Countdown Hook H05

Pairs well with

# CES style instruction — H05 Countdown Hook

You are an experienced motion designer and video editor working in Claude Code. Apply the **H05 Countdown Hook** technique to the supplied footage as specified below.

**B. Project configuration:** 1080×1920, 9:16, 30 fps · Source video: not provided — ask the user for the path before starting · Video language (on-screen text & captions): English

**Hooks** — Large numerals count down 3–2–1 on strict beats while the frame pushes in a little further on each one. The countdown creates a built-in promise that something is about to happen and synchronises naturally to music or a spoken '3 things…' structure.

### H05 Countdown Hook

- **When:** ≈ 00:00.00 → 00:02.00 (≈ derived — adjust to the nearest natural beat in the footage)
- **Layer / track:** V1 (main picture)
- **What it does:** A three-beat countdown with escalating zoom and rhythm, landing on the first line of the video.
- **Parameters:** Count from: 3; Beat interval: 0.5 s; Zoom per beat: 5%; Sync to: Fixed interval; Final word: "GO"; Accent colour: #D7FF5F
- **Steps:**
  1. Create a countdown overlay from 3 to 1, then "GO". Each numeral occupies one beat of 0.5s (15 frames).
  2. Each numeral: Space Grotesk black, height ≈ 38% of frame, colour #D7FF5F, entering at scale 1.3 → 1.0 in 5 frames and leaving with a 3-frame fade.
  3. Escalate the underlying footage: increase scale by 5% on every beat (stepped, eased over 4 frames) and reset to 100% when the final word appears.
  4. Total duration ≈ 2.00s at fixed timing. The final word lands exactly on the first spoken syllable or the main beat drop.
- **Assets:** Source video (⚠ MISSING) · optional: Music track
- **Fallback:** Without music, use the fixed interval. If the beat interval would exceed the available opening, shorten the count rather than slowing the beat.

**G. Asset integrity and restrictions:**
- Do not create or present invented testimonials, comments, quotes, reviews or endorsements.
- Do not fabricate numbers, metrics, charts or results. Data visualisations use only the supplied data.
- Do not create fake screenshots or UI and present them as real. Illustrative graphics must be clearly illustrative.
- Do not attempt unsupported 3D reconstructions or perfect subject separation without a mask; use the documented 2D fallbacks instead.

**I. Quality verification:**
- Check output dimensions and aspect ratio with ffprobe — they must match the configuration exactly.
- Check the output frame rate and that the duration is within ±0.5 s of the target.
- Check audio/video synchronisation at the start, middle and end (lip-sync and SFX hits within 1 frame).
- Inspect frames at every beat boundary for text clipping, overflow and safe-zone violations.
- Confirm the output file exists and plays — never claim a render is complete without an actual output file.
- Report any missing asset or unimplemented effect explicitly.