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ChristmasAI VideoExplainer

One Prop In, One Prop Out

On a paper-cutout, one object enters and one object leaves. The wooden board stays, with a single arrow at most.

One Prop In, One Prop Out

One prop comes in, and one prop goes out. That is the whole motion of this paper-cutout. The wooden board stays. The entering piece and the leaving piece are the idea, so do not also change the background, the style, or the topic. The cutout is paper, not a real person, and not a character from a film. Clip 1 opens with one big hook title in the spoken language unless on-screen text is off. At most one arrow. No blank grey strip. Approve the stills before anything slides. Name the cup that enters and the box that leaves, slide the box off the same wooden board, and approve the start and the end before anything moves. Keep the swap to the incoming cup and the outgoing box, with no third object. A practical reel is 15–45 seconds. The first 3 seconds show the hook title of the swap, unless on-screen text is off, and they say the cup is in and the box is out. Reject three moving pieces, a blank grey strip, a second arrow, or a realistic face invented in between. If a voice could be mistaken for a real person, the caption must say it is AI. The cutout is paper.

Two pieces, opposite jobs

Name the piece that enters and the piece that leaves before you draw them. They should be different objects so the swap is visible: a cup in, a box out. If both stay on the board, nothing happened. If three pieces move, the eye cannot tell which change mattered. Pick two different objects so the swap is visible, and do not leave both sitting as if nothing happened. The first 3 seconds show the outgoing box and say what is about to replace it. Reject a third piece moving in the same beat.

Slide, do not cover

The leaving piece slides off the board. A blank grey strip laid over it is not a removal, and it breaks the craft. One arrow may point at the piece that is arriving. A second arrow on the piece that is leaving is already too many. The grain of the wood stays identical underneath. Slide the leaving piece off the grain, and point one arrow at the cup that is arriving. In the first 3 seconds the wood stays identical and the voice says the swap. Do not post a grey strip laid over the box, or a second arrow on the piece that is leaving.

Approve the start and the end

The start still shows the old prop. The end still shows the new one, on the same board. Approve both before motion so the in-between cannot invent a third object or a realistic face. The hook title states the swap in the spoken language, unless on-screen text is off. One idea only. Approve the start still and the end still before motion, with the hook title in the spoken language unless on-screen text is off. In the first 3 seconds, viewers see one board and hear the one idea. Throw out a third object or a film face before the file goes up.

A worked example

A cafe explainer, drawn as paper, starts with a closed box on the wooden board and ends with a cup in its place. The box slides off. One arrow points at the cup. There is no grey strip and no film character. The hook title names the swap in English, and both stills are approved first. Start with the closed box, slide it off, and end with the cup, one arrow on the cup. The first 3 seconds show the hook title in English and say the swap. Reject a grey strip and a film character. 15–45 seconds, one lesson. If a voice could pass for a real person, the caption says it is AI.

Before you post

  • Move one prop in and one prop out.
  • Stay on the same wooden board.
  • Use no blank grey strip, and approve the stills.

Where Scro fits

Scro builds this as a paper-cutout on one wooden board and one idea. Clip 1's first 3 seconds are one big hook title in the spoken language, unless on-screen text is off. Use at most one arrow, leave out any blank grey strip, and approve the stills before motion. The cutout is not a real person. Export after both stills are approved on the same board. The first 3 seconds show the hook title, unless on-screen text is off, and say the prop swap. Reject a grey strip. The cutout is not a real person. If a voice could be mistaken for one, the caption says it is AI.

Move one prop. Finished samples are on the examples page.

Related: Packing a Gift in Four Steps.