ffmpeg-skill 1.17.3 → 1.18.1

package/SKILL.md

@@ -7,21 +7,21 @@ description: 'Edit video and audio with local FFmpeg from natural-language reque
 
 Scripts live in `scripts/` next to this file; run them with `python3 <skill-dir>/scripts/<name>.py`, and delivery templates in `templates/`. This file is enough to do a job: the table below routes the request, and `--help` on the script you are about to run is the cheapest full flag list. A reference file costs as much to read as this file; open one only for a question you have: `references/scripts.md` (every flag of all 42 scripts), `references/devices.md` (iPhone HDR, GoPro, DJI, screen recordings, Zoom), `references/gotchas.md` (the long form of the one-line rules at the end).
 
-Shared flags, on every script: `--dry-run`; `--json` (output path, a probe of the output, the commands run); `--json-brief` (the same trimmed to status/output/verified plus a `summary`; prefer it on writing steps); `--fast` (preview quality); `--progress`; `--timeout SECONDS` (`kind: timeout`, default 1800); `--overwrite` (step 7); `--plan FILE` (the dry run as a plan `render.py FILE` runs later; refuses if an input changed). Every re-encoding tool also takes `--codec h264|hevc|av1|prores` and `--quality N` (CRF scale): unset, SDR is x264 and HDR is x265 Main10; `prores` needs `-o NAME.mov`, `h264` refuses an HDR source (`color.py --to-sdr` first).
+Shared flags, on every script: `--dry-run`; `--json` (output path, a probe of the output, the commands run); `--json-brief` (trimmed to status/output/verified plus a `summary`; prefer it on writing steps); `--fast` (preview quality); `--progress`; `--timeout SECONDS` (`kind: timeout`, default 1800); `--overwrite` (step 7); `--plan FILE` (the dry run as a plan `render.py FILE` runs later; refuses if an input changed). Re-encoding tools also take `--codec h264|hevc|av1|prores` and `--quality N`: unset, SDR is x264, HDR is x265 Main10; `prores` needs `-o NAME.mov`, `h264` refuses HDR (`color.py --to-sdr` first).
 
 Writing tools run nothing under `--dry-run`; the measuring tools (`probe`, `check`, `sync`, `multicam`, `scenes`, `cropdetect`, `report`, `silence`, `loudness`, `stabilize`) may still run ffmpeg/ffprobe — they just don't write their artifact, nor side files (`--edl`, `--sheet`, a generated `.ass`); `verify` ignores the flag. Per-tool: `contract --json`'s `dry_run` field.
 
 ## Workflow (always follow this order)
 
-0. **Environment, only on failure.** Never start a job with `doctor`: a broken machine fails on its own with `kind: missing_tool` or an ffmpeg error naming the filter/encoder. Run `python3 <skill-dir>/scripts/_contract.py doctor` (or `npx ffmpeg-skill doctor`) after such a failure, or when asked what the machine can do: read `ok` and the tool's `usable`, report the missing capability. `contract --json`'s tool schema is for a *planning* agent, not this workflow.
-1. **Probe what you must plan from.** Run `probe.py` on each input you plan the edit from — duration, fps, resolution, codecs, channels, `variable_frame_rate_suspected` — and whenever the user asks about a file. No separate probe before every edit: every writing tool's `--json` already carries its input and a probe of the output. Plan from real numbers, never assumptions.
+0. **Environment, only on failure.** Never start a job with `doctor`: a broken machine fails on its own with `kind: missing_tool` or an ffmpeg error naming the filter/encoder. Run `python3 <skill-dir>/scripts/_contract.py doctor` (or `npx ffmpeg-skill doctor`) after such a failure, or when asked what the machine can do: read `ok`/`usable`, report the missing capability. `contract --json`'s tool schema is for a *planning* agent, not this workflow.
+1. **Probe what you must plan from.** Run `probe.py` on each input you plan from — duration, fps, resolution, codecs, channels, `variable_frame_rate_suspected` — and whenever the user asks about a file. No separate probe before every edit: every writing tool's `--json` already carries its input and a probe of the output. Plan from real numbers, never assumptions.
 2. **Prefer lossless.** If the request can be met without re-encoding (plain cuts on keyframes, remuxing, audio-only changes), do not re-encode. `cut.py` and `loudness.py` stream-copy video by default; `--accurate` on `cut.py` only for frame-exact cuts.
-3. **Plan with `--dry-run --json`, then execute.** Trust `--json`, not a dry run's summary line, for any number in the plan (a dimension there can be a placeholder). Use it before long encodes and to report exact facts. `--fast` is preview quality, `--progress` prints percent/ETA on stderr. Never point `-o` at a file you did not create in this job unless the user asked for it to be replaced; pass `--overwrite` only then.
-4. **Chain in a sensible order.** A delivery request with no other editing is one template run (`render.py --template NAME INPUT`), not a hand-built chain. Otherwise: colour (HDR→SDR / LUT) → cut → join → silence → fit → caption/overlay → sync → audio → loudness → export. Frame changes before captions and overlays, so text is sized for the final frame. Re-encode as few times as possible: intermediates at CRF 18, `export.py` last. **Three or more steps: `render.py` with a project.json** — one call, one JSON, one number for the user to change.
-5. **Check the deliverable.** Before reporting, run `check.py OUTPUT --platform X` for the destination the user named (a template run already does). Format rows (codec, pixel format, size, true peak, colour tags, VFR) are safe to fix. Judgement rows change the content: duration (cut loses material), aspect (crop loses edges), fps (drops motion), loudness (ambience must not be boosted) — fix those only when the request implies the answer, otherwise state the choice and its cost in one line. Mention WARNs; do not chase them.
+3. **Plan with `--dry-run --json`, then execute.** Trust `--json`, not a dry run's summary line, for any number in the plan (a dimension there can be a placeholder). Use it before long encodes, to report facts. `--fast` is preview quality, `--progress` prints percent/ETA on stderr. Never point `-o` at a file you did not create in this job unless the user asked for it to be replaced; pass `--overwrite` only then.
+4. **Chain in a sensible order.** A delivery request with no other editing is one template run (`render.py --template NAME INPUT`), not a hand-built chain. Otherwise: colour (HDR→SDR / LUT) → cut → join → silence → fit → caption/overlay → sync → audio → loudness → export. Frame changes before captions, so text is sized for the final frame. Re-encode as few times as possible: intermediates at CRF 18, `export.py` last. **Three or more steps: `render.py` with a project.json.**
+5. **Check the deliverable.** Before reporting, run `check.py OUTPUT --platform X` for the destination named (a template run already does). Format rows (codec, pixel format, size, true peak, colour tags, VFR) are safe to fix. Judgement rows change content: duration (cut loses material), aspect (crop loses edges), fps (drops motion), loudness (ambience must not be boosted) — fix only when the request implies the answer, else state the choice and its cost. Mention WARNs; do not chase them.
 6. **Verify the output.** Confirm duration, resolution, fps and audio match the request — from the writing tool's own `--json`/`--json-brief` probe, or `probe.py` — and report those numbers ("final.mp4: 59.98 s, 1080x1920, 30 fps, AAC stereo"). A step is done only when the script exited 0 and the output probes as expected: a non-zero exit, a missing or empty file, or a probe that contradicts the request is a failure reported with the script's error message.
-7. **Keep the user's originals.** Never overwrite the source; write new files next to the input or where the user asked. Set `FFMPEG_SKILL_NO_OVERWRITE=1` in the environment you run these scripts in: an existing output path is then refused (`kind: input`) instead of warned about, with `--overwrite` the one way to say "yes, replace it". It is the recommended agent setting, and 2.0's default.
-8. **Look at the picture.** Whenever the picture changed (captions, overlays, graphics, crop/pad, resize, colour, transitions, a `join.py` that scaled a clip to the first clip's frame, a `color.py --to-sdr`) run `look.py OUTPUT --tiles 3x2` (or `--at T` for one frame) and view the PNG; the full 4x3 sheet is for a job about layout across the whole clip. The job is not finished until the report's `Look:` line names that PNG — a probe cannot see a caption on someone's face. Audio-only jobs write `Look: not needed`. What to look for splits like `check.py`'s rows in step 5:
+7. **Keep the user's originals.** Never overwrite the source; write new files next to input or where asked. Set `FFMPEG_SKILL_NO_OVERWRITE=1` in the environment: an existing output path is then refused (`kind: input`) instead of warned about, `--overwrite` the one way to say "yes, replace it". Recommended agent setting, and 2.0's default.
+8. **Look at the picture.** Whenever the picture changed (captions, overlays, graphics, crop/pad, resize, colour, transitions, a `join.py` scaling a clip to the first clip's frame, `color.py --to-sdr`) run `look.py OUTPUT --tiles 3x2` (or `--at T` for one frame) and view the PNG; the full 4x3 sheet is for a job about layout across the whole clip. Not finished until `Look:` names that PNG — a probe cannot see a caption on someone's face. Audio-only jobs write `Look: not needed`. What to look for splits like `check.py`'s rows in step 5:
    - **Mechanical (this skill's own job to verify and report):** the specified text/logo is at the specified position, subtitles appear at the specified timestamps, dimensions are even. Letterboxing from `fit.py --fit pad` is the *correct* result of that mode, never a defect to flag.
    - **Judgement (report it, don't silently pass or fail):** whether a subject or face is cut off, text sits over a face, colours look washed out, a transition lands. These need deciding what the subject *is*, which belongs to the calling agent — say what you see in one line and let them judge it.
    With no vision capability, write `Look: PATH (pixels not inspected; agent has no image view)` — never claim a picture was inspected when it wasn't, and don't stall waiting for a capability that isn't there.
@@ -52,7 +52,7 @@ This skill cuts, joins, measures, syncs, exports and checks files — it execute
 
 The line: same input + same explicit parameters always producing the same verifiable output belongs here; anything depending on taste, content understanding or what looks or sounds good belongs to whoever makes that judgement.
 
-If a request needs an FFmpeg feature none of the 42 scripts expose, say so and name the closest built-in option — never guess a raw `ffmpeg`/`ffprobe` invocation or a hand-built filter graph outside `scripts/*.py`. A raw command bypasses every guarantee this skill makes (no shell, typed arguments, verification afterwards), so it is never the fallback when a script's flag doesn't cover something.
+If a request needs an FFmpeg feature none of the 42 scripts expose, say so and name the closest built-in option — never guess a raw `ffmpeg`/`ffprobe` invocation outside `scripts/*.py`. A raw command bypasses every guarantee this skill makes, so it is never the fallback when a script's flag doesn't cover something.
 
 ## Request → script
 
@@ -100,21 +100,24 @@ Timestamp flags (`--start`, `--end`, `--at`, `--from`, `--duration`, `--offset`,
 | "webcam clip in the corner", "picture-in-picture" | `overlay.py input.mp4 --video webcam.mp4 --position bottom-right --scale 480` |
 | "remove the green screen" | `overlay.py bg.mp4 --video greenscreen.mp4 --chromakey 0x00ff00` |
 | "turn this podcast into a video", "audiogram" | `render.py --template audiogram ep.m4a --image cover.png` — waveform over a still or colour plate; give an image or colour, nothing is fetched |
-| "sync the lav mic", "line up two cameras" | `sync.py camera.mp4 mic.wav --replace-audio` / `sync.py camA.mp4 camB.mp4 --trim-second` |
+| "sync the lav mic", "line up two cameras" | `sync.py camera.mp4 mic.wav --replace-audio` / `sync.py camA.mp4 camB.mp4 --trim-second`; a third+ recorder is another positional (`sync.py ref.mp4 mic.wav cam2.mp4`), one offsets JSON |
 | "fix the audio levels", "normalise to -14 LUFS" | `loudness.py input.mp4` (`-I -16 --tp -1.5` podcast, `-I -23` broadcast; `--lra N` for the range) |
 | "cut this and make it HEVC / AV1 / ProRes" (output codec named) | `cut.py input.mp4 --start 0:10 --end 0:40 --codec hevc` (`--codec`/`--quality` on any re-encoding tool; ProRes needs `-o NAME.mov`) |
-| "make this a TikTok / Reel / Short / YouTube / X / LinkedIn / podcast" | `render.py --template tiktok\|reels\|shorts\|youtube-shorts\|youtube\|x\|linkedin\|facebook\|podcast input.mp4 [--cues cues.txt\|--srt subs.srt] [--title "..."] [--logo logo.png] [--brand brand.json]` — frame, safe-area captions, loudness, export and that platform's check in one command (`--list-templates`, `--write-project` to edit first) |
+| "make this a TikTok / Reel / Short / YouTube / X / LinkedIn / podcast" | `render.py --template tiktok\|reels\|shorts\|youtube-shorts\|youtube\|x\|linkedin\|facebook\|podcast input.mp4 [--cues cues.txt] [--title "..."]` — frame, captions, loudness, export and check in one command (`--list-templates`, `--write-project` to edit first) |
 | "post it everywhere", "one edit for every platform" | `render.py --template all input.mp4 --cues cues.txt` (or a comma list) → one file per destination plus `<name>_pack.md` (`report.py --pack` renders the HTML) |
 | "export for YouTube / Reels / X", "a ProRes master" | `export.py input.mp4 --preset youtube\|reels\|tiktok\|shorts\|linkedin\|facebook\|x\|prores\|h265` (`--normalize` hits the loudness spec in the same call; `youtube-hdr` keeps HDR, `youtube-av1` writes AV1) |
 | "make a GIF preview" | `export.py input.mp4 --preset gif` |
 | "a small proxy / cheap preview file" | `proxy.py input.mp4 [--width 640 --no-audio]` — not a delivery preset (that is `export.py`) |
 | "cut out the pauses", "jump cuts" | `silence.py input.mp4 [--threshold -40 --min-silence 0.8]` |
 | "cut the ums and uhs", "remove the filler words" | `silence.py input.mp4 --filler --words words.json` (measured word timings; `--transcribe` makes them) |
+| "don't cut inside a sentence, just the real pauses" | `silence.py input.mp4 --speech-aware` — a breath under `--min-silence` inside a sentence is kept, only sentence-boundary pauses cut; composes with `--filler` into one list |
 | "stitch these clips", "add a crossfade" | `join.py a.mp4 b.mp4 c.mp4 --transition fade --duration 0.5` |
 | "show me what it looks like", "are the captions readable" | `look.py output.mp4 --tiles 3x2`, then view the PNG |
 | "what would you run?", "don't render yet" | any script with `--dry-run` |
 | "a 60 s highlight from this hour" | `scenes.py long.mp4 --highlights 6 --target 60 --edl picks.txt` → `cut.py --segments` |
 | "cut on the beat", "edit it to the music" | `scenes.py track.mp4 --beats --json > beats.json`, then `cut.py input.mp4 --segments ... --snap beats --snap-source beats.json` (`--snap-source` carries the measured grid over) |
+| "which shots are static vs moving", "volume peaks per second", "is this speech or music" | `scenes.py input.mp4 --shots` (static/pan/motion per shot, measured flow) / `--audio-peaks` (dBFS list) / `--speech` (a speech-vs-music ratio, not a classification) — combine, or alone |
+| "where does the subject move, so I can crop it myself" | `cropdetect.py input.mp4 --motion-centre` — motion centroid per second, report-only; the calling agent picks the crop |
 | "is this OK to upload?" | `check.py final.mp4 --platform reels` |
 | "a podcast episode with chapters" | `loudness.py ep.wav -I -16 --tp -1.5` → `metadata.py ep.m4a --chapters chapters.txt` → `check.py ep.m4a --platform podcast` (chapters and channels rows) |
 | "several changes to the same edit", 3+ steps | `render.py --init project.json`, edit, `render.py project.json` |
@@ -126,7 +129,7 @@ Timestamp flags (`--start`, `--end`, `--at`, `--from`, `--duration`, `--offset`,
 | "send me a summary of what you did" | `report.py --before raw.mov --after final.mp4 --platform youtube -o report.html` |
 | "do this to every file in the folder", "use all the cores" | `batch.py FOLDER --recipe batch.json --jobs auto` (steps or a render project; cached) |
 | "transcribe it and caption it" | `caption.py input.mp4 --transcribe --animate pop --karaoke` (needs a local whisper; else `--text`) |
-| "three cameras, cut between them" | `multicam.py camA.mp4 camB.mp4 camC.mp4 --switch "0-20:0,20-40:1,40-60:2"` |
+| "three cameras, cut between them" | `multicam.py camA.mp4 camB.mp4 camC.mp4 --switch "0-20:0,20-40:1,40-60:2"` (manual) or `--switch energy` (auto-cuts to the loudest camera, `--min-shot`, `--edl`) |
 | "iPhone Dolby Vision clip looks wrong" | `color.py clip.mov --to-sdr` or `--strip-dovi` (keep HDR, drop the DV layer) |
 | "does it look like Log / S-Log?" | `probe.py clip.mp4 --analyze` (`looks_like_log`) then `color.py --lut` |
 | "test the tool on my real files" | `verify.py ~/Footage --report verify.md` |
@@ -150,12 +153,12 @@ Timestamp flags (`--start`, `--end`, `--at`, `--from`, `--duration`, `--offset`,
 
 ## Audio-only files
 
-Audio is a first-class input: `probe.py`, `cut.py`, `silence.py`, `loudness.py`, `audio.py`, `sync.py`, `check.py --platform podcast` and `render.py --template podcast` take WAV, FLAC, MP3, M4A/AAC, OGG and Opus; the output extension picks the format. `Check:` still applies. Scripts that need a picture (`fit`, `caption`, `overlay`, `graphics`, `color`, `export`, `scenes`, `look`) refuse an audio file with "input has no video stream" — say so, don't force a video wrapper. Audio recipes, packet vs sample precision, joining, extracting a track: `references/gotchas.md#audio-only-files`.
+Audio is a first-class input: `probe`, `cut`, `silence`, `loudness`, `audio`, `sync`, `check --platform podcast`, `render --template podcast` take WAV, FLAC, MP3, M4A/AAC, OGG, Opus; output extension picks the format. Scripts needing a picture (`fit`, `caption`, `overlay`, `graphics`, `color`, `export`, `scenes`, `look`) refuse audio with "input has no video stream" — don't force a video wrapper. Recipes: `references/gotchas.md#audio-only-files`.
 
 
 ## Report format
 
-Reply in the language the request itself is written in — the user's own sentences, not a language the request merely talks about (subtitles in another language are still reported in the request's language). Keep the field labels (`Done:`, `Steps:`, `Check:`, `Look:`, `Notes:`) in English: they read as log fields in any language. Everything else is the user's language — the lines those labels head, any question, any judgement call. Never drift because the job was short or failed: even a one-line "file does not exist". A mid-conversation switch follows the user's latest message.
+Reply in the language the request is written in — subtitles in another language are still reported in the request's language. Keep the labels (`Done:`, `Steps:`, `Check:`, `Look:`, `Notes:`) in English; everything else is the user's language. Never drift because the job was short or failed: even a one-line "file does not exist". A mid-conversation switch follows the user's latest message.
 
 Finish every job with this shape (numbers from `--json` or `probe.py`/`check.py`, not memory):
 
@@ -192,7 +195,7 @@ Notes: send a valid .cube, or say if you want the clip left as is
 Those filler lines are sentences, not labels: the same report for a Japanese request ends
 `Check: 検証するものなし` / `Look: 不要`.
 
-A refusal (a judgement this skill does not make, or something outside its scope) uses the same shape: `Failed:` names what was refused and why, `Steps:` lists what did run, `Look: not needed`. The shortest failure gets all five labels, never headings. A partial result is `Done:` with the shortfall in `Notes:`, and a refusal that still delivers something is `Failed:` — never a third label like `Done (partially):`. When a failure JSON carries `error.hint`, quote it in `Notes:`: it is the flag change a retry needs.
+A refusal uses the same shape: `Failed:` names what was refused and why, `Steps:` lists what did run, `Look: not needed`. The shortest failure gets all five labels, never headings. A partial result is `Done:` with the shortfall in `Notes:`; a refusal that still delivers something is `Failed:` — never a third label like `Done (partially):`. Quote a failure's `error.hint` in `Notes:`: it names the flag change a retry needs.
 
 Every script prints `{"status": "failed", "error": {"kind": input | ffmpeg | output | missing_tool | timeout | verification | interrupted, "message": ...}}` with `--json` and exits non-zero; quote the message, never paraphrase it.
 

package/docs/contract.md

@@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ The contract is derived from the code that runs, not maintained beside it:
 | Field | Meaning | Changes when |
 |---|---|---|
 | `contract_version` | shape of this document (`1.0`) | a key is renamed, removed or changes meaning |
-| `skill.version` | the npm / package.json version (`1.17.3`) | any release |
+| `skill.version` | the npm / package.json version (`1.18.1`) | any release |
 
 A release that adds a tool or a flag keeps `contract_version`; a breaking change to the
 ToolSpec shape bumps it. Consumers pin on `contract_version` and read `skill.version`
@@ -88,19 +88,19 @@ spelling keeps working until 2.0.
 
 | What 2.0 removes | Since | Replacement | To be ready today |
 |---|---|---|---|
-| The per-tool v1 success keys next to `result_v2` (`output`, `probe`, `commands`, `verified`, `verification` and each tool's own keys at the top level) | 1.17.3 | `result_v2`, promoted to the top level in 2.0 | Run with `FFMPEG_SKILL_RESULT_V2=1` and read `result_v2` (`metrics`, `notes`, `details`) instead of the top-level keys |
-| `--crf` as an alias of `--quality` on every re-encoding tool that takes `--quality` (`export.py` keeps `--crf`: its preset chooses the encoder) | 1.17.3 | `--quality N` (the same CRF scale, codec-neutral) | Pass `--quality`; `--crf` warns on stderr and is marked in `--help` |
-| `json` and `progress` in the MCP `inputSchema` | 1.17.3 | nothing: the transport sets them itself | Stop sending them from an MCP client; run the server with `FFMPEG_SKILL_MCP_LEAN=1` to see the 2.0 schema |
-| `hdr` meaning "BT.2020 primaries *or* a PQ/HLG transfer" in `probe` | 1.17.3 | `hdr_signal` (true only for PQ / HLG / Dolby Vision); in 2.0 `hdr` takes that meaning | Key on `hdr_signal` for "is this a real HDR signal" and on `hdr_format` for the `BT.2020 SDR` case |
-| Overwriting an existing output with only a warning | 1.17.3 | `--overwrite` as explicit consent (refused without it from 2.0) | Set `FFMPEG_SKILL_NO_OVERWRITE=1` (the recommended agent setting) and pass `--overwrite` where a replacement is intended |
+| The per-tool v1 success keys next to `result_v2` (`output`, `probe`, `commands`, `verified`, `verification` and each tool's own keys at the top level) | 1.18.1 | `result_v2`, promoted to the top level in 2.0 | Run with `FFMPEG_SKILL_RESULT_V2=1` and read `result_v2` (`metrics`, `notes`, `details`) instead of the top-level keys |
+| `--crf` as an alias of `--quality` on every re-encoding tool that takes `--quality` (`export.py` keeps `--crf`: its preset chooses the encoder) | 1.18.1 | `--quality N` (the same CRF scale, codec-neutral) | Pass `--quality`; `--crf` warns on stderr and is marked in `--help` |
+| `json` and `progress` in the MCP `inputSchema` | 1.18.1 | nothing: the transport sets them itself | Stop sending them from an MCP client; run the server with `FFMPEG_SKILL_MCP_LEAN=1` to see the 2.0 schema |
+| `hdr` meaning "BT.2020 primaries *or* a PQ/HLG transfer" in `probe` | 1.18.1 | `hdr_signal` (true only for PQ / HLG / Dolby Vision); in 2.0 `hdr` takes that meaning | Key on `hdr_signal` for "is this a real HDR signal" and on `hdr_format` for the `BT.2020 SDR` case |
+| Overwriting an existing output with only a warning | 1.18.1 | `--overwrite` as explicit consent (refused without it from 2.0) | Set `FFMPEG_SKILL_NO_OVERWRITE=1` (the recommended agent setting) and pass `--overwrite` where a replacement is intended |
 
 ## Skill
 
 ```json
 {
   "contract_version": "1.0",
-  "deprecated": [{"what": "...", "since": "1.17.3", "replacement": "...", "removed_in": "2.0.0", "where": "cli | json | mcp | behaviour"}],
-  "skill": {"id": "ffmpeg-skill", "version": "1.17.3", "execution_mode": "local", "kind": "execution",
+  "deprecated": [{"what": "...", "since": "1.18.1", "replacement": "...", "removed_in": "2.0.0", "where": "cli | json | mcp | behaviour"}],
+  "skill": {"id": "ffmpeg-skill", "version": "1.18.1", "execution_mode": "local", "kind": "execution",
             "entrypoints": {"cli": "...", "mcp": "...", "contract": "...", "doctor": "..."},
             "not_provided": ["AI reasoning", "decisions", "production plans", "project IR", "approvals", "network access", "transcription engine"]},
   "requirements": {"python": ">=3.9 (standard library only)", "ffmpeg": ">=5.0", "ffprobe": ">=5.0"},
@@ -128,7 +128,7 @@ One entry per tool under `tools`, sorted by id. Tool ids are stable:
 | `output_schema` | what `--json` prints on stdout |
 | `supports_dry_run`, `dry_run` | whether `--dry-run` plans without running ffmpeg or writing files |
 | `supports_json` | whether `--json` exists |
-| `supports_json_brief` | whether `--json-brief` exists (1.17.3): the same success document with `probe` replaced by a compact `summary` (`duration_s`, `width`, `height`, `fps`, `vcodec`, `acodec`, `channels`, and `lufs` when the tool measured one), `commands` replaced by the number of commands run, and the per-step `verification` list dropped (its verdict stays in `verified`). Tool-specific keys are unchanged, `--json`'s own output is unchanged, and a failure prints the same failure document either way |
+| `supports_json_brief` | whether `--json-brief` exists (1.18.1): the same success document with `probe` replaced by a compact `summary` (`duration_s`, `width`, `height`, `fps`, `vcodec`, `acodec`, `channels`, and `lufs` when the tool measured one), `commands` replaced by the number of commands run, and the per-step `verification` list dropped (its verdict stays in `verified`). Tool-specific keys are unchanged, `--json`'s own output is unchanged, and a failure prints the same failure document either way |
 | `mutates_input` | always `false`: no tool overwrites its input |
 | `produces_artifact` | writes a file (media, PNG, HTML, EDL) |
 | `verification` | `{required, tools}`: which tools to run on the output afterwards |
@@ -450,7 +450,7 @@ Per-tool keys added in 1.17, all additive:
 | `jobs`, `jobs_requested`, `wall_seconds`, `item_seconds_total`, `timed_out` | `batch.py` | the parallelism actually applied and the number asked for, the batch's wall clock, the sum of the per-item times (so the speed-up can be quoted), and whether the shared timeout budget ran out. A timed-out item carries `"skipped": "timeout"` in its result row |
 | `cache` | `render.py --cache` | `{dir, ffmpeg, hits, misses, saved_seconds, entries}`, plus `would_hit` under `--dry-run`. The ffmpeg build banner, the skill version, the contract version, the forwarded flags (`--fast`, `--codec`, …) and the output's extension are all part of every key, so a cache is never reused across any of them — a `--fast` draft is never served to a run that did not ask for one |
 
-Per-tool keys added in 1.17.3, all additive:
+Per-tool keys added in 1.18.1, all additive:
 
 | key | tool | what it holds |
 |---|---|---|
@@ -458,6 +458,18 @@ Per-tool keys added in 1.17.3, all additive:
 | `text_unchanged` | `caption.py` | a sibling inside the `caption` block, **burn mode only** (`--mode mux` never touches the text and omits the key): `true` when the drawn text equals the cues that were handed in — nothing transcribed, no cue dropped, no cue **split** across two consecutive cues and no glyph stripped (`--emoji none`). Wrapping, line breaks and timing do not count: the words are the same. This tool never rewrites, shortens or translates a cue, so the key is a statement of what happened, not a judgement of the text |
 
 
+Per-tool keys added in 1.18.1, all additive:
+
+| key | tool | what it holds |
+|---|---|---|
+| `shots` | `scenes.py --shots` | `[{start, end, label, flow_magnitude}]` per detected scene, `label` one of `static`/`pan`/`motion` from a lightweight block-matching optical-flow proxy (frames decoded at 4 fps, 48x27, no external dependency). A shot too short to sample two frames is `static` with `flow_magnitude: 0` |
+| `audio_peaks_db` | `scenes.py --audio-peaks` | `[{time, level}]`, measured dBFS loudness peaks. A **new** key: the pre-existing `audio_peaks` (always reported, unrelated unitless RMS figures used for `--highlights` scoring) keeps its 1.0 meaning unchanged |
+| `speech` | `scenes.py --speech` | `[{time, speech_music_ratio}]`, a per-second zero-crossing-rate ratio against the file's own median — a measured proxy, not a speech/music classification |
+| `motion_centre` | `cropdetect.py --motion-centre` | `[{time, x, y, x_frac, y_frac, motion}]` per second, sampled over the same windows as the crop-bar detection. `x`/`y` are source pixels, `x_frac`/`y_frac` a 0..1 fraction of `source_width`/`source_height`; a window with no measured motion reports `x`/`y`/`x_frac`/`y_frac: null`. Report only — this tool never picks a reframe |
+| `speech_aware`, `speech_aware.breaths` | `silence.py --speech-aware` | `{min_silence, floor, breaths_kept, breaths_kept_seconds, breaths}`. `breaths` are the sub-`--min-silence` gaps kept because they sit inside a sentence; the removal list (`silences`, `keep`, `removed_seconds`) already reflects the speech-aware classification. Composes with `--filler` through the same `keep_ranges()`/`merge_spans()` pipeline, so `--speech-aware --filler` produces one removal list |
+| `sources` | `sync.py` | `[{path, offset_s, confidence, drift_ppm}]`, one entry per SOURCE. Present for every run, including the original single-SOURCE shape (where it mirrors the top-level `second`/`offset_seconds`/`confidence` additively). With 2+ SOURCEs it is the *only* per-source shape: there is no top-level `second`/`offset_seconds` because there is no single pair to put there |
+| `switch_mode`, `min_shot` | `multicam.py --switch energy` | `"energy"` and the `--min-shot` value used (default 1.5s), alongside the existing `cuts` (`[[start, end, camera], ...]`) which already carries the camera index for `--edl`'s companion cut list |
+
 `check.py` also gains an informational `subtitles` row on **every** platform:
 `PASS` when every soft subtitle stream carries a language tag, `WARN` when one
 does not (or when there are none). Like `channels` and `chapters` it is never

package/package.json

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "ffmpeg-skill",
-  "version": "1.17.3",
+  "version": "1.18.1",
   "description": "Agent Skill that gives coding agents (Claude Code, Cursor, Codex) a local video editor: 42 FFmpeg tools with a machine-readable contract, contract-derived MCP server, FFmpeg capability detection, probe-first / verify-last workflow. Cut, join, silence removal, fit, captions and karaoke, overlays, motion graphics, HDR to SDR, LUTs, audio clean-up and typed dynamics, sync with drift correction, multicam, loudness, delivery checks, project rendering, batch. No API keys, no cloud, no dependencies.",
   "keywords": [
     "ffmpeg",

package/references/ci-platform-pitfalls.md

@@ -128,7 +128,7 @@ these had ever shown up before.
   are still spelled exactly that way: `_common` is a package since the refactor release after
   1.15.0, and its `__init__.py` re-exports every name the single module defined, so
   `_common.drawtext_boxborderw()`, `_common.ffmpeg_version()` and `_common.bt709_tag_args()`
-  below resolve through the facade unchanged. The definitions are in `_common/text.py`,
+  below resolve through the facade unchanged. The definitions are in `_common/drawtext.py`,
   `_common/runner.py` and `_common/color.py` respectively.
 - **`showwaves` keeps emitting frames after the audio ends, `-shortest` notwithstanding.** A
   12 s source came out 14.08 s on 5.1.1. `waveform.py` now also passes `-t <source duration>`.

package/references/scripts.md

@@ -161,7 +161,7 @@ rounded, if they aren't.
 
 ### cropdetect.py — measure black bars, report the crop rectangle
 ```
-cropdetect.py INPUT [--seconds N] [--samples N] [--limit F] [--round N]
+cropdetect.py INPUT [--seconds N] [--samples N] [--limit F] [--round N] [--motion-centre]
 ```
 Measurement only -- writes no file. Samples `--samples` windows spread
 across the file (default 5, totalling `--seconds` 10s of footage) and
@@ -174,6 +174,14 @@ removing detected bars is wanted -- genuine letterboxed content (a
 scope-ratio film in a 16:9 frame) "detects" the same way as accidental
 bars; look at the frame before cropping it away.
 
+`--motion-centre` (1.18) reports the motion centroid once per second, sampled
+across the same windows: `motion_centre: [{time, x, y, x_frac, y_frac, motion}]`,
+`x`/`y` in source pixels and `x_frac`/`y_frac` as a 0..1 fraction of
+`source_width`/`source_height`. A frame with no measured motion in a window
+reports `x`/`y`/`x_frac`/`y_frac: null` and `motion: 0`. Report only, like the
+crop rectangle above -- this hands the calling agent numbers to reframe a 9:16
+crop with; it never picks the subject or the crop box itself.
+
 ### deinterlace.py — deinterlace interlaced footage
 ```
 deinterlace.py INPUT [--mode frame|field] [--parity auto|tff|bff] [--only-interlaced] [-o OUT]
@@ -465,7 +473,7 @@ each shorter clip's last frame (with silence) out to the longest.
 
 ### silence.py — remove dead air / jump cuts
 ```
-silence.py INPUT [--threshold -35] [--min-silence 0.6] [--margin 0.15] [--min-keep 0.2] [--list] [--edl keep.txt] [-o OUT]
+silence.py INPUT [--threshold -35] [--min-silence 0.6] [--margin 0.15] [--min-keep 0.2] [--list] [--edl keep.txt] [--speech-aware] [-o OUT]
 silence.py INPUT --filler --words transcript.json [--filler-lang auto|en|ja|es|de|fr|pt|it]
            [--filler-words FILE] [--filler-extra W,W] [--filler-keep W,W] [--filler-pad 0.02]
            [--transcribe] [--filler-list] [--max-cuts 400]
@@ -531,6 +539,17 @@ additive sibling covering everything that went. A filler word quiet enough to
 sit inside a detected silence is merged into it rather than counted twice, so
 the two figures can be equal.
 
+**`--speech-aware` (1.18)** keeps breaths shorter than `--min-silence` when
+they sit inside a sentence, and only cuts at sentence-boundary pauses
+(`--min-silence` or longer). It re-runs silence detection at a much shorter
+floor to measure the short gaps at all, then classifies each one: shorter than
+`--min-silence` is an in-sentence breath (kept, listed in
+`speech_aware.breaths`); `--min-silence` or longer is a sentence boundary (cut,
+same as the plain flag). It composes with `--filler` through the same
+`keep_ranges()`/`merge_spans()` pipeline the filler-inside-a-silence fix
+already uses, so `--speech-aware --filler` produces one removal list. `--edl`
+writes the resulting cut list exactly as it does today.
+
 ### join.py — concatenate with transitions
 ```
 join.py CLIP1 CLIP2 [...] [--transition fade|dissolve|wipeleft|slideleft|fadeblack|fadewhite|circleopen|none]
@@ -701,6 +720,7 @@ already has a picture.
 ```
 scenes.py INPUT [--threshold 10] [--min-scene 1] [--highlights N [--target SECONDS] [--max-scene 15]] [--edl picks.txt] [--sheet scenes.png] [--json]
 scenes.py INPUT --beats [--beat-step 0.01] [--beat-range 60-200] [--min-confidence 0.5] [--json]
+scenes.py INPUT [--shots] [--audio-peaks] [--speech] [--json]
 ```
 Lists scenes with audio energy, the loudest moments, and (with
 `--highlights`) proposes N ranges that add up to `--target` seconds, biased to
@@ -751,6 +771,29 @@ would change a file on the strength of it (`cut.py --snap beats`). `--edl` with
 `--beats` is unchanged: beats are never written as an EDL, because a beat is
 not a cut. No audio stream is a `kind: input` refusal.
 
+**`--shots`, `--audio-peaks`, `--speech` (1.18)** are three independent
+measurements that combine with each other and with `--beats`/`--highlights`:
+
+- `--shots` labels each already-detected scene `static`/`pan`/`motion` by a
+  lightweight block-matching optical-flow proxy (frames decoded at 4 fps,
+  48x27, no external dependency), reporting `shots: [{start, end, label,
+  flow_magnitude}]`. A shot too short to sample two frames is `static` with
+  `flow_magnitude: 0` — there is nothing to measure motion between. A proxy,
+  the same spirit as `--rank-by`: it reports what a coarse block match saw,
+  not what is interesting about the shot.
+- `--audio-peaks` reports loudness peaks as measured dBFS: `audio_peaks_db:
+  [{time, level}]`. This is a new key, kept separate from the pre-existing
+  (always-on) `audio_peaks` list, whose entries are an unrelated unitless RMS
+  figure used for `--highlights` scoring — a different unit needed a
+  different key so `audio_peaks`'s meaning does not change underneath a
+  caller reading it since 1.0.
+- `--speech` reports a per-second zero-crossing-rate ratio,
+  `speech: [{time, speech_music_ratio}]` — speech's rapid consonant
+  transients raise the zero-crossing rate; sustained tones (music, room
+  tone) cross zero at a steadier rate. `1.0` means "typical for this file's
+  own median," not an absolute threshold. This is a measured number, not a
+  speech/music classification — nothing here decides which stretch is which.
+
 ### check.py — pre-delivery compliance
 ```
 check.py INPUT --platform youtube|shorts|reels|tiktok|x|linkedin|facebook|broadcast|podcast|custom [--no-loudness] [--json]
@@ -905,7 +948,8 @@ hand the path to the user together with the numbers.
 
 ### multicam.py — align several cameras and switch between them
 ```
-multicam.py REF CAM2 [CAM3 ...] [--switch "START-END:CAM,..."] | [--auto N] [--audio IDX] [--fix-drift]
+multicam.py REF CAM2 [CAM3 ...] [--switch "START-END:CAM,..."|energy [--min-shot 1.5]] | [--auto N]
+            [--audio IDX] [--fix-drift] [--edl cuts.txt]
             [--offsets-only] [--width W --height H --fps N] [-o OUT]
 ```
 All inputs are aligned to the first one by audio (same engine as `sync.py`,
@@ -915,6 +959,23 @@ simply alternates every N seconds. Audio comes from the reference unless
 `--audio` picks another input, e.g. an external recorder that has no video.
 `--offsets-only` reports offsets and confidence without rendering.
 
+**`--switch energy` (1.18)** auto-switches to whichever camera (of those with
+a video stream) measures the loudest audio at each 0.25 s window on the
+reference timeline, then folds any run shorter than `--min-shot` (default
+1.5 s) into its neighbour so the cut never lingers on a shot too short to
+read. A measured loudest-camera pick, the same spirit as `scenes.py
+--rank-by audio`: a proxy for who is talking, not a judgement — a loud crowd
+or a hot mic wins over a quiet subject exactly like the scene ranking does.
+`--edl` (1.18, any switch mode) writes the resulting cut list as `cut.py
+--segments`-format `START-END` lines; the camera index for each cut is
+already in the JSON `cuts` field (`[[start, end, camera], ...]`), which is
+what `--edl` leaves out on purpose — one file for an NLE's cut list, one
+field for the camera it came from. The multicam timeline needs no dedicated
+project format: each cut is a `render.py` clip (`{"src": ..., "in": ...,
+"out": ...}` on that camera's own timeline, shifted by its measured offset),
+so a switch list can be re-rendered with different `--min-shot` values by
+editing `project.json`'s `clips`, not by inventing a second timeline schema.
+
 ### verify.py — real-footage verification kit
 ```
 verify.py FILES_OR_FOLDERS [--quick] [--report verify.md] [--out DIR --keep] [--seconds 6] [--json]
@@ -1185,18 +1246,18 @@ draws whatever glyph the text font has; `--emoji none` strips them).
 
 ### sync.py — offset detection, alignment, drift correction
 ```
-sync.py REFERENCE SECOND [--json] [--max-offset 30] [--analyze-seconds 120] [--fix-drift [--drift-window 60]]
-        [--replace-audio | --trim-second] [-o OUT]
+sync.py REFERENCE SOURCE [SOURCE ...] [--json] [--max-offset 30] [--analyze-seconds 120]
+        [--fix-drift [--drift-window 60]] [--replace-audio | --trim-second] [-o OUT]
 ```
 Cross-correlates loudness envelopes: coarse FFT search (20 ms), then a direct
 1 ms refinement (pure Python, a 2-minute window takes ~1-3 s). Positive offset
-= the second recording started later. `--replace-audio` writes the reference
-video with the second file's audio aligned (video stream copied); the output
-keeps the reference's full length -- a shorter or head-trimmed second file is
+= the source recording started later. `--replace-audio` writes the reference
+video with the source file's audio aligned (video stream copied); the output
+keeps the reference's full length -- a shorter or head-trimmed source file is
 padded with silence, never allowed to cut the picture.
-`--trim-second` writes the second file shifted to the reference timeline.
+`--trim-second` writes the source file shifted to the reference timeline.
 `--fix-drift` measures the offset again near the end of the overlap, reports
-the clock difference in ppm, and resamples the second file so a 60-minute
+the clock difference in ppm, and resamples the source file so a 60-minute
 take stays in sync (typical consumer devices drift 20-500 ppm = up to 1.8 s/h).
 Use it whenever the recording is longer than ~10 minutes. Check `confidence`
 (0–1, normalised correlation with a runner-up penalty); below 0.3 the match is
@@ -1206,6 +1267,20 @@ window 95 %, misses flagged below 0.3. Keep `--analyze-seconds` at least 4×
 `--max-offset` (default 120 s vs 30 s): lags with under 35 % overlap are
 ignored, so an offset larger than ~60 % of the window cannot be found.
 
+**One reference, 1+ SOURCE (1.18).** With exactly one SOURCE the CLI keeps its
+original shape byte for byte -- `second`, `offset_seconds`, `confidence`,
+`meaning`, `drift` at the top level, `--replace-audio`/`--trim-second`
+available -- with the same measurement additively mirrored under a new
+`sources: [{path, offset_s, confidence, drift_ppm}]` list. With 2+ SOURCEs the
+result is one offsets JSON, `{reference, sources: [...]}`, and no flat
+`second`/`offset_seconds` (there is no single pair to put there);
+`--replace-audio`/`--trim-second` refuse with `kind: input`, since each writes
+one synced output and there is more than one source to choose from. This is
+the same offset/drift measurement `multicam.py` already loops over per camera
+internally (it imports `sync.measure_offset`); `sync.py`'s own N-source CLI
+now exposes that loop directly, for aligning cameras without cutting between
+them.
+
 ### color.py — HDR to SDR, LUTs, colour tags, Dolby Vision
 ```
 color.py INPUT --to-sdr [--tonemap hable|mobius|reinhard|bt2390] [--peak 1000] [--desat 0] [-o OUT]

package/scripts/_common/__init__.py

@@ -7,8 +7,9 @@ error reporting, and provides a compact media probe used by every script.
 Since the refactor release after 1.15.0 the helpers live in one module per responsibility --
 runner (process execution and timeouts), probe (ffprobe and the measured facts), decision (the
 pure copy-vs-re-encode and capability choices), emit (result documents, die(), info()), color
-(colour tags and the HDR paths) and text (fonts, scripts, emoji, drawtext) -- and this file is a
-facade that re-exports every name they define. `import _common` and `from _common import x` mean
+(colour tags and the HDR paths) and, since the refactor after 1.17.3, fonts, emoji, drawtext and wrap
+(text.py is a re-export shim over those four) -- and this file is a facade that re-exports every name
+they define. `import _common` and `from _common import x` mean
 exactly what they meant when this was one 3072-line module; nothing else about the package is
 part of the contract.
 """
@@ -67,12 +68,13 @@ from _common.emit import (
 )
 from _common.probe import (
     analyze_levels, _aspect_string, _bit_depth, decode_pcm_mono, detect_scenes, detect_silences, fingerprint,
-    _fraction, keyframes_near, SCORE_RE, SIL_RE,
+    _fraction, keyframes_near, SCORE_RE, SIL_RE, decode_gray_frames,
     measured_level_dbfs, MEDIA_EXT, _output_failed, probe, rms_envelope, _to_float, _to_int, verify_output
 )
 from _common.decision import (
     aac_args, add_pad_fill_args, audio_codec_for, AUDIO_CODECS, brand_caption_style, BRAND_DEFAULTS,
     description_block, _evidence_rank, fmt_chapter_time, propose_chapters,
+    frame_flow, label_shot_flow, MOTION_GRID, MOTION_SEARCH, MOTION_STATIC_PX, MOTION_PAN_SPREAD,
     filler_spans, FILLER_WORDS, FILLER_AMBIGUOUS, FILLER_DISCOURSE_MARKERS, FILLER_MAX_WORD,
     FILLER_MIN_GAP, FILLER_PAD, normalise_filler_token,
     beat_grid, snap_points, BEAT_MIN_CONFIDENCE, BEAT_ONSET_K, BEAT_OCTAVE_MARGIN,
@@ -112,7 +114,7 @@ from _common.text import (
     SHAPING_SCRIPTS, text_width_em, _VS15, _VS16, WINDOWS_FONTS, _ZWJ
 )
 
-from _common import asr, color, decision, runner, text  # noqa: F401,E402
+from _common import asr, color, decision, drawtext, emoji, fonts, runner, text, wrap  # noqa: F401,E402
 
 # `_common.emit` and `_common.probe` are the FUNCTIONS, as they have always been -- the
 # from-imports above rebound the package attribute the submodule import had set. The two modules
@@ -123,7 +125,7 @@ from _common import asr, color, decision, runner, text  # noqa: F401,E402
 _emit_module = sys.modules["_common.emit"]
 _probe_module = sys.modules["_common.probe"]
 
-_MODULES = (runner, _emit_module, _probe_module, decision, color, text, asr)
+_MODULES = (runner, _emit_module, _probe_module, decision, color, text, fonts, emoji, drawtext, wrap, asr)
 
 
 class _Facade(_types.ModuleType):
@@ -204,6 +206,7 @@ __all__ = [
     "place_output", "_plan_at_exit", "_plan_inputs", "_PLAN_STRIP", "PLAN_VERSION", "PREFERRED_FAMILIES",
     "print_json", "probe", "PROBE_TIMEOUT", "_progress_line", "read_text_or_die", "refuse_output_is_input",
     "_remember_output", "require_tool", "resolve_emoji_assets", "_result_v2", "rms_envelope", "run", "run_analysis",
+    "decode_gray_frames", "frame_flow", "label_shot_flow", "MOTION_GRID", "MOTION_SEARCH", "MOTION_STATIC_PX", "MOTION_PAN_SPREAD",
     "_run_captured", "run_keeping_subtitles", "run_tool", "_run_with_progress", "_SCRIPT_FONT_CACHE",
     "_script_font_entry", "script_font_for_text", "script_font_status", "_script_font_uncached", "_SCRIPT_RANGES",
     "SCRIPTS", "_sdr_bt709", "_set_current_ctx", "_SHAPING_BUILD_CACHE", "SHAPING_SCRIPTS", "shell_quote",

package/scripts/_common/decision.py

@@ -864,3 +864,89 @@ def filler_spans(words, wordlist, *, pad: float = FILLER_PAD, min_gap: float = F
         m["start"] = round(m["start"], 4)
         m["end"] = round(m["end"], 4)
     return merged
+
+
+# --- 1.18.0: lightweight block-matching motion estimate (scenes.py --shots, cropdetect.py
+# --motion-centre) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+MOTION_GRID = 4          # NxN anchor blocks per frame
+MOTION_SEARCH = 3         # +/- pixels searched per block, at the decoded (low) resolution
+MOTION_STATIC_PX = 0.35   # average per-frame displacement below this, at decode resolution, is "static"
+MOTION_PAN_SPREAD = 0.6   # block-to-block direction agreement above this (0..1) reads as a pan
+
+
+def _block_match(prev: bytes, cur: bytes, w: int, h: int, cx: int, cy: int, half: int, search: int) -> "Tuple[float, float]":
+    """(dx, dy) that best aligns a `half*2` square centred at (cx, cy) in `prev` to `cur`,
+    searched over +/- `search` px by sum-of-absolute-differences. Coordinates and the returned
+    offset are in decoded-frame pixels (a handful of pixels a side at 1.18.0's sample size)."""
+    x0, y0 = max(half, min(w - half - 1, cx)), max(half, min(h - half - 1, cy))
+    ref = [prev[(y0 + dy) * w + (x0 + dx)] for dy in range(-half, half + 1) for dx in range(-half, half + 1)]
+
+    def sad_at(xx: int, yy: int) -> "Optional[int]":
+        if xx - half < 0 or xx + half >= w or yy - half < 0 or yy + half >= h:
+            return None
+        sad = 0
+        for dy in range(-half, half + 1):
+            row = (yy + dy) * w
+            for dx in range(-half, half + 1):
+                sad += abs(ref[(dy + half) * (2 * half + 1) + (dx + half)] - cur[row + xx + dx])
+        return sad
+
+    # Zero shift is the tie-break candidate, not the search order's first cell: on a textureless
+    # block (a flat colour, sky, an out-of-focus background) every offset scores the same SAD, and
+    # without an explicit tie towards "no motion" the scan used to report the search window's
+    # first corner as the measured displacement -- a still frame with nothing to match against
+    # read as steady motion in one direction, every time.
+    best_sad, best = sad_at(x0, y0), (0.0, 0.0)
+    if best_sad is None:
+        best_sad = float("inf")
+    for sy in range(-search, search + 1):
+        for sx in range(-search, search + 1):
+            if sx == 0 and sy == 0:
+                continue
+            sad = sad_at(x0 + sx, y0 + sy)
+            if sad is not None and sad < best_sad:
+                best_sad, best = sad, (float(sx), float(sy))
+    return best
+
+
+def frame_flow(prev: bytes, cur: bytes, w: int, h: int, *, grid: int = MOTION_GRID,
+               search: int = MOTION_SEARCH) -> "Dict[str, Any]":
+    """One measurement between two consecutive decoded grayscale frames: the mean block
+    displacement vector, its magnitude, and how consistently the blocks agree on direction
+    (0 = every block moved a different way, 1 = every block agrees -- a pan or dolly moves the
+    whole frame one way, on-screen motion inside a mostly-static frame does not)."""
+    half = max(1, min(w, h) // (grid * 3))
+    vecs: "List[Tuple[float, float]]" = []
+    for gy in range(grid):
+        for gx in range(grid):
+            cx = int((gx + 0.5) * w / grid)
+            cy = int((gy + 0.5) * h / grid)
+            vecs.append(_block_match(prev, cur, w, h, cx, cy, half, search))
+    mdx = sum(v[0] for v in vecs) / len(vecs)
+    mdy = sum(v[1] for v in vecs) / len(vecs)
+    magnitude = math.hypot(mdx, mdy)
+    mean_len = sum(math.hypot(*v) for v in vecs) / len(vecs)
+    agreement = (magnitude / mean_len) if mean_len > 1e-6 else 1.0  # 1.0 = every block agrees
+    return {"dx": mdx, "dy": mdy, "magnitude": magnitude, "agreement": min(1.0, agreement)}
+
+
+def label_shot_flow(flows: "Sequence[Dict[str, Any]]") -> "Dict[str, Any]":
+    """{label, flow_magnitude} for one shot from its per-frame-pair flow measurements.
+
+    static: mean displacement below MOTION_STATIC_PX. pan: above it, and blocks agree on
+    direction (a camera move shifts the whole frame). motion: above it, blocks disagree (motion
+    inside an otherwise still frame -- handheld jitter, or a subject moving across a static
+    background). This is a measured proxy, the same spirit as scenes.py --rank-by: it reports
+    what a coarse block match saw, not what is interesting about the shot."""
+    if not flows:
+        return {"label": "static", "flow_magnitude": 0.0}
+    magnitude = sum(f["magnitude"] for f in flows) / len(flows)
+    agreement = sum(f["agreement"] for f in flows) / len(flows)
+    if magnitude < MOTION_STATIC_PX:
+        label = "static"
+    elif agreement >= MOTION_PAN_SPREAD:
+        label = "pan"
+    else:
+        label = "motion"
+    return {"label": label, "flow_magnitude": round(magnitude, 3)}