Local video media (MCP)

VidSeeds.ai follows client-first media: the hosted MCP server does not read files from the user's computer. Tools return recipes (ffmpeg/ffprobe commands) or accept base64 frames the agent extracted locally.

Probe a file

• vidseeds_probe_local_video - duration, resolution, codecs; use before trim or thumbnail frame picks.

Frames and clips

Goal	Tool
Still frames for thumbnails	vidseeds_extract_video_frames
Short clip for context	vidseeds_extract_video_clip
Generic transcode recipe	vidseeds_transcode_format_recipe
Media helper commands	vidseeds_get_local_media_recipe

Run returned shell commands on the user's machine (requires ffmpeg/ffprobe installed). Pass results back into thumbnail tools as frames on vidseeds_generate_thumbnail when needed.

Precision trim

1. vidseeds_analyze_precision_trim - suggested cut points, segment catalog, seed cost preview.
2. vidseeds_plan_precision_trim - AI edit plan (CritiquePlan) with genre-aware processing.
3. vidseeds_execute_precision_trim - export recipe/commands for local ffmpeg.

V3 Genre-Aware Processing (2026-06-27)

Precision Trim V3 adds genre classification + soundscape analysis + motion profile + hook detection + semantic boundaries as parallel client-side signals. These are passed as optional metadata in vidseeds_analyze_precision_trim / vidseeds_plan_precision_trim inputs:

• detectedGenre - overrides automatic genre detection (speech_driven, action_dynamic, ambient_relax, visual_primary, mixed_narrative, tutorial)
• soundscape - spectral classification from PCM (silence/speech/music/ambient/noise)
• motionProfile - frame-by-frame pixel diff analysis (static/slow/action/scene_change)

How it affects plans:

• ambient_relax: high silence tolerance (15s+), preserves zero-word scenes, < 20% cut ratio
• action_dynamic: aggressive pause trimming (500ms+), up to 40% cut ratio
• speech_driven: cut at semantic boundaries, moderate trimming
• visual_primary: preserves scenes without speech, cut only on true silence
• mixed_narrative: uses all signals - only cuts when multiple agree
• tutorial: precision trimming, no speed around instructions

Midroll placement

• vidseeds_analyze_midroll_opportunities - suggested mid-roll times from transcript/context (analysis only; user edits in their editor).

Thumbnails from local file

Prefer the vidseeds-local stdio MCP tool vidseeds_generate_thumbnail_from_video when the whole pipeline should run on-disk (see vidseeds-thumbnails).

YouTube-hosted source (not local path)

• vidseeds_get_youtube_video_transcript, vidseeds_get_youtube_video_captions - text from YouTube without downloading video to the server.

Do not

• Expect hosted tools to accept arbitrary filesystem paths for upload/processing.
• Re-run probe/extract in a loop - cache probe results for the session.