Six free ways to make video with Claude
Claude Video Toolbox
Mohammadreza Hosseini
Each tool below turns code that Claude writes into a real MP4 file. None of them needs a paid video model or an API key: the only cost is your Claude usage. Every clip on this page was made in one session, on a cloud machine with 2 CPU cores and no graphics card.
Comparison for a 10-second video
Render times were measured in this session and scaled to 10 seconds. Claude's working time is from this session too. Token figures are rough estimates, not measurements: see the notes at the end.
| Tool | Est. tokens per 10 s | Input you give for 10 s | Claude's working time | Render time per 10 s (CPU, bar on log scale) | License |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JS canvas + FFmpegdata charts, simple motion | 8k – 20k | Your numbers and labels, plus a line on the look you want | 2 – 4 min | ≈ 6.5 s1080p30, measured | Free (your own code) |
| Manimmath and diagram explainers | 10k – 25k | The concept or a worked problem (a photo of the slide works); optional script text | 3 – 10 min | ≈ 12 s1080p30, measured | MIT |
| HyperFramestitles, promos, kinetic type | 30k – 60k | A short brief (text, colours); optional website link or brand assets | 5 – 10 min | ≈ 18 s1080p30, measured | Apache 2.0 |
| Lemo-Opuscarstyled short films with score | 120k – 250k | A style name and a topic; optional voice, music, logos | 30 – 60 min | ≈ 2 min1080p24, measured | MIT |
| OneTakelaunch films with no cuts | 80k – 150k | The product or idea and a concept; optional screenshots, reference clip | 15 – 30 min | ≈ 4.6 min1080p30 draft with motion blur | Noncommercial only |
| Claude Animation Basehand-painted character cartoons | 60k – 120k | A one-sentence story | 15 – 30 min | ≈ 26 min1080p24, no GPU; far faster with one | MIT |
00:00:20:00 · 1080p · 30 fps · silent · animated bar chart of made-up weekly sales
JavaScript
Canvas + FFmpeg
Claude writes a short Node.js script that draws every frame on a canvas, then pipes the frames straight into FFmpeg, which encodes the MP4. There is no framework: you get exactly what the script draws.
- Best for
- Charts from your own data, counters, simple animated graphics
- Limits
- Plain look unless Claude adds design work; no ready-made effects
- Needs
- Node.js, FFmpeg, the @napi-rs/canvas package
00:02:44:00 · 1080p · 30 fps · silent · tutorial: energy balance on a formaldehyde reactor, from concepts to the answer (300,000 kcal/h)
Python
Manim
The animation engine behind the 3Blue1Brown math videos. Claude writes a Python scene that creates shapes, text and equations and animates them. Manim renders the scene to video with smooth, precise motion.
- Best for
- Math, physics and engineering explainers, worked problems, typeset equations
- Limits
- Not suited to characters or painterly looks; first install takes a while
- Needs
- Python, FFmpeg, Cairo and Pango libraries, LaTeX for equations
- Source
- ManimCommunity/manim
00:00:10:00 · 1080p · 30 fps · silent · animated title card
HTML · by HeyGen
HyperFrames
Claude writes the video as a web page: HTML, CSS and animation code, with each element timed in seconds. HyperFrames opens the page in a headless browser, steps through it frame by frame and encodes an MP4, so every render comes out identical. It ships as a Claude Code plugin with its own skills and a library of ready-made blocks.
- Best for
- Titles, promos, captions, kinetic type, anything you could build as a web page
- Limits
- HeyGen's avatars, AI voices and cloud rendering are paid add-ons; the local renderer is free
- Needs
- Node.js 22+, FFmpeg, Chrome
- Source
- heygen-com/hyperframes
00:00:10:00 · 1080p · 30 fps · with sound · one line becomes a play button, a progress bar, then a wordmark's underline
Claude skill
OneTake
A skill for short product films in one continuous take: each beat grows out of the one before, with no slide-style cuts. It brings a library of measured moves, a camera that chases the action, real motion blur, synthesised sound, and a checker that fails a film that reads like a slideshow before you watch it.
- Best for
- Launch videos, teasers, feature demos rebuilt from screenshots
- Limits
- Free for noncommercial use only; business use needs the paid OneTake Pro license. Final 4K60 renders are slow.
- Needs
- Python with Playwright, NumPy, SciPy; FFmpeg; Node.js
- Source
- feitangyuan/onetake
00:00:22:00 · 1080p · 24 fps · with sound · the water cycle as a single ink line
Claude Code skill
Lemo-Opuscar
A library of 59 film styles, from ink wash and woodcut to pixel RPG and 1920s newsreel. You name a style and a topic, and Claude directs the film: a written treatment, the drawing code, a score from free sample libraries or synthesis, sound effects, optional narration and subtitles, then the final mix.
- Best for
- Short, art-directed films with music in a distinct visual style
- Limits
- The heaviest on Claude usage; tuned for Claude Opus 5.5. 3D styles want a graphics card.
- Needs
- Node.js 20+, FFmpeg, Python 3.11+; voice and music packs install on demand
- Source
- lemomo-ai/lemo-opuscar
00:00:11:00 · 1080p · 24 fps · silent · Clawd calls a rain cloud over to water a sprout
Starter kit
Claude Animation Base
A kit for hand-painted cartoons with p5.js and a brush library. It includes a character (Clawd) with 31 emotions, hats and dances, plus a guide on timing and animation principles. Claude storyboards the story, builds it shot by shot, checks rendered contact sheets and writes the MP4.
- Best for
- Character cartoons and short visual stories
- Limits
- Its watercolour look needs a graphics card: without one, a frame took about 40 s, so this clip uses flat colour. No sound by default.
- Needs
- Node.js, Chrome, FFmpeg; a GPU strongly recommended