What is this?

Ever watched a video and thought "I want one in that style, but completely my own"?

Just drop it into ReelMimic. A file, a phone recording or a YouTube link all work. Then tell it what you want to make.

First it takes the reference apart: editing rhythm, shot lengths, transitions, framing, colors and camera moves. Then it puts together a plan for you to check. You can chat right next to it, change settings or add assets, and start when you're happy.

Once production starts, the work is split across several AI agents. Different parts of the video are made at the same time, and every shot is handed to a different agent to check. If something's wrong it goes back to be fixed, so it's not a one-shot generate-and-done.

ReelMimic learns how the reference was made. It doesn't carry over the original footage, characters or assets.

The whole thing runs on your own computer, with your own Claude Code or Codex.

What it does

• Breaks down the reference. Shot count, shot lengths, BPM, transitions, colors, framing and camera moves.
• Shows you the plan first. Storyboard, characters, assets and a few style frames. Chat about it until you like it, then approve.
• Several AI agents share the work. Up to 6 work on different parts of the video. Each finished shot goes to a new agent for review, so nobody grades their own work.
• Fixes need proof. Every fix comes with before and after screenshots, and the reviewer checks them.
• You can see what it's doing. What each agent is thinking, what it ran, which frames it looked at. The full log is there too.
• Comment right on the video. When it's done, scrub to any second and type a note. Send them all at once.
• New styles are just Markdown. One file per style, no code.
• Three languages. 繁體中文, English and 简体中文, switch in the top right.

Good to know

• 2D only, seven drawing engines: vector / motion graphics (built on HyperFrames), hand-painted watercolor (built on painted-animation), crayon picture book, pixel art, paper cut-out stop-motion, whiteboard doodle, and anime cel. The newer five are young and have had less real-world use than the first two. When a reference doesn't match a known style, it uses the closest engine and writes up a proposal for a new style.
• It takes a while. A 30–60 second video usually takes 1–3.5 hours after you approve the plan, depending on the length and the look. Watercolor and crayon are the slowest, because every frame is painted with brushes.
• It uses your AI plan. All the work runs through your Claude Code or Codex account, so it counts toward that account's usage. If you hit a limit, the job pauses and can pick up where it stopped.
• Tested mostly on Windows. macOS and Linux should work, but they've had less testing. Issues are welcome.
• No real people. It makes animation, not live-action footage of real people.

Roadmap

• More built-in characters and styles for each engine
• Save a newly discovered style from the web app, so the next similar reference matches it directly
• Faster watercolor rendering

Getting started

You'll need Node.js 20+, Python 3.10+, FFmpeg, Chrome, and either Claude Code or Codex CLI (logged in).

git clone https://github.com/edenfunf/reelmimic.git && cd reelmimic
./install.sh      # on Windows, double-click install.bat
./start.sh        # on Windows, double-click start.bat

Then open http://localhost:4318. The install script checks your setup and tells you if anything's missing. You can run the check again any time with cd app && npm run doctor. Claude Code picks up the skills in this repo on its own, and Codex reads AGENTS.md, so there's nothing else to set up.

Your first video

1. On the home page, drop in a reference video or paste a link, say what you want, and pick Claude Code or Codex.
2. Wait for the breakdown and the plan. If you want changes, say so in the chat on the right. Screenshots work too.
3. If the plan asks you for something (lyrics, say), add it or skip it, then hit Approve and start.
4. The Production line tab shows where each character and each part of the video is, with the review screenshots.
5. When it's done, leave a note at whatever second looks off.

Settings

API keys and a few paths go in ~/.reelmimic/secrets.json. That file lives outside the repo, so it never gets committed. See secrets.example.json for the format.

Docs

• Architecture: how the whole thing runs, where files go, how the AI plugs in
• Extending: adding styles, rendering engines, or another AI
• Contributing

Ground rules

• It learns technique from the reference (pacing, framing, transitions, how the jokes land). It never reuses the footage, characters, logos or assets.
• Characters are original unless you bring your own designs, in which case it follows yours.
• Anything it finds online gets logged with its source, author and license. Unclear licenses are flagged.
• Lyrics only come from text you give it. It won't download commercial songs.
• What you do with the videos is up to you, so make sure you have the rights.

License

The code is MIT. Third-party skills and assets bundled here keep their own licenses, listed in THIRD_PARTY_NOTICES.md.