# Riffcast

> Plug a design skill into any AI agent — produce finished animations, decks, and infographics from a one-sentence brief. Code-driven, no GUI.

- **Type:** MCP server
- **Install:** `agentstack add mcp-sandrinio-riffcast`
- **Verified:** Yes — security-reviewed for prompt injection and unsafe behavior
- **Seller:** [sandrinio](https://agentstack.voostack.com/s/sandrinio)
- **Installs:** 0
- **Category:** [Integrations](https://agentstack.voostack.com/c/integrations)
- **Latest version:** 0.1.0
- **License:** MIT
- **Upstream author:** [sandrinio](https://github.com/sandrinio)
- **Source:** https://github.com/sandrinio/riffcast
- **Website:** https://riffcast.soula.ge

## Install

```sh
agentstack add mcp-sandrinio-riffcast
```

Requires the [AgentStack CLI](https://agentstack.voostack.com/docs/cli). Works with Claude Code, Cursor, and any MCP-compatible agent.

## About

# RiffCast — AI design skill for Claude Code, Cursor, MCP and any AI agent

> **One sentence in. Finished design out.** RiffCast turns a one-line prompt into a finished, on-brand animation, deck, infographic, or prototype — generated by the AI agent you already use, with zero GUI. Ships as a markdown skill, an MCP server, a CLI, and a pydantic-AI tool. MIT-licensed.

[](LICENSE)
[](#roadmap)
[](https://bun.sh)
[](https://www.remotion.dev/)
[](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/)
[](https://riffcast.soula.ge)

*Hero: a 10-second meta-demo explaining the RiffCast pipeline — generated by RiffCast itself in the modern-clean vocabulary. ([watch the MP4](demos/meta-demo/out/meta-demo.mp4))*

## What is RiffCast?

RiffCast is an open-source **AI design tool** that plugs into any agentic runtime — **Claude Code**, **Claude Desktop**, **Cursor**, **OpenCode**, **Trae**, **pydantic AI**, **LangChain**, or a plain shell — and turns a one-sentence prompt into a finished design artifact.

The host AI agent stays in the creative loop the entire time. RiffCast provides the deterministic pipeline (brief → templates → render → review → export) and a curated set of design vocabularies that prevent generic "AI slop" output. This is the **thin-tools philosophy**: the agent is the designer, RiffCast is the runway.

- **Code-driven, not GUI-driven.** Animations are React/JSX (Remotion), decks are markdown (Slidev), infographics are React-SVG. The surfaces AI agents are best at — no Figma plugin to wrestle with.
- **Five connectors, one core.** Markdown skill, MCP server, pydantic-AI tool, CLI, npm/pip library. Same engine underneath.
- **Opinionated design vocabularies.** modern-clean / editorial / playful — defensible style choices, not safe defaults.
- **Agent self-install.** Paste one URL into your agent; it identifies its runtime and wires the right connector itself.
- **Built from first principles.** No competitor analysis, no template-store ingestion, no closed APIs.

## Use cases

- Generate a 20-second product launch animation from a one-line brief inside **Claude Code** or **Cursor**.
- Spin up an investor pitch deck via **Claude Desktop** as an MCP tool — markdown source, multi-format export (HTML / PDF / PPTX).
- Render a how-to infographic from a structured prompt in a **pydantic AI** or **LangChain** agent.
- Drop the markdown skill into any **OpenCode**, **Trae**, or **Codex** workflow and let the agent author Remotion JSX directly.
- Use the `riffcast` CLI from any shell-capable agent — `riffcast generate`, `riffcast render`, `riffcast review`.

## Install

The recommended path is **agent self-install**. Paste this into Claude Code, Cursor, OpenCode, Trae, Claude Desktop, or any AI agent that can read URLs:

> Install RiffCast from https://riffcast.soula.ge/INSTALL.md

The agent identifies its runtime, picks the right connector (markdown skill / MCP server / pydantic / CLI), and runs the install for you. Full protocol in [INSTALL.md](./INSTALL.md).

Manual install:

```bash
# Markdown skill — Claude Code, Cursor, OpenCode, Trae
npx skills add @riffcast/skill

# MCP server — Claude Desktop, Cursor MCP, Continue, any MCP client
# Add to your mcp.json — see INSTALL.md §2B for the config block

# CLI — any shell
npm i -g @riffcast/cli
riffcast --version

# Library — npm or pip
bun add @riffcast/core
pip install riffcast   # v0.3+ (pydantic-AI tool)
```

## How it works

```
                        ┌─ Markdown skill (SKILL.md)   → Claude Code, Cursor, OpenCode, Trae
                        │
   ┌──────────┐         ├─ MCP server (riffcast mcp)   → Claude Desktop, Cursor MCP, Continue
   │  Core    │ ────────┤
   │ engine   │         ├─ pydantic-AI tool            → pydantic AI, LangChain
   │ (Bun +   │         │
   │ Remotion)│         ├─ CLI (`riffcast`)            → any shell-capable agent
   │          │         │
   └──────────┘         └─ Library (@riffcast/core)    → direct programmatic use
```

Each connector is a thin adapter — none re-implement design logic. Pick the one that matches your runtime; the underlying behavior is identical.

The flow inside the agent:

1. **Triage** — classify intent (`new` / `iterate` / `ask`), format (`animation` / `deck` / `infographic` / `prototype`), and kind. Hard cap: 2 disambiguation questions.
2. **Brief** — fill the Creative Brief from the prompt; halt for confirmation when ambiguity is non-zero.
3. **Generate** — agent authors Remotion JSX / Slidev markdown / SVG, guided by RiffCast's references.
4. **Render** — RiffCast renders the artifact (MP4, GIF, SVG, PNG, PDF, HTML, PPTX).
5. **Review** — 5-dimension rubric (composition, color, typography, motion, substance) flags issues; agent decides whether to iterate.
6. **Deliver** — paths printed, brief saved alongside output for reproducible re-renders.

## Roadmap

| Release | Surface | Render pipeline | Status |
| ------- | ------- | --------------- | ------ |
| **v0.1** | Animations | Remotion → MP4 / GIF | In flight |
| **v0.2** | Static infographics | React-SVG / HTML+Tailwind → SVG / PNG / PDF | Planned |
| **v0.3** | Decks + native pydantic-AI tool | Slidev → HTML / PDF / PPTX | Planned |
| **v0.4+** | Clickable prototypes, brand-asset auto-extraction, plugin vocabularies | HTML+JS, varied | Planned |

## FAQ

**Is RiffCast a hosted SaaS?**
No. It's a tool, not a service. Runs locally in your agent's process or as a CLI on your machine. No API keys, no subscription.

**Does RiffCast call its own LLM?**
No. The host AI agent is the design brain. RiffCast handles the deterministic parts: templates, render, review, export. This is the "thin tools" choice — the agent stays in the creative loop, RiffCast doesn't hide the design behind another model.

**How is this different from a Figma plugin or Canva integration?**
RiffCast is **GUI-less**. The artifact source is React/JSX or markdown — exactly the surface AI agents already excel at. No GUI to drive, no plugin sandbox, no closed format. You stay inside your agent.

**Why Remotion for animations and Slidev for decks?**
Remotion is React-based — agents author JSX confidently, parallel render is fast, the MIT license is unambiguous. Slidev is markdown-native — minimal authoring friction, modern default aesthetic, multi-format export. Rejected alternatives (Motion Canvas, Reveal.js, GSAP) are documented in the vision.

**Does it work with Claude Desktop / MCP?**
Yes. `riffcast mcp` is a stdio Model Context Protocol server exposing `propose_directions`, `render`, `review`, and `export` as tools. Compatible with any MCP-capable client (Claude Desktop, Cursor MCP, Continue).

**Can I bring my own brand?**
Yes. Drop a `brand/` directory with logo and color tokens; vocabularies adapt to your brand rather than overriding it. The brand contract solidifies in v0.2.

**Is there a Python version?**
Yes — `pip install riffcast` (lands in v0.3) ships a pydantic-AI–compatible tool wrapper. Until then, the CLI is callable from any Python agent via subprocess.

## Packages

| Package | Description |
| ------- | ----------- |
| [`@riffcast/core`](packages/core) | Brief parsing, vocabulary loading, render orchestration |
| [`@riffcast/cli`](packages/cli) | `riffcast` command-line entry point |
| [`@riffcast/mcp`](packages/mcp) | MCP server (`riffcast mcp`) — stdio Model Context Protocol |
| [`@riffcast/skill`](packages/skill) | Markdown skill bundle (SKILL.md + references) |
| `riffcast` (PyPI) | pydantic-AI tool wrapper *(v0.3)* |

## Contributing

RiffCast is open-source and pre-v0.1. Issues and PRs welcome at . A formal contribution guide ships with v0.1.0.

## License

[MIT](./LICENSE). Built from first principles — no third-party attribution.

---

*Topics: ai-design · ai-agent · claude-code · cursor · claude-desktop · mcp · mcp-server · model-context-protocol · pydantic-ai · langchain · remotion · slidev · animation-generator · deck-generator · infographic-generator · code-driven-design · agentic-design · design-automation · open-source-design · bun · typescript*

## Source & license

This open-source MCP server is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

- **Author:** [sandrinio](https://github.com/sandrinio)
- **Source:** [sandrinio/riffcast](https://github.com/sandrinio/riffcast)
- **License:** MIT
- **Homepage:** https://riffcast.soula.ge

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.

## Pricing

- **Free** — Free

## Security capabilities

Automated source analysis of v0.1.0 — what this tool can access:

- **Network access:** no
- **Filesystem access:** no
- **Shell / process execution:** yes
- **Environment & secrets:** no
- **Dynamic code execution:** no

*"Yes" means the capability is present in the source — more access means more to trust, not that it is unsafe.*


## Versions

- **0.1.0** — security scan: passed — Imported from the upstream source.

## Links

- Listing page: https://agentstack.voostack.com/l/mcp-sandrinio-riffcast
- Seller: https://agentstack.voostack.com/s/sandrinio
- Browse the marketplace: https://agentstack.voostack.com/browse

---
Listed on AgentStack — the marketplace for AI agent skills and MCP servers. Every listing is security-reviewed. Creators keep 70%.