Transform books into cinematic videos with AI

Installation • Quick Start • Features • Commands • Configuration

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StoryCanvas is an interactive CLI that converts books and text into illustrated videos with AI-generated imagery, professional narration, and background music. Powered by Google's Gemini ecosystem.

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Features

Feature	Description
Multi-Format Input	TXT, PDF, EPUB, Markdown files
Project Gutenberg	Search and download 70,000+ classic books
AI Illustrations	Generate character & scene images with Imagen 4
Cohesive Narration	TTS with 30+ voices, flows like an audiobook
Synced Video	Each image displays while its narration plays
Background Music	Mix royalty-free music tracks
YouTube Ready	Auto-generate titles, descriptions, tags

Installation

npm install -g storycanvas

Or run directly:

npx storycanvas

Requirements

• Node.js 22+
• Google Gemini API Key - Get one free

Quick Start

1. Setup (one-time)

storycanvas onboard

The wizard will configure your API key, select models, and set output directories.

2. Create a video

# From Project Gutenberg (The Yellow Wallpaper)
storycanvas create --gutenberg 1952

# From a local file
storycanvas create --file my-book.epub

# Interactive mode
storycanvas create

3. Find your video

Videos are saved to ./storycanvas-output/<book-name>/video/

Commands

storycanvas onboard

Interactive setup wizard. Configures API key, models, and directories.

storycanvas create

Transform text into multimedia.

storycanvas create                              # Interactive
storycanvas create --file book.epub             # From file
storycanvas create --gutenberg 74               # Tom Sawyer
storycanvas create --stages illustrations,video # Select stages
storycanvas create --mode veo                   # Use Veo AI video

Options:

Flag	Description
-f, --file <path>	Input file path
-g, --gutenberg <id>	Project Gutenberg book ID
-s, --stages <list>	Stages: illustrations, narration, video, music, metadata
-m, --mode <mode>	Video mode: slideshow or veo

storycanvas books

Browse and download from Project Gutenberg.

storycanvas books                        # Interactive browser
storycanvas books --search "sherlock"    # Search
storycanvas books --download 1661        # Download by ID
storycanvas books --list                 # List downloaded

storycanvas doctor

Check your setup: Node version, FFmpeg, API key, config status.

storycanvas config

Manage configuration.

storycanvas config --show    # Display config
storycanvas config --edit    # Edit interactively
storycanvas config --reset   # Reset to defaults
storycanvas config --path    # Show config file location

Pipeline Stages

Input -> Illustrations -> Narration -> Video -> Music -> Metadata
  |           |              |           |        |          |
  |     AI-generated    Cohesive     Synced    Audio      YouTube
  |     characters &    story arc   slideshow  mixing     ready
  v     scene images    with TTS    or Veo AI            metadata
 TXT
 PDF
 EPUB
 Gutenberg

Configuration

Config file: ~/.storycanvasrc

{
  "apiKey": "your-gemini-api-key",
  "models": {
    "text": "gemini-2.5-flash",
    "image": "imagen-4.0-fast-generate-001",
    "tts": "gemini-2.5-flash-preview-tts",
    "video": "veo-3.1-fast"
  },
  "image": {
    "maxCharacterImages": 3,
    "maxSceneImages": 5,
    "aspectRatio": "9:16"
  },
  "video": {
    "mode": "slideshow",
    "resolution": "1080p"
  },
  "tts": {
    "enabled": true,
    "voice": "Kore"
  }
}

Available Models

Image Generation

Model	Description
imagen-4.0-fast-generate-001	Fast (default)
imagen-4.0-ultra-generate-001	Highest quality
gemini-2.5-flash-image	Nano Banana

Text-to-Speech Voices

Kore, Zephyr, Puck, Charon, Fenrir, Aoede, Leda, Orus, Perseus, and 20+ more.

Video Generation

Model	Description
veo-3.1-fast	Faster generation
veo-3.1	Higher quality

Background Music

Place royalty-free music in the ./music directory.

Supported formats: MP3, M4A, WAV, AAC, OGG

Example Output

Running storycanvas create --gutenberg 1952 (The Yellow Wallpaper):

• Generates 3 character + 5 scene illustrations
• Creates cohesive 3-minute narration
• Produces synced video with audio
• Output: storycanvas-output/gutenberg_1952/video/gutenberg_1952_final.mp4

License

MIT

Credits

Built with Google Gemini API | @clack/prompts | fluent-ffmpeg