vcr-style-skill-template

name: vcr-style-skill-template description: Define and apply a reusable VCR visual style contract (fonts, palette, motion, layout, and output defaults) without changing engine code. Use when creating team/persona-specific creative direction on top of VCR manifests.

VCR Style Skill Template

Use this as a base skill for style-specific VCR output.

Goal

Treat VCR as a stable render engine and encode creative direction as a style profile.

What This Skill Controls

• Typography defaults (font family, size ramps, spacing)
• Color system (brand/accent/neutral palette)
• Motion language (easing families, timing windows, entrance/exit behavior)
• Composition conventions (safe margins, z-index tiers, anchor rules)
• Render defaults (fps, resolution classes, output naming)

How to Customize

1. Copy references/style_tokens.example.yaml to references/style_tokens.yaml.
2. Replace token values with your preferred look-and-feel.
3. Keep token names stable; only change values unless adding a new style capability.
4. Use assets/presets/ for reusable scene snippets that reflect the style.

Style Application Workflow

1. Read references/style_tokens.yaml.
2. Author or patch target .vcr manifest to conform to tokens.
3. Validate:
   • vcr check <scene>.vcr
4. Snapshot first frame:
   • vcr render-frame <scene>.vcr --frame 0 -o renders/<scene>_style_f0.png
5. Build output:
   • vcr build <scene>.vcr -o renders/<scene>_style.mov

Conformance Checks

• Font usage matches approved token set.
• Palette use stays within tokenized colors unless explicitly overridden.
• Timing/easing follows style defaults for entrances/exits.
• Layer spacing and alignment obey composition tokens.
• Validation and render commands complete successfully.

Failure Handling

• Style drift: diff manifest values against token file and normalize.
• Visual mismatch: adjust token values, not engine internals.
• Invalid manifest: resolve schema/expression errors via vcr check.
• Backend-specific effects mismatch: confirm backend and re-test minimal scene.

Packaging Guidance

• Keep this skill lean; place detailed guides in references/.
• Create derivative skills by copying this folder and changing frontmatter + tokens.