Templates

Purpose

Templates are the reusable bridge between:

1. reference analysis
2. new project intent
3. seeded clone plans
4. storyboard generation

Workflow

0. Inspect bundled provider playbooks:

vclaw video playbook-list
vclaw video playbook-show --name seedance-ugc
vclaw video prompt-lib-list
vclaw video prompt-lib-show --name veo-prompting-guide

Built-in storyboard templates

Built-in storyboard templates are available for quick scene scaffolds:

vclaw video storyboard-template-list
vclaw video storyboard-template-show --name product-commercial-4
vclaw video storyboard --project new-project --template product-commercial-4 --environment "bright kitchen counter" --character-a "Maya"

Guide-inspired storyboard templates include:

1. product-commercial-4 — short problem, reveal, proof, payoff ad
2. food-tutorial-6 — ingredients, prep, cooking, plate, taste
3. dance-social-6 — hook pose, choreography, loopable finish
4. dramatic-short-6 — reveal, choice, confrontation, aftermath
5. action-short-6 — threat, obstacle, impact, near miss, release

Reference-derived templates

1. Analyze a reference:

vclaw video analyze --project ref-project --source <url-or-path> --title "Reference"

2. Save a template:

vclaw video template-save --project ref-project --name launch-template

3. List and inspect templates:

vclaw video template-list
vclaw video template-show --name launch-template

4. Generate a clone plan:

vclaw video clone-plan --template launch-template --project new-project --intent "Make a launch teaser for a smart bottle."

5. Initialize a new project from the template:

vclaw video clone-init --template launch-template --project new-project --intent "Make a launch teaser for a smart bottle."

6. Generate a first-pass storyboard from that clone plan:

vclaw video storyboard-from-clone --project new-project

Stored data

Templates currently capture:

1. pacing
2. beat structure
3. motion classification
4. keep list
5. change list
6. reusable variables
7. style layers
8. beat-compression guidance
9. technical notes
10. dialogue notes
11. workflow checklist

Playbooks currently capture:

1. use-when guidance
2. prompt formula steps
3. constraints
4. adaptation checklist

Prompt-library references now capture:

1. provider prompting guides
2. style template schema notes
3. stage-director guidance
4. checkpoint protocol guidance
5. generation telemetry guidance
6. dialogue-duration preflight guidance
7. character reference-sheet guidance
8. clone-ad template workflow guidance

Clone-plan enrichment

analyze --auto asks Gemini for the optional fields above. Manual analyze commands can still provide the legacy beat/keep/change/variable data; when a template is saved, V-Claw fills conservative defaults for missing style layers and beat-compression guidance.

Clone plans preserve the template's style layers and compression rules. They do not copy claims or brand-specific language; the checklist pushes operators to replace product, audience, offer, proof, objection, and CTA variables for the new intent.

Current gap

Templates do not yet drive runtime execution directly. They currently seed:

1. clone plan
2. brief metadata
3. storyboard scaffold

Character continuity note

If a cloned storyboard needs consistent characters, add them explicitly during storyboard authoring and register matching profiles:

vclaw video storyboard --project new-project --scene "Hook shot" --scene-character 0:Nova
vclaw video character-add --project new-project --name Nova --ref refs/nova-sheet.png
vclaw video character-consistency --project new-project