A true story Made with Hey Archi · Made by Hey Archi

We asked Archi to explain what's new. It cleared its throat.

One message to Claude, three taps, and Archi wrote, voiced, scored and cut its own launch video: everything new in Hey Archi that week, in a funny, captioned, sound-designed film, built in FilmCraft as a project you can keep editing. Hey Archi can market itself now. It can market you too.

Watch the film → Get started
1 message typed, plus 3 taps~45 minutesUnder $1 of ElevenLabs, plus 166 sound-effect credits17 features in 2:54Every video file stayed on the computerDelivered as an editable FilmCraft project
“Hey Archi” and “What's new · October 21–24, 2026” over an aerial view of a farm, a pond and trees at sunset
“Archi Finds Its Voice” · 2:54 · 1080p · captions
The feature cards are Archi-made motion graphics, not screen recordings. The time-lapse and the Chat Replay are real captures.
Read the script (all 31 lines Archi spoke)

Hey Archi had a busy week. The wedding footage from Blue Umbrella was still in The Archive: 62 videos and 7 photos, 1.69 hours, 1,063 moments and 9,675 timed words. Archi had never said a word out loud. Then one message.

The whole conversation

This is all the human typed.

Blue Umbrella took three messages. This took one, and three taps.

You
hey we just checked in a ton of new features.. I want you to create a new video to demonstrate and describe all the new features we have added to Hey Archi in the last week. You can see what the tone I am looking for and what a bunch of the new features are here in https://heyarchi.app/guide.html — Show off your best abilities to use Hey Archi to create videos that showcase what an app can do.. Use the wedding footage folder to create. You choose how long it should be but try to get all the featured features in. And create a narration that is funny and fun to listen to with appropriate sound effects and amazing screen captures. Use Archi House brand kit
brand_kitvoicesprogramsactivitylibrary_overviewsearchviewfind_musicnarrate
✦ Claude + Archi
Here's the plan: one beat per feature, 17 in all, narrated by me in 31 short lines with a joke in each. Sound effects on the punchlines, an original score with room for the hits, and every graphic in Archi House. The voice, the sound effects and the score use your ElevenLabs plan, so here's the price first. Three quick questions before I start.
Which voice should narrate?Liam
OK to spend on the narration, sound effects and score?Yes, all three
Open FilmCraft to build the edit?Yes, open it
narratelaunch_craftmake_sound_effectrender_motion_graphiccompose_musicedit_liststyle_captionsFilmCraftcraft_timelapse
✦ Claude + Archi
Done: “Archi Finds Its Voice”, 2:54 at 1080p, with the captions burned in and a .srt beside it, at −14.1 LUFS. The FilmCraft project is open, with every shot, line, graphic and sound on its own track, so you can change anything. Want a 30-second vertical cut next?

Your message is word for word, with one typo fixed. The three answers were taps on Claude's multiple-choice questions. Claude's replies and questions are paraphrased.

Before anything was made

It wrote the jokes before it cut a frame.

Archi read the guide's What's new, turned each feature into a beat with a gag and a sound, and laid the beats over the wedding footage. Then it priced the narration before speaking a word.

THE TONE · LINE 4“I quote you the price first, and I only talk after you say yes. Like a taxi with manners.”

Every feature got one beat: what it does, what's on screen, and the joke or sound that lands it. A flat take is “in case you liked it flat”. The pairing code gets a knock at the door. The old description model's imaginary picnic gets a record scratch.

The price came first. Archi estimated the narration (31 lines, 2,197 characters, about $0.18) with a call that spends nothing, showed it, and spoke only after the yes.
The voice · ElevenLabs stockLiam

“Energetic, Social Media Creator.” Chosen with a tap from the voices Archi offered.

The score · composed to the script7 parts
Is this on01sparse, curious, single plucked notes
Archi talks02bouncy, pizzicato and claps, leaves room for voice
Room for hits03stop-time, ticking hi-hat only, almost silent
Feature parade04fuller groove, playful bass, glockenspiel melody
Picnic pause05breakdown, light, curious, minimal
Build to the end06brighter, more drums, joyful
Hey Archi07warm resolve, final soft chord
Storyboard · 17 features · the plan Archi proposed and built
#FeatureOn screenGag / sound
01Archi's voice (ElevenLabs narration)Property aerial, then the price card; the cursor clicks “Yes, speak”Mic tap · “Like a taxi with manners”
02Redo one flat line, old take keptTake 1 “flat”, take 2 lively, take 1 marked “Kept”“In case you liked it flat”
03Cuts wait for the words; narration on its own trackFilmCraft timeline mock: a cut slices “sen|tence”, then snaps into the pause“…sentence.”
04Captions in the brand kit's lookAn arrow pointing at the captions“You're reading them right now. Hi.”
05Sound effects from a few wordsWHOOSH / BOOM / DUN DUN DUNNN, then the sound-effect panel: 4 takes, never overwrittenWhoosh, boom, sting
06One read, not threeThree reads from a NAS merge into oneRelief sigh, “phew.”
07storylib move-library and placesA truck carries stars, tags and a collection to the NAS; Mac and PC pathsTruck reversing beeps
08Pairing code for shared ArchivesDoor knock, “Pair this computer”, a wrong try shakes, 6 digits, PairedKnock knock · “Nice try.”
09HEIC and camera RAW, right way up, with datesFormat badges pop around the wedding stillsCamera shutters
10Napping NAS: “Waiting; nothing is lost”The NAS dozes, Zzz, wakes, carries onSnore
11Programs installed on demandSettings › Programs: “Archi would like to install Node.js”UI pop
12Faces heads-up (consent and privacy)The faces note card
13Is Claude listening? (the connection light)Top bar light red, green, red with the fix, greenDing
14Sharper descriptions“A family enjoying a picnic in a sunny field” scratched out: “A wide, empty lawn”Record scratch · “Sorry, field.”
15Demo modeAn Archive window; the names blur
16Session diary“Dear diary…” lines type inTypewriter
17FilmCraft time-lapse, Chat Replay and small comforts (New version button, camera dates, Windows builds again, Apache 2.0)The time-lapse, the chat replay, a checklist“Very meta.” · “You're welcome.”
After the yes

From one message to a finished film, step by step.

Every tool name below is from Archi's session diary for the day, in the order they ran.

  1. Got to know the library and the brand

    What Archi did

    Loaded the Archi House brand kit, listed the voices it could speak in, checked which programs were installed and what had changed in the library that week, and read the library's overview: 69 files in 4 spoken languages.

    Archi's tools
    hellobrand_kitcraft_appsvoicesprogramsactivitylist_motion_templateslibrary_overview

  2. Found the shots

    What Archi did

    Ran 12 searches by what's seen, said and heard: the property from the air, the kiss, guests cheering, the first dance under string lights, the flowers, the toasts, and an empty lawn for the picnic joke. Then it looked at 24 candidates by eye.

    Archi's tools
    searchview

  3. Quoted the narration, and waited for a yes

    What Archi did

    Priced all 31 lines with an estimate that spends nothing: about $0.18. Nothing was spoken until the yes.

    Archi's tools
    narrate (estimate)

  4. Spoke 31 lines, with every word timed

    What Archi did

    Spoke the script in Liam's voice in under a minute and a half: 2:48 of speech, each word with its own start and end, so the cuts and captions could follow the voice.

    Archi's tools
    narratenarration_job

  5. Made 13 sound effects from a few words each

    What Archi did

    One take each, in about 40 seconds, for 166 credits in all. A few of the prompts, word for word:

    mic-tap · finger tapping a microphone twice, thump thump, slight feedback squealdramatic-sting · comedic dramatic orchestral sting, dun dun duuun, brass and timpanisnore · cartoonish sleepy snore, one long inhale and whistling exhale
    Archi's tools
    sound_effectsmake_sound_effect

  6. Drew 17 feature cards and an opener in Archi House style

    What Archi did

    Wrote each card as a HyperFrames graphic in the brand: warm white ink, amber accent, dark plate. The HyperFrames checker caught 5 animation bugs before render; Archi fixed them and rendered again. A Floating Bokeh from the Motion Library and a Chat Replay joined them. All rendered on the Mac as transparent ProRes 4444.

    Archi's tools
    hyperframes_guideget_motion_templaterender_motion_graphicrender_from_templateget_motion_graphic
    “Hey Archi” in white with an amber rule and “What's new · October 21–24, 2026”
    OpenerHey Archi rises out of a soft blur as an amber rule draws in.
    A Narrate card: a line of script lighting up word by word over an amber waveform
    Archi's voiceScript words light up with their timings while the waveform talks.
    A mock FilmCraft timeline with narration words on its own A2 track and cuts sitting in the pauses
    Cuts in the pausesA mock timeline: narration on A2, cuts sliding into the gaps.
    A Make a sound effect card with the prompt “deep cinematic whoosh”, four takes and a Never overwritten badge
    Sound effectsA prompt types in, four takes pop up, nothing is overwritten.
    A Pair this computer dialog with the six-digit code entered and “Paired. Come on in.”
    Knock knockThe pairing dialog, after the wrong try.
    A Dear diary card listing searched, looked, narrated, made and built
    Dear diaryOne line per action, typed in.

    The Archive screens in the film are recreations: motion graphics drawn in Archi House style, not screen recordings.

  7. Composed a score in 7 parts, timed to the script

    What Archi did

    Looked through the library's own music first, then composed “Archi Finds Its Voice”, 174 seconds laid out to match the script: a near-silent “Room for hits” under the whoosh, boom and sting, and a “Picnic pause” breakdown for the record scratch.

    Archi's tools
    find_musiccompose_musicmusic_job

  8. Built the edit in FilmCraft

    What Archi did
    • 27 shots from 18 source files (3 of them still photos) on V1
    • The narration on A2, placed at exact word times
    • The music on A3, ducked to near-silence under the “Something dramatic?” sting
    • Sound effects on A4 and A5
    • 74 captions in Archi House style: Avenir Next, warm white
    • The opener and an end card that credits the AI
    Archi's tools
    launch_craftedit_listtitle_stylesstyle_captionsadd_titleFilmCraft

  9. Recorded itself building it

    What Archi did

    The first recording caught only one frame. So Archi recorded itself assembling the edit again, re-placing it into a scratch sequence, and that recording is the time-lapse at 2:19.

    Archi's tools
    craft_timelapsecraft_screenshot
    FilmCraft full screen in the film: the source and program monitors above a timeline of clips, with the caption “This is me, building this very video, in FilmCraft.”
    2:19 in the film: Archi recording itself assembling the edit.

  10. Mixed, exported and checked the file

    What Archi did

    Exported 2:54 at 1080p with the captions burned in and a .srt beside it, at −14.1 LUFS integrated with a loudness range of 4.2 LU. The review tool ran past its 60-second limit, so Archi measured the exported file directly.

    Archi's tools
    review_editFilmCraft
It fixed what the checker found

The HyperFrames checker refused 5 graphics with animation bugs before they rendered. Archi fixed each one and rendered it again.

It routed around two tools

The title tool and the narration fitting refused their settings that day, so the end card is native FilmCraft text and the narration was placed by hand at exact word times.

It said what the music cost

The score came in at about $0.44 against a $0.38 quote, because the song ran the full length of the film.

Line ↔ picture

Every feature lands on a joke.

Each line was written for its picture, and each sound effect sits on its word.

0:02 · COLD OPEN“Ahem. Is this thing on?”

A mic tap, over the property from the air.

Aerial view of a farm at golden hour, a pond and trees, with the caption “Is this thing on?”
0:32“…chopped off mid-sen— …sentence.”

On the mock timeline, a cut slices the word in two, then snaps into the pause.

A mock FilmCraft timeline over a wedding lawn, the word sentence split in two by a cut and a red “mid-sen…” flag
0:43“You're reading them right now. Hi.”

A hand-drawn arrow points at the captions, over the toasts.

A toast in a reception tent, with a hand-drawn amber arrow and “that's them!” pointing at the caption
Guests' faces are blurred on this page.
0:46–0:51 · ROOM FOR HITSWhoosh. Boom. Dun dun DUNNN.

Kinetic sound words, each on its sound effect, while the score drops almost to silence.

BOOM in big amber letters with a shockwave ring over the reception tent
1:17“Knock knock.”

A knock at the door, then the pairing dialog: “Not paired. Nice try.”

A Pair this computer dialog over the reception tent, its six boxes red with “Not paired. Nice try.”
2:00 · PICNIC PAUSE“I stopped seeing a family picnic in an empty field… Sorry, field.”

A record scratch, and the old description crossed out.

An empty lawn and vineyard, with a description card: the old model's “A family enjoying a picnic in a sunny field” struck through, the newer model's “A wide, empty lawn. Nobody's there.”
2:19“This is me, building this very video. Very meta.”

The time-lapse: Archi recording itself assembling the edit in FilmCraft.

FilmCraft full screen with a timeline of clips and the caption “This is me, building this very video, in FilmCraft.”
2:40 · END CARD“This end card even credits the AI. That's me. You're welcome.”

The father–daughter dance under the string lights, and a credit line naming what the AI made.

The bride and her father dancing on a wet patio under string lights at dusk, with “Hey Archi”, “Your footage already holds the story.”, heyarchi.app and an AI credit line
The extra magic

It can't make things up about itself.

A video that explains a product should be true. Where it counts, Archi's tools check its words against the record.

The Chat Replay refused to render, twice. The graphic at 2:25 redraws part of this very conversation. Archi's lines in it weren't word-for-word copies of its session diary, so it wouldn't render. It rendered on the third try, once the lines were copied exactly.

Honest by design

The price before the voice. About $0.18 for 31 lines, shown before a word was spoken.

Every sound effect is a new file. Archi never overwrites a take.

The end card credits the AI: narration, sound effects and music by ElevenLabs, edit by Archi and Claude.

Real conversation, redrawn. The Chat Replay only shows lines that match the diary.

Faces are blurred in the stills on this page.

The footage was never uploaded. ElevenLabs got the script, a few words per sound and the song plan. Nothing else left the computer.

By the numbers
1,063moments to search
24candidates looked at
27shots chosen
31lines spoken, every word timed
74captions in the brand
13sound effects
17feature graphics
7parts in the score
−14.1LUFS delivery
~45minutes, start to finish

What it cost: about $0.18 for the narration and about $0.44 for the score, so under a dollar, plus 166 ElevenLabs sound-effect credits. The message went at 1:38 pm and the finished file was exported at about 2:21 pm.

What's new

Everything in the film, from the guide.

The features the film shows, in the guide's own words. Read What's new in the guide →

Saturday, October 24

Archi found its voice

Give Archi a script and it speaks it line by line in an ElevenLabs voice, with every word timed. It quotes the price first and speaks only after your yes. A flat line can be redone on its own, and the old take is kept.

 Cuts that wait for the words

Archi lays the narration on its own track and moves each cut into a pause between words. Captions follow the voice in your brand kit's look, sized for wide, vertical or square.

 Whoosh!

Sound effects from a few words: half a second to 30 seconds, up to 4 takes to choose from. It asks first, says how many credits it used, and never overwrites a take.

 One read, not three

Indexing now reads each video once instead of up to three times, a big help when footage lives on a network drive.

 Footage on the move

storylib move-library points the library at the new place with every star, tag and collection. With places, a Mac and a Windows PC can each open the same NAS footage by their own path.

 Small comforts

A New version button, dates for Canon CR3, Fujifilm, Olympus and Panasonic photos, Windows builds again, a Chat Replay graphic that redraws a real conversation, and the Apache 2.0 licence.

Friday, October 23

Knock knock

A shared Archive now only lets in computers that have paired, with a one-time 6-digit code.

 Every photo, finally

iPhone HEIC and camera RAW files are indexed, right way up, most with the date they were taken.

 Napping NAS? No problem

If a drive goes to sleep mid-index, indexing pauses with a calm “Waiting; nothing is lost” and carries on when it's back.

 Only what you need

Extra programs are installed when a feature needs one, and Archi asks first.

 Faces, with a heads-up

Turning faces on now shows a short note about consent and privacy first.

 Archi shows its face

And Claude can record a time-lapse of FilmCraft while it builds an edit: just the FilmCraft window, step by step.

Wednesday, October 21

Is Claude even listening?

A light in the top bar says whether Claude can reach Archi. Red means it can't, with what to do about it.

 Sharper eyes

New moments are described by a newer AI model. In testing it stopped inventing a family picnic in an empty field.

 Credit where it's due

End cards can list what was AI-generated. It's off unless you tick Credit AI on the end card in the Brand tab.

 Dear diary

Archi writes one line for everything it does in StoryLibrary/sessions/. Words and counts only, and nothing leaves your computer.

 Lights, camera, privacy

Demo mode blurs folder, file and collection names, so you can record The Archive without showing anything private.
Still yours

It's a real project, not a render. Keep going.

Archi built the film in FilmCraft, and the project is still there: every shot, graphic, line, sound and caption on its own track. Refine it by hand, keep asking Archi, or both.

The finished project open in FilmCraft at 2:38: the Small comforts card over a dance in the program monitor, the last caption, “Hey Archi.”, in Properties, and the timeline's caption, graphics, picture, sound and narration tracks 1 2 3 4 5
  1. 17 feature graphics on Video 2, like the “Small comforts” card in the monitor: move, trim or re-render any of them.
  2. The picture on Video 1: 27 shots, each one trimmable, swappable and slippable.
  3. The narration on Audio 2: 31 lines, one clip each, at their word times.
  4. 74 captions on their own track, in Archi House style.
  5. Every caption is text you can edit. This is the last one: “Hey Archi.”

The real FilmCraft window, with the finished project open. Guests' faces in the monitor are blurred.

Every track of the film, drawn from the saved project: every bar is a real clip at its real time. Above the picture, the opener and the end card on V4 (the end card is native FilmCraft text). Below, natural sound on A1, the score on A3 and sound effects on A4 and A5, each its own file.

Refine it yourself

Open it like any edit.

  • Trim, slip or swap any of the 27 shots.
  • Retime a feature card or re-render it with new words.
  • Nudge a sound effect onto a different frame.
  • Edit the end card as ordinary text.
Or keep asking Archi

Notes, like you'd give an editor.

Redo line 24 drier.
Make a 30-second vertical cut for Instagram.
Swap the voice for Laura.

Examples of what you could say next. Archi reads the timeline as it is now, including anything you changed by hand, and edits from there.

Nothing gets lost

Old takes are kept. A redone line is a new take, and the old one stays.

Every sound effect is a new file, never written over.

Graphics keep their source in the Motion tab, ready to render again.

The edit is a project file on your computer, not a flattened export.

Every change can be undone. Archi's edits are ordinary FilmCraft commands.

Your footage is never changed. The Archive only reads it.

Make your own launch video

If it can explain its own changelog, it can explain yours.

One message turned a list of features into a funny, captioned three-minute film. The same works for a church's ministry report, a small business's new menu, an app's product update or an event recap. Point Archi at your notes and your footage, and say how it should sound.

YOUHey Archi, make a short video that shows and explains what's new in [our app / our ministry this year / our shop this season]. The details and the tone I want are here: [link, or paste them]. Use the footage in [folder]. You choose how long it should be, but get every main point in. Write a narration that's fun to listen to, with sound effects where they help, captions, and our [brand kit name] brand kit. Show me the storyboard and the price before you make anything.

Narration, sound effects and music use your ElevenLabs key, and Archi asks before anything that costs money. Your ElevenLabs plan decides what you may do with what it makes: the free plan is for non-commercial use only, and Starter or above allows commercial use.

How it fits together

Your AI, your Archive, your tools.

The AI you already useClaude

Desktop or Code. You talk; it plans and asks before anything that costs money.

The AI in The ArchiveArchi

The tools that let your AI see, hear, speak, plan, build and check.

Your Archive

What's seen, said and heard, usability, your stars and tags. On your computer.

ElevenLabs

A voice, sound effects and music. It gets words only: the script, a few words per sound, the song plan.

FilmCraft and the Craft apps

The edit: a native, editable timeline with its own caption track.

HyperFrames + Motion Library

Feature cards, openers and titles in your brand kit.

The session diary

One line per action, on your computer. It keeps the Chat Replay honest.

Get started

Your footage already holds the story.
Just say Hey Archi.

Runs on Apple Silicon Macs and Windows 10 & 11. Your video files never leave your computer.

Install The Archive → Read chapter one: Blue Umbrella

Made with Hey Archi, free and built by one person. Support the work →