Prompt patterns cheat sheet

Skeletons

1. Tagged brief. For: turning "a film" into a contract with an approval stop before code.

<inputs> what to ask me for; defaults if skipped </inputs>
<direction> look, type, one accent, motion. Banned: [per-film list] </direction>
<structure> timed scenes or beat ranges; transitions as "A becomes B" </structure>
<build> numbered rules </build>  <gotchas> known failures </gotchas>
<start> ask for inputs, then show the beat map and [N] named stills; no code yet </start>

2. Per-film Banned line. For: removing the model's defaults (fade, glow, particle burst) where "AI look" comes from.

Banned: crossfades, blur-ins, [x], [y], holds longer than [1 s], anything that looks like a template.

3. Beat map header. For: music-led pieces where sync is planned, not patched.

[BPM] BPM, [N] beats, start the song [k] beats before its drop. Beats 0-[a]: [event]. Beat [b] (the drop): [event]. Last frame equals first frame.

4. Hand-off line. For: no cut, no fade between scenes.

Scene [N] is made out of scene [N-1]: [outgoing object] becomes [incoming object], carrying [label/words/colour]. No fade, no cut.

5. Golden scene. For: making scene 2..N match scene 1 by example, not description.

Here is an approved scene. Build scene [N] in the same structure (beat mapping, stagger, entrance style), changing only the content, and list what you copied.

6. Plan first. For: stopping silent rework.

Before any code, tell me in five lines what you will build for scene [N], what you will not touch, and the one thing most likely to go wrong.

7. Define the word / outcome, not values. For: keeping "punchier" meaning the same thing in every round.

For this video "[word]" means: [frame counts, scale event, cut type]. Apply it to scene [N] only and show the diff.
Result must satisfy: [measurable condition on a still]. Choose the implementation and tell me the values you picked.

8. Measure first, then fix. For: motion that pauses, snaps or stalls.

This move [pauses/snaps] around [time]. Do not try another fix. Plot value and velocity over the move, show me where velocity is zero, then fix the cause.

9. Independent verification critic. For: a fresh judge on round 2 and later.

You did not build this. Artifact: [path]. Previous report: [path]. Mark each earlier top fix FIXED, PARTLY or STILL PRESENT with timestamps, hunt for regressions, then list new defects. End with SHIP or ONE MORE PASS (at most three fixes).

10. Idea, Device, Grammar. For: a point of view before a style.

Idea: [8 words max]. Device: [one object carried through every shot]. Grammar: [one rule the form obeys]. Could a competitor's film say this? Only then choose techniques.

11. Delegation guide. For: parallel agents that must not drift or collide.

Canvas and safe zones; helper API, one line each; style rules; per-frame budget; every shot a pure function of the frame, seeded randomness only; edit only your own file and report shared bugs; self-check command that renders a labelled sheet.

12. System trace. For: auditing a studio instead of a video.

Describe a video type we have never made. Trace step by step what this studio would do. List every doc promise that does not exist and every default that would leak in.

13. Breaking point. For: explainers and data stories with a hook.

Show [N] steps where [one quantity] builds; at step [N] it fails with a visible change. Single screen, loopable, minimal interface; input, visible transformation, output.

14. Honest capability clause. For: preventing a false "done".

If you cannot run code or view images here, say so first; do not describe results you have not seen.