Video Interaction Mapper

Video Interaction Mapper

Turn a UI recording into a static, annotated Figma storyboard. Extract the important before/after states, infer what triggered each change, then place clean screenshots, blue interaction markers, and concise annotations into a Figma Design file.

Required Inputs and Tools

Start with:

• A local video file path (.mp4, .mov, .webm, or .avi).
• ffmpeg and ffprobe available on the machine.
• Python with Pillow installed.
• Figma MCP tools available: create_new_file, use_figma, upload_assets, and get_screenshot or get_design_context.

Run the bundled files in scripts/ as executable workflow helpers. They are part of the skill's implementation, not reference material. Read or modify them only when debugging, adapting to an unusual environment, or changing the skill itself.

Use a Figma Design file (figma.com/design/...) as the target. The generated Plugin API code creates pages and image-fill frames, which are Design-file operations. If the user provides a FigJam or Slides URL, ask for a Design file or create a new one.

Before any use_figma call, load the Figma API guidance skill if available (figma-use). Before creating a new Figma file, load the file-creation guidance skill if available (figma-create-new-file). Pass skillNames: "figma-use,video-interaction-mapper" on use_figma calls when the client supports that parameter.

Workflow

1. Validate and Prepare

Confirm the video path exists, then check ffmpeg -version. If Pillow is missing, install it in the active Python environment:

pip install Pillow --break-system-packages -q

Do local analysis before creating or modifying the Figma file. Create a Figma file only after key_moments.json, upload_manifest.json, and generated Figma scripts are ready, unless the user explicitly asks to create the file first. This avoids leaving partial pages behind when local frame analysis changes.

2. Scout the Timeline Quickly

Start with a low-resolution scout pass and contact sheet:

python <SKILL_DIR>/scripts/extract_key_frames.py \
  --input "<video_path>" \
  --output /tmp/vim_frames_<timestamp>/ \
  --mode scout

The scout pass extracts at 1 fps by default, resizes frames to 640 px wide, scores scene changes, writes <output_dir>/frames_manifest.json, and creates <output_dir>/contact_sheet.jpg. Inspect the contact sheet first to identify likely interaction moments.

Use the slower full extraction only when the scout pass is insufficient:

python <SKILL_DIR>/scripts/extract_key_frames.py \
  --input "<video_path>" \
  --output /tmp/vim_frames_<timestamp>/full_frames/ \
  --mode full \
  --max-width 1600

For very long videos, ask whether to focus on a specific time range before processing the whole recording. For too many key frames, re-run extraction with a higher --scene-threshold, such as 0.4.

3. Analyze Key Moments

Read frames_manifest.json and inspect contact_sheet.jpg or relevant extracted frames. For each meaningful transition, identify:

• Visual change: modal, drawer, dropdown, tooltip, snackbar, overlay, navigation, loaded content, selected state, validation state, input focus, or scroll position.
• Trigger: click, tap, keyboard input, hover, scroll, swipe, form submit, auto/timer, or unknown trigger when the cause is ambiguous.
• Interaction target and result coordinates when visible and useful.

Use normalized coordinates from 0 to 1 relative to the screenshot. Percent-like values such as 45 or 94 are accepted by the generated Figma script and converted to 0.45 or 0.94. Coordinates are machine metadata for marker placement only. Do not include coordinate values in visible annotation text, moment labels, or user summaries.

Only add marker coordinates when the point lands on a clearly visible UI element or state. If a target is inferred, between visible controls, or based mainly on cursor position, mark it with inferred: true, uncertain: true, visible: false, or confidence: "medium"/"low". The generated script suppresses markers for those points by default so the canvas does not show a confident pulse over empty UI. If the target or result cannot be located usefully, set interaction to null.

Use confidence: "high" or omit confidence only when the marker should be drawn. Use show_marker: true only when an uncertain point is still worth marking; the generated marker uses an alternate style for these forced uncertain markers.

Aim for 5 to 15 key moments. Prioritize high scene scores and genuinely different states over tiny visual shifts.

Write the analysis to <output_dir>/key_moments.json as an array. When using the scout flow, provide timestamps first; resolve high-quality frame files in the next step.

[
  {
    "moment_index": 1,
    "timestamp_s": 3.4,
    "before_timestamp_s": 3.2,
    "after_timestamp_s": 3.4,
    "trigger": "Click",
    "trigger_emoji": "",
    "short_label": "Dropdown menu opens",
    "annotation": "The account avatar is activated. A menu appears below it with profile, billing, and sign-out actions.",
    "interaction": {
      "target_frame": "before",
      "target": {
        "x": 0.91,
        "y": 0.08,
        "label": "Account avatar",
        "confidence": "high"
      },
      "result_frame": "after",
      "result": {
        "x": 0.86,
        "y": 0.2,
        "label": "Opened account menu"
      },
      "annotation": "Activating the avatar opens the account menu."
    }
  }
]

Keep annotations human-readable: Target: Account avatar, not a label with a raw coordinate suffix. Coordinates stay hidden in JSON and appear only as visual marker placement.

If a marker is drawn, the native Figma annotation is attached to that marker node rather than the screenshot frame. If a marker is suppressed because the point is uncertain or not visible, the annotation remains attached to the screenshot frame.

4. Resolve Selected Frames

If key_moments.json uses timestamps, extract only the selected before/after frames at higher quality:

python <SKILL_DIR>/scripts/resolve_moment_frames.py \
  --video "<video_path>" \
  --moments-file /tmp/vim_frames_<timestamp>/key_moments.json \
  --output /tmp/vim_frames_<timestamp>/key_moments_resolved.json \
  --frames-dir /tmp/vim_frames_<timestamp>/selected_frames/ \
  --max-width 1600

Use key_moments_resolved.json in later steps. If a full extraction already produced precise before_frame_path and after_frame_path values, this step can be skipped.

5. Prepare Uploadable Screenshot Assets

Compress and resize the before/after screenshots for upload:

python <SKILL_DIR>/scripts/prepare_upload_frames.py \
  --manifest /tmp/vim_frames_<timestamp>/frames_manifest.json \
  --moments-file /tmp/vim_frames_<timestamp>/key_moments_resolved.json \
  --output /tmp/vim_frames_<timestamp>/upload_manifest.json

The script writes optimized JPEGs under <output_dir>/upload_assets/ and creates upload_manifest.json. Defaults are 1440 px wide for landscape recordings and 900 px wide for portrait recordings at JPEG quality 75. It records image dimensions, actual JPEG quality, file size, and whether each asset fits the upload budget.

6. Generate Figma Call Files

Generate the self-contained Plugin API scripts:

python <SKILL_DIR>/scripts/generate_figma_calls.py \
  --prepared /tmp/vim_frames_<timestamp>/upload_manifest.json \
  --output-dir /tmp/vim_frames_<timestamp>/figma_calls/

This writes:

• figma_storyboard.js: one combined storyboard creation call.
• figma_apply_fills_template.js: a fill-pass template for uploaded image hashes.
• figma_manifest.json: execution order and upload instructions.
• run_manifest.json: resumable status, selected moments, expected uploads, node IDs, image hashes, fill status, and verification status.

The generated JavaScript does not embed image bytes and does not call figma.createImage. The storyboard script creates all screenshot containers, labels, native annotations, and marker overlays in one call, then returns uploadTargets containing Figma node IDs and local JPEG paths. In a newly created blank file, the script reuses and renames the default page instead of creating a second page.

7. Execute in Figma and Upload Assets

Create a new Figma Design file or open the target Design file now. Run the generated files in figma_manifest.json:

1. Read figma_storyboard.js.
2. Call use_figma against the target Design file with the full JavaScript content.
3. Save the result JSON if practical, then update the run manifest:

python <SKILL_DIR>/scripts/update_run_manifest.py \
  --run-manifest /tmp/vim_frames_<timestamp>/figma_calls/run_manifest.json \
  --storyboard-result /tmp/vim_frames_<timestamp>/storyboard_result.json

For each returned uploadTargets item:

• Call upload_assets with the target fileKey, count: 1, nodeId, and scaleMode: "FILL".
• POST the local file at target.path to the returned upload URL.
• Record { "nodeId": "...", "imageHash": "...", "scaleMode": "FILL" } in an uploads JSON file.

Generate and run the fill pass:

python <SKILL_DIR>/scripts/update_run_manifest.py \
  --run-manifest /tmp/vim_frames_<timestamp>/figma_calls/run_manifest.json \
  --uploads-file /tmp/vim_frames_<timestamp>/uploaded_images.json \
  --write-fill-script /tmp/vim_frames_<timestamp>/figma_calls/figma_apply_fills.js

Run figma_apply_fills.js once with use_figma. This explicit image-hash fill pass is preferred because it makes uploaded screenshots render reliably in the generated containers.

8. Verify

Run get_screenshot, download_assets, or get_design_context to verify that:

• Screenshots are visible and nonblank.
• Blue marker rings sit on the intended target/result locations.
• Native annotations use human labels and do not expose coordinate values.
• Ambiguous or inferred targets are suppressed unless explicitly forced with show_marker: true.

Update run_manifest.json with verification artifacts when available:

python <SKILL_DIR>/scripts/update_run_manifest.py \
  --run-manifest /tmp/vim_frames_<timestamp>/figma_calls/run_manifest.json \
  --verification-screenshot /tmp/vim_frames_<timestamp>/figma_storyboard.png \
  --verification-notes "Screenshots and markers verified"

Output Expectations

The storyboard layout is left-to-right:

[Title block]

[Before] [After]   [Before] [After]   [Before] [After]
moment 1           moment 2           moment 3

"Before state"     "01 Dropdown menu opens"
                   Annotation text...

Blue ring/dot overlays show the target and result locations when coordinates are available and confident. Native Figma annotations attach to the marker nodes when markers exist; otherwise they attach to the relevant before/after screenshot nodes. Annotation labels should name the UI element or state change, never raw coordinate percentages.

Report back with:

• The number of key moments mapped.
• The Figma file URL.
• Any moments whose trigger was ambiguous.
• Any uploads or frames that failed.
• The verification status and any inferred/uncertain markers.

Edge Cases

• Long video: ask for a time range or warn that processing can take longer.
• Too many moments: raise --scene-threshold or manually keep the most meaningful 5 to 15 transitions.
• Mobile recording: keep the portrait default width of 900 px so text remains readable without oversized assets.
• Missing trigger evidence: use Unknown trigger instead of guessing.
• Asset upload failure: retry the individual upload_assets target; the generated screenshot container remains in the file and can be reused.
• upload_assets succeeds but images do not render: run the generated fill pass with the returned image hashes.
• upload_assets is unavailable: warn that the fallback path is slower because it must embed image data directly in use_figma calls.