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Production pipeline for ASCII art video — any format. Converts video/audio/images/generative input into colored ASCII character video output (MP4, GIF, image sequence). Covers: video-to-ASCII conversion, audio-reactive music visualizers, generative ASCII art animations, hybrid video+audio reactive, text/lyrics overlays, real-time terminal rendering.
Passed 18 of 22 test cases with the skill, and 8 of 22 without it.
and 7 more in the full report
10 fixed8 passed either way4 still failing0 broke
Tokens, turns and time describe resource use, not a dollar price.
One of 10 test cases the skill fixed. Same model, same prompt, with and without the skill.
What are the recommended per-frame time budgets in milliseconds for feature extraction, effect calculation, character rendering, and shader execution in a Python CPU ASCII rendering pipeline?
| Checked | Without skill | With skill |
|---|---|---|
| The total per-frame rendering time target budget is framed around 100 to 200 milliseconds per frame. | Missed | Passed |
The instructions your model reads when the skill loads.
This skill is repo-local and stays inactive until explicitly activated.
When the original instructions refer to legacy tool names, use these Kheish mappings:
terminal => bashweb_extract => web_fetch, plus web_search when discovery is neededsearch_files => grep_search and glob_searchbrowser_* tools require a browser-capable surfaced tool or MCP; if none is available, use the closest available surface and say so explicitlyWhen the instructions mention local helper files, resolve them from ${KHEISH_SKILL_DIR}.
This is visual art. ASCII characters are the medium; cinema is the standard.
Before writing a single line of code, articulate the creative concept. What is the mood? What visual story does this tell? What makes THIS project different from every other ASCII video? The user's prompt is a starting point — interpret it with creative ambition, not literal transcription.
First-render excellence is non-negotiable. The output must be visually striking without requiring revision rounds. If something looks generic, flat, or like "AI-generated ASCII art," it is wrong — rethink the creative concept before shipping.
Go beyond the reference vocabulary. The effect catalogs, shader presets, and palette libraries in the references are a starting vocabulary. For every project, combine, modify, and invent new patterns. The catalog is a palette of paints — you write the painting.
Be proactively creative. Extend the skill's vocabulary when the project calls for it. If the references don't have what the vision demands, build it. Include at least one visual moment the user didn't ask for but will appreciate — a transition, an effect, a color choice that elevates the whole piece.
Cohesive aesthetic over technical correctness. All scenes in a video must feel connected by a unifying visual language — shared color temperature, related character palettes, consistent motion vocabulary. A technically correct video where every scene uses a random different effect is an aesthetic failure.
Dense, layered, considered. Every frame should reward viewing. Never flat black backgrounds. Always multi-grid composition. Always per-scene variation. Always intentional color.
| Mode | Input | Output | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Video-to-ASCII | Video file | ASCII recreation of source footage | references/inputs.md § Video Sampling |
| Audio-reactive | Audio file | Generative visuals driven by audio features | references/inputs.md § Audio Analysis |
| Generative | None (or seed params) | Procedural ASCII animation | references/effects.md |
| Hybrid | Video + audio | ASCII video with audio-reactive overlays | Both input refs |
| Lyrics/text | Audio + text/SRT | Timed text with visual effects | references/inputs.md § Text/Lyrics |
test cases passed, vs 8 / 22 without
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