hyperframes/skills/talking-head-recut/references/DESIGN_INDEX.md

V—Take Visual Design Library

This directory is a reference library for the talking-head-recut skill. Style, layout, and video frame are three orthogonal dimensions you can freely mix when designing a takeaway video.

Style  ×  Layout  ×  VideoFrame
 (10)      (4)         (3)        = 120 possible combinations

Read a reference file when you decide to use that dimension. Each file is a self-contained HTML fragment that follows the talking-head-recut card-HTML contract (scoped <style>, no <script>, no external URLs, animations only via data-anim-*).

Layouts — how video and card share the canvas

key	file	what it does	best for
split	layouts/split.html	50/50 side-by-side (landscape) or top/bottom (portrait)	speaker + data equal weight
stack	layouts/stack.html	video on top (~52%), card below	talking-head with summary card
pip	layouts/pip.html	card fills canvas, video rounded PiP in corner	content-heavy moment, speaker secondary
overlay	layouts/overlay.html	video full-bleed, glass card floats on bottom	cinematic / dramatic moments

A layout is a two-part recipe: pick a card.zone value to put in storyboard.json AND author a GSAP tween for #video-wrap to its target rect in the composition's <script>. Open the layout file's header for the recommended zone + the GSAP statement to paste. (Earlier docs referenced a card.layout field — that field does NOT exist in the real schema; the strict v3 schema only has card.zone.)

Styles — the card's visual language

key	file	character	accent	suggested font
academic	styles/academic.html	warm paper · grid · serif · blue highlight	#2557a7	serif
editorial	styles/editorial.html	cream · coral block · big italic quote	#ff3a2d	Playfair-like serif
minimal	styles/minimal.html	pure black/white · huge type · generous space	#000	Inter
spotlight	styles/spotlight.html	dark purple gradient · glow · dramatic	#a78bfa	sans
geom	styles/geom.html	chartreuse + hot pink + black collision	#d4ff00	Inter bold
whiteboard	styles/whiteboard.html	paper · Caveat handwriting · sketched borders	#ff6b35	Caveat
audit	styles/audit.html	manila paper · justified serif · APPROVED stamp	#8b1d1d	serif
terminal	styles/terminal.html	dark · monospace · ASCII border · prompt cursor	#4ade80	mono
swiss	styles/swiss.html	white · Helvetica · strict double rules · red accent	#e8190f	Helvetica/Inter
xhs	styles/xhs.html	cream + hot pink · chips · #hashtags · ❤️💬 row	#ff2e63	sans

Choose by content tone, not by content type — academic works for finance too if the tone is reflective; terminal works for non-tech if the tone is "engineering rigor".

Video Frames — decoration around the video element

key	file	character	when to skip
clean	frames/clean.html	no decoration; raw video	default; safest
hairline	frames/hairline.html	double-stroke + four-corner viewfinder ticks	over overlay layout (clashes with full-bleed)
polaroid	frames/polaroid.html	white photo frame + Caveat label + blue washi tape (no tilt)	over overlay layout; portrait PiP gets cramped

A frame is a decorative div that sits next to the #video-wrap inside the composition's #stage. It is one-time HTML (not animated), but you can fade it in/out across cards. See each frame file for the placement snippet and the inline <style> it needs.

Decision guide (loose, not prescriptive)

video content	suggested combos
interview / dialogue	academic × stack, audit × split
product launch / announcement	editorial × overlay, geom × pip
data analysis / financial report	audit × split, swiss × stack, terminal × pip
social clip (9:16)	xhs × overlay, editorial × stack
technical tutorial	terminal × split, whiteboard × pip
emotional story / narration	spotlight × overlay, whiteboard × overlay
minimalist presentation	minimal × split, swiss × overlay

These are starting points only. Look at the transcript, pick the tone, then pick the visual.

Portrait sizing — bigger type for mobile

Every references/styles/*.html is sized for a 1920×1080 landscape preview. When the final composition is portrait (1080×1920) — the default for social / mobile — scale every visual size up so it reads on a phone held close.

token	landscape	portrait	scale
hero title (h1/h2)	64–96px	88–132px	×1.35
detail / body	24–30px	30–40px	×1.30
kicker / chip / meta	14–18px	18–22px	×1.25
primary number / stat	48–60px	64–88px	×1.40
horizontal padding	40–64px	24–36px	÷1.5

portraitPx ≈ round(landscapePx × 1.3). Hero headlines can go ×1.4; small meta stays at ×1.2. Padding shrinks in portrait since the card is narrower.

For a card that must work in both, use a container query on the card root: container-type: inline-size + font-size: clamp(64px, 8.5cqi, 132px).

Source aspect ratio independence

Output canvas is independent of source video aspect. Three supported output ratios (selected by the user in Step 7.0 of SKILL.md):

ratio	canvas	storyboard.layout	best for
16:9	1920×1080	"landscape"	YouTube / TV / desktop playback
9:16	1080×1920	"portrait"	TikTok / Reels / short-form mobile
4:5	1080×1350	"portrait" (schema treats 4:5 as portrait since h>w)	Instagram feed / WeChat Moments / works for both platforms

The layout reference files in layouts/ document landscape and portrait bounds only. For 4:5 derive bounds by proportional vertical scaling from portrait: 4:5 y/h = round(portrait y/h × 0.703), keep x/w identical. The composer doesn't care about the named layout value; it just uses composition.width × height.

• Landscape video on landscape canvas → videoBounds matches video aspect, no letterbox
• Portrait video on landscape canvas → videoBounds is a narrower box (e.g. pip becomes 248×440); empty side filled by card or background
• Landscape video on portrait canvas → videoBounds becomes a wide-but-short band; stack and overlay work best
• Portrait video on portrait canvas → most natural; any layout

The layout reference files show landscape values; for portrait you usually flip the long axis: split becomes top/bottom, pip video bubble shrinks ~20%, overlay card slot widens to full width.

Constraints you must obey when copying from these references

1. No <script> — animations only via data-anim-* attributes
2. No external URLs — no Google Fonts CDN, no remote images; the skill provides Caveat / LXGW WenKai TC / Inter / Virgil locally
3. All <style> rules must be prefixed with .card[data-card-id="..."] — the hyperframes sanitizer auto-scopes them, but write them already-scoped to stay readable
4. No on*= inline handlers
5. CSS variables for colors when you want a card to switch theme cleanly; inline hex when you want this specific style's signature look

If a reference uses a font you don't have, fall back:

• Playfair Display / Noto Serif SC → ui-serif, "Songti SC", "Times New Roman", serif
• Noto Sans SC → ui-sans-serif, system-ui, sans-serif
• JetBrains Mono → ui-monospace, "SF Mono", Menlo, monospace
• Kalam → 'Caveat', cursive