/concept-to-video

name: concept-to-video
description: 'Turn concepts into animated explainer videos using Manim (Python) with MP4/GIF output, audio overlay, multi-scene composition. Triggers on: "create a video", "animate this", "make an explainer", "manim animation", "motion graphic". NOT for React video, use remotion-video.'
metadata:
  version: 1.2.0
  category: visualization
  tags: [video, manim, animation, explainer]
  difficulty: advanced

Concept to Video

Creates animated explainer videos from concepts using Manim (Python) as a programmatic animation engine.

Reference Files

| File | Purpose | | --------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- | | `references/rules/pipeline-flow.md` | RAG, ETL, CI/CD — sequential stage animations with arrows | | `references/rules/architecture-layers.md` | System stacks, network layers, abstraction hierarchies | | `references/rules/algorithm-stepthrough.md` | Sorting, search, graph traversal — stateful step-by-step animations | | `references/rules/comparison.md` | Side-by-side A vs B, before/after, trade-off visualizations | | `references/rules/agent-interaction.md` | Multi-agent message passing, distributed systems, pub/sub | | `references/rules/math-concept.md` | Equations, formulas, geometric proofs — LaTeX-free by default | | `references/rules/training-loop.md` | Gradient descent, RL loops, cyclic iterative processes | | `references/rules/transitions.md` | Fade and wipe transitions between scene sections | | `references/rules/text-animation.md` | Text replacement, progressive bullet reveal, callouts, emphasis | | `references/rules/layout.md` | Canvas coordinates, VGroup arrangement, spacing guidelines | | `references/rules/audio-overlay.md` | ffmpeg audio overlay — background music, voiceover, multi-track mixing | | `references/rules/voiceover-scaffold.md` | Timing script generation, TTS handoff, narration best practices | | `references/rules/images.md` | ImageMobject usage, logo/screenshot patterns, scaling and positioning | | `references/rules/subtitles.md` | SRT generation from scene timing, ffmpeg subtitle burning | | `references/rules/multi-scene.md` | Multiple Scene classes, ffmpeg concat, chapter-based composition | | `references/templates/data_flow_template.py` | Parametric pipeline/data flow animation (config-driven STAGES list) | | `references/templates/comparison_template.py` | Parametric side-by-side comparison (config-driven LEFT/RIGHT items) | | `references/templates/timeline_template.py` | Parametric timeline animation (config-driven EVENTS list) | | `scripts/render_video.py` | Wrapper around Manim CLI — handles quality, format, output path cleanup | | `scripts/add_audio.py` | ffmpeg wrapper — audio overlay, volume, fade-in/out, trim-to-video |

Why Manim as the engine

Manim is the "SVG of video" — you write Python code that describes animations declaratively, and it renders to MP4/GIF at any resolution. The Python scene file IS the editable intermediate: the user can see the code, request changes ("make the arrows red", "add a third step", "slow down the transition"), and only do a final high-quality render once satisfied. This makes the workflow iterative and controllable, exactly like concept-to-image uses HTML as an intermediate.

Workflow

Concept → Manim scene (.py) → Preview (low-quality) → Iterate → Final render (MP4/GIF)

1. **Interpret** the user's concept — determine the best animation approach 2. **Design** a self-contained Manim scene file — one file, one Scene class 3. **Preview** by rendering at low quality (`-ql`) for fast iteration 4. **Iterate** on the scene based on user feedback 5. **Export** final video at high quality using `scripts/render_video.py`

Step 0: Ensure dependencies

Before writing any scene, ensure Manim is installed:

# System deps (usually pre-installed)
apt-get install -y libpango1.0-dev libcairo2-dev ffmpeg 2>/dev/null

# Python package
pip install manim --break-system-packages -q

Verify with: `python3 -c "import manim; print(manim.__version__)"`

Step 1: Interpret the concept

Determine the best animation pattern, then read the matching rule file before writing any code.

| User intent | Rule file to read | Key Manim primitives | | ------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------- | | Explain a pipeline/flow | `references/rules/pipeline-flow.md` | Arrow, Rectangle, Text, AnimationGroup | | Show architecture layers | `references/rules/architecture-layers.md` | VGroup, Arrange, FadeIn with shift | | Algorithm step-through | `references/rules/algorithm-stepthrough.md` | Transform, ReplacementTransform, Indicate | | Compare approaches | `references/rules/comparison.md` | Split screen VGroups, simultaneous animations | | Mathematical concept | `references/rules/math-concept.md` | MathTex, geometric shapes, Rotate, Scale | | Agent/multi-system interaction | `references/rules/agent-interaction.md` | Arrows between entities, Create/FadeOut | | Training/optimization loop | `references/rules/training-loop.md` | Loop with Transform, ValueTracker, plots | | Timeline/history | `references/templates/timeline_template.py` | N