Model showdown, three AIs on one brief

brand.md

MOTION.md

brand-intake

Step 1: Ask for four things, then wait

1. The brief, word for word. Every model gets the exact same text.
2. The three models, named exactly as their makers write them, and how the user reaches each one (their own accounts only).
3. The logo files for each model, attached. Never redrawn from memory.
4. The headline, two short lines. Example: "Same prompt." / "Three AI models."

Step 2: The fair-test rules

• First try only. No re-rolls, no fixes, no "one more go" for the one you hoped would win.
• The models write HTML, you render it. Add this to the brief so no model gets a better export:

Deliver ONE self-contained index.html, [WIDTH] x [HEIGHT] px. Output the complete HTML only. A shared renderer will execute window.seek(t) and export each model's output at the same settings.
Implementation: deterministic window.seek(seconds), wrap modulo [SECONDS], every visual state derived from time. Automatic playback when not in ?render mode. Under ?render freeze until seek. Set window.__ready=true after initialisation. No external requests. Do not add controls, debug text, the model name or screenshots.

• Same renderer, same settings for all three: same size, 30fps, same length, same encoder.
• A failure stays in. If a model returns broken HTML or nothing, its panel says so. Never swap in a later try.

Step 3: Stack them

overlay.png

ffmpeg -y -i a.mp4 -i b.mp4 -i c.mp4 -loop 1 -i overlay.png -f lavfi -i anullsrc=r=48000:cl=stereo -filter_complex "color=c=0x0B0B0F:s=1080x1920:r=30:d=12[bg];[0:v]fps=30,scale=1080:360:force_original_aspect_ratio=increase,crop=1080:360,setsar=1[a];[1:v]fps=30,scale=1080:360:force_original_aspect_ratio=increase,crop=1080:360,setsar=1[b];[2:v]fps=30,scale=1080:360:force_original_aspect_ratio=increase,crop=1080:360,setsar=1[c];[bg][a]overlay=0:540[t1];[t1][b]overlay=0:900[t2];[t2][c]overlay=0:1260[t3];[t3][3:v]overlay=0:0,scale=out_color_matrix=bt709:out_range=tv,format=yuv420p[out]" -map "[out]" -map 4:a -t 12 -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -pix_fmt yuv420p -color_range tv -colorspace bt709 -color_primaries bt709 -color_trc bt709 -c:a aac -b:a 128k -movflags +faststart showdown-reel.mp4

d=12

-t 12

What I learned the hard way

• A logo over footage vanishes on light frames. Every label (logo plus model name) sits on its own dark rounded tile in the top-left of its panel.
• Safe zone. The headline sits between y 360 and 520. No word or logo goes below y 1420 or into the right 120px, where the app draws its buttons and caption.
• Label with the full model name, version included. "Opus 5.5", not "Claude".
• End the caption on a question. Mine asked "Which one would you post?" and gave my own pick.

Step 4: Check and export

reel-export