Agent skill · creative production · nousresearch
ascii-video
ASCII video: convert video/audio to colored ASCII MP4/GIF.
Why this skill is useful
Provides a detailed production pipeline and specific techniques for creating ASCII video that the AI wouldn't reliably generate on its own.
What it needs
Requires ffmpeg, numpy, opencv, pillow, python, scipy installed locally. About 8k tokens when loaded. Last updated 2026-08-07. 226,679 stars on the source repository.
What this skill does
ASCII Video Production Pipeline When to use Use when users request: ASCII video, text art video, terminal-style video, character art animation, retro text visualization, audio visualizer in ASCII, converting video to ASCII art, matrix-style effects, or any animated ASCII output. What's inside 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. Creative Standard 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. …
How to use it
Reference it in AdaL, Claude Code, Cursor or any coding agent — nothing to install:
@skills nousresearch/ascii-video