15s promo needs a spine. Design the story arc before touching the prompt template. ### The 4-beat structure | Beat | Seconds | Job | Which screen(s) | |------|---------|-----|-----------------| | **Hook** | 0–3s | Grab attention — show the most dramatic UI moment or the problem being solved | The most visually striking screen | | **Build** | 3–10s | Feature walkthrough in logical user-journey order | 2–3 screens in sequence | | **Reveal** | 10–13s | Pull-back or product overview — the "so that's what it does" moment | Wide shot or most complete screen | | **Logo** | 13–15s | Brand lock — wordmark materializes, accent color pulse | Logo (@Image6 or last ref). `COMING SOON` is added later as a post-generation text overlay. | ### Story arc types — pick one based on the app | Arc | When to use | Structure | |-----|------------|-----------| | **Problem → Solution** | Productivity/tool apps | Hook = pain point UI → Build = app solves it → Reveal = result | | **Feature Parade** | Feature-rich apps | Hook = most impressive feature → Build = 2 more features → Reveal = overview | | **Journey** | Consumer/lifestyle apps | Hook = entry point → Build = the experience → Reveal = outcome | | **Transformation** | Before/after type apps | Hook = the "before" → Build = the process → Reveal = the "after" | ### Output of Stage 2 Write out the arc explicitly before generating: ``` Arc type: [Problem→Solution / Feature Parade / Journey / Transformation] Hook (0-3s): Screen [N] — [what happens] — camera: [extreme close-up on X] Build (3-10s): Screen [N] → [N] → [N] — [what each reveals] — camera: [whip pan / orbital / etc.] Reveal (10-13s): Screen [N] — [what it shows] — camera: [pull-back to show full product] Logo (13-15s): @Image[N] — wordmark materializes whole in a burst of [accent color] light and holds. Do not ask the video model to render the `COMING SOON` copy; it is added later as a post-generation text overlay. ``` Do NOT write the Seedance prompt until this arc is defined. --- ## Stage 2.5 — GPT-Image-2 Enhancement After the arc is defined and the 3–5 screens are selected, enhance each one with GPT-image-2 before uploading to Seedance. This lifts compressed website captures and App Store thumbnails to a cleaner, higher-fidelity reference. For each selected screen (including the logo/end card reference): ```python result = generate_image_edit( provider="gpt-image-2", prompt="High quality version, preserve all content exactly", images=["<original_cdn_url>"], aspect_ratio="16:9", # match the capture — use 9:16 for portrait screens quality="medium", ) # use result.image_url (or result.url) as the Seedance reference ``` **Rules:**