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One SKILL.md (the playbook) + one starter template. A preview:

Handoff and Explain

When to use

• An explainer video moves a topic from one presenter, character, or section to the next and the audience keeps losing track of who is talking about what
• A product walkthrough passes a single object — a file, a request, a parcel — through a chain of steps, and each step needs one line of explanation as the object arrives
• A team or process video shows work passing between departments (sales → onboarding → support) and each handoff needs its cause and its consequence stated
• A tutorial introduces a concept in one frame and then hands it to a worked example in the next, with a label that names the connection between the two
• A relay-style ad or announcement has two speakers finishing each other's point, and the cut between them needs to feel like a pass rather than a jump

Workflow

1. Name the baton and the chain (input: topic or process → output: handoff chain)
   Before any animation, write the chain as a sentence: "A passes X to B, who passes it to C." The baton (X) must be one concrete thing the viewer can watch — a document, a parcel, a glowing token, a highlighted word — never an abstraction like "responsibility". Limit the chain to three handoffs (four holders) in a single sequence; longer chains blur together and the audience stops tracking who holds what. For each holder, write one line: what they do with the baton and what changes because of it. If you cannot describe the baton as a visible object, the sequence is not ready to animate — pick a visual stand-in (an icon, a card, a coloured dot) and give it a name the narration uses consistently.
2. Stage the two sides (input: handoff chain → output: staged frame)
   Lay out the frame so the handoff direction is unmistakable. Two holders sit left and right (or top and bottom for vertical video), with a clear gap between them that the baton will travel across. The incoming holder is visually quiet — slightly dimmed, smaller, or desaturated — while the current holder is at full brightness; this contrast tells the viewer where to look before anything moves. Place the explanation label's home position now, in the empty space near the receiving holder, and keep it empty until its moment: a label slot that is visibly reserved reads as intentional, while a label that appears in a random gap reads as clutter. If the handoff is between speakers, keep both faces or avatars in frame during the pass rather than cutting between close-ups — the pass is the story, and a cut hides it.

Template preview

Handoff and Explain — Starter Template

One baton, one chain, one line of explanation per pass.

The chain (one sentence)

{A passes X to B, who passes it to C.}

The baton

What it is (visible object): {e.g. glowing ticket card, parcel, file icon} Name used in narration: {one consistent name}

Holders (max 4 — 3 handoffs)

Staging

• Layout: {left → right / top → bottom}
• Incoming holder state: {dimmed / desaturated / smaller}
• Label slot: {reserved space near receiver — describe where}
• Camera: {locked, no movement during the chain}

Animation settings

• Pass duration: {400–600 ms}, easing: {ease-in-out}, arc height: {8–12% of gap}

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