newcharactersheet

NCS MCP · Claude · ChatGPT · Codex · Cursor

Your AI doesn't just generate. It directs.

Connect your AI to NCS and it works in a loop: it plans the shots and builds a workflow you can open, NCS shoots it within the budget you set, then your AI watches the takes, listens to the mix, reshoots what's weak and re-cuts, round after round, until the video is finished.

Connect your AISee all 36 tools
https://www.newcharactersheet.com/api/mcp

One URL · OAuth sign-in · no API keys

  1. you

    Make a 30-second K-pop MV for my song. Budget: 3,000 credits.

  2. ncs_measure_song

    128 BPM · 7 sections · every lyric timed

  3. ncs_get_playbook

    kpop-mv · open on the hook, cut on the beat

  4. ncs_compile_workflow

    14 shots · 3 members · song-locked cut

  5. ncs_save_workflow

    saved · link ready to open in NCS

  6. ncs_run_workflow

    quote 2,640 credits · inside your 3,000

  7. ncs_wait

    shot 6 landed · dailies flag face drift

  8. ncs_reshoot

    shot 6 · one new take · 180 credits

  9. ncs_inspect_cut

    unplanned flash at 0:14 · chorus 0.3 s late

  10. ncs_direct_cut

    round 3 · captions in the safe zone

  11. ncs_finish_cut

    approved · 0:30 · 9:16

Illustrative session. The tool names are real; the numbers are an example.
Tools
36
Workflow nodes
52
Model endpoints
170+
Genre playbooks
13
Credits to plan, measure and edit
0

Why NCS

Most creative MCPs stop at the first render. That's where NCS starts.

A generation MCP hands back a file and leaves the rest to you. NCS gives your AI the production around it: the plan, the pipeline, the review and the edit.

CapabilityGeneration MCPsNCS
Image and video from chatYes170+ model endpoints across image, video, voice, music and sound
A plan you can openPrompts in a chat logA saved node graph you can open, edit and run again
Multi-step productionsOne call per asset; you stitch the resultsStills → video → voice → lip-sync → music → final cut in one run
Format researchNot offeredMeasures a reference video's shots, pacing and hook, and a song's BPM, sections and lyrics
Sees and hears its own outputNot offeredFrames of every shot, cut and flash detection, a transcript checked against the plan, loudness
Edits the final cutNot offeredA real timeline: picture, dialogue, music, SFX, captions and text
Fixes a weak shotGenerate it again and re-edit by handReshoots that shot alone, then re-cuts around it
Spending controlYour credit balanceA daily limit set at sign-in, a quote first, a ceiling on every call
Models outside the catalogNot offeredAny Replicate model or Apify Actor, on your own key
Decision trailNot offeredEvery edit round logged with its review, scores and evidence

Compared with MCP servers that expose generation, model lists and library calls only.

The loop

Agent → workflow → agent. Until it's right.

A generation MCP stops at the first render. NCS closes the loop: your AI sends out a workflow, gets real takes, frames and sound back, and keeps directing until you approve the cut.

Your AIClaude · ChatGPT · Codex · Cursor

Plans every shot, then watches every take and directs the cut.

builds and runs the workflow
takes, frames and sound come back
NCS workflowA graph you can open and edit

Shoots the takes in parallel, inside your daily limit.

Reshoot, re-cut, repeat until you approve it.
  1. Round 1
  2. Round 2
  3. Round 3
  4. Approved cut

36 tools, one per step.

Every stage of a production is a tool your AI can call, from the first measurement to the approved cut. Tools marked with a dot spend credits; everything else is free.

  1. 01

    Research

    Reads the format's playbook and measures what it has to beat: a reference ad's cuts, pacing and hook, or a song's BPM, sections and every sung word.

    • ncs_get_playbook
    • ncs_measure_video
    • ncs_measure_song
  2. 02

    Plan

    Writes the cast, shots, dialogue and timing. For an open brief it drafts two or three treatments, scores them against your brief and grafts the best ideas into one.

    • ncs_list_nodes
    • ncs_list_models
    • ncs_compile_workflow
    • ncs_review_arena
  3. 03

    Build

    Checks and repairs the graph, saves it to your account and hands you the link. Revisions are version-checked, so it never overwrites your own edits, and it answers what you ask on the canvas, changing only the nodes you selected.

    • ncs_validate_workflow
    • ncs_save_workflow
    • ncs_patch_workflow
    • ncs_get_workflow
    • ncs_list_workflows
    • ncs_canvas_request
  4. 04

    Shoot

    Quotes the run, starts it when your credits and daily limit cover it, and waits for each take to land instead of polling.

    • ncs_run_workflow (spends credits)
    • ncs_wait
    • ncs_pick_take
    • ncs_list_runs
  5. 05

    Review

    Maps every asset the run made, looks at frames of each take and listens to the mix.

    • ncs_get_run_assets
    • ncs_get_run
    • ncs_inspect_cut
  6. 06

    Direct

    Edits the final cut on a real timeline, reshoots only what editing can't save, logs a review for every round and approves the finished cut.

    • ncs_get_cut_brief
    • ncs_direct_cut
    • ncs_reshoot (spends credits)
    • ncs_review_cut
    • ncs_review_notes
    • ncs_finish_cut
  7. 07

    Extend

    Adds any Replicate model or Apify Actor as a node, pinned to the exact version it inspected, billed to your own provider account.

    • ncs_discover_integration
    • ncs_prepare_integration
  8. 08

    More

    Other NCS tools your AI can call.

    • ncs_find_footage
    • ncs_find_graphics
    • ncs_find_posts
    • ncs_house_style
    • ncs_retake (spends credits)
    • ncs_extend_run
    • ncs_list_triggers
    • ncs_set_trigger

Eyes and ears

It watches the cut before you do.

Your AI doesn't guess whether a render worked. It pulls frames of every shot, decodes the file for every cut and flash, transcribes the sound against the words it placed, and checks each edit before it renders.

In Claude Code, a separate cut-critic agent reviews each round from the rendered file alone, so the director never grades its own work.

  • Text too small, or outside a vertical app's safe area
  • Text stacked on text
  • A cut that slices through a word
  • A voice stretched to fit its slot
  • Music at full volume under speech
  • Cuts, freezes, black frames and flashes the plan didn't call for
  • Words placed on the timeline but not heard in the render
  • Integrated loudness and true peak of the mix

Spending

It can't spend past the limit you set.

Planning, building, measuring, reviewing and editing are free. Only running a workflow or reshooting spends credits, and three separate limits stand in the way.

Connections made with an API key can quote, but never spend.

  1. A daily limit you choose when you connect

    From no spending up to 25,000 credits a day. The default is no spending.

  2. A quote before every spend

    Runs and reshoots return a quote first, and every call carries a ceiling. Your AI starts one on its own only when it fits your balance and what's left of today's limit; anything bigger comes back to you.

  3. No double charges

    Every spend carries a one-time key, so a retried call replays its first result instead of paying again.

Genre playbooks

It already knows the format.

Written from format research for real NCS productions: how the best videos of each format open, pace, put text on screen, mix and end. Your AI reads the matching one before it plans and before it cuts.

  • Property listingvertical, 30-40 s

    A real-estate tour narrated from a listing's photos and facts.

  • K-pop music videovertical 9:16 or 16:9, full song 2-3 min or 15-30 s excerpt

    A K-pop or idol-group song cut from song-locked lip-sync takes of each member plus B-roll, as the full MV (9:16 or 16:9) or a looping TikTok excerpt.

  • TikTok rap freestylevertical, 10-25 s loop or 61-90 s full take

    A rapper delivering bars to camera in a phone-real setting (selfie, car, street, booth) from song-locked takes, cut as a looping snippet or a full take.

  • Lyrics but literallyvertical, 8-16 s single gag or 30-60 s line by line

    A rap or meme song plays untouched while each lyric line's key word gets a literal visual gag (B-roll) on its word, the performer cut in between.

  • Narrated ad16:9 or vertical, 30-60 s

    A narrated commercial or parody/answer ad: film-style shots under a narrator, a punchline, then a product and tagline end card.

  • Explainervertical, 30-40 s

    An informative, news or history TikTok: narrated facts over illustrative shots, charts from real data, maps, diagrams, formulas and receipts (headlines, posts, quoted sentences).

  • AI selfie vlog, a day in the life of an absurd jobvertical, 30-45 s

    A character talks to a phone camera through a workday; an impossible job played completely mundane.

  • Talking-head rant, phone-real UGCvertical, 30-40 s

    One person talks to a phone camera while doing something (cooking while ranting about gas prices), as one continuous take or several jump-cut takes.

  • Hype montagevertical or 16:9, 10-30 s, music only

    A beat-driven montage to a music track with no voiceover (patriotic, sports, brand, event or fandom hype) built from many short shots, stills and cutouts.

  • Car or product hero editvertical, 12-20 s, phonk, masked composites

    One car (or any hero object: a sneaker, watch, bike, phone) in one place, cut to a hard phonk or drift track with floating cutouts, neon reveals, light traces and transitions through the object's own parts.

  • One character, many worldsdance tour: vertical, 10-15 s, one track

    One dancer or character (a recast, a virtual performer, motion-control takes) in several places or outfits, cut to one track: location-change, teleport, stage-mix and clone/lineup edits.

  • Performance music videovertical, full song, lip-sync takes + B-roll

    A full-length song cut from lip-sync performance takes and B-roll (pop, rap, K-pop, party tracks) that has to play like a released video, not a lyric slideshow.

  • Recast a pageTikTok / Instagram, one recast per video

    Recreate the videos of TikTok or Instagram pages, hashtags or sounds with the user's character: "recast @x with my character", "top 10 outliers of these accounts", "do their whole page".

Claude Code plugin

Five commands from idea to approved cut.

The plugin connects NCS, adds the workflow skill and the cut-critic agent, and updates with every NCS release.

claude plugin install ncs --marketplace https://www.newcharactersheet.com/plugins/marketplace.json
/ncs:produce
The whole loop: plans the workflow, runs it inside your daily limit, reviews the takes and directs the cut.
/ncs:make
Plans any NCS workflow with you, then validates and saves it and gives you its link.
/ncs:music-video
Measures your song, then plans performances and B-roll on its sections.
/ncs:listing
Builds a property tour video from a Zillow or other listing link.
/ncs:direct
Directs a finished run's final cut, one checked round at a time.
/ncs:canvas
Listens for what you ask on the canvas (select nodes, choose Ask agent) and makes each change to just those nodes.

Connect

Connect in under a minute.

Add this server to your AI app, then sign in to your NCS account. New accounts start with 300 free credits.

https://www.newcharactersheet.com/api/mcp
Streamable HTTP · OAuth

  1. Install the NCS plugin. It connects NCS and adds the workflow skill, the cut-critic agent and five commands.

    claude plugin install ncs --marketplace https://www.newcharactersheet.com/plugins/marketplace.json

  2. Open Claude Code, run /mcp, select plugin:ncs:ncs and sign in. Choose a daily spending limit if you want Claude to run workflows.

  3. Run /ncs:produce with your idea, or just ask for NCS work in plain words.

Connect without the plugin, or turn on auto-update
claude mcp add --transport http --scope user ncs https://www.newcharactersheet.com/api/mcp

For automatic plugin updates, run /plugin, open Marketplaces, select newcharactersheet and choose Enable auto-update.

Claude Code plugin guide
Give any AI the playbook.

The connection includes the basics. The NCS workflow skill adds planning examples, graph checks and revisions. The Claude Code plugin already includes it.

Download workflow skill
Install the skill in your AI app

Codex: Extract the ncs-workflows folder into ~/.agents/skills/ and invoke $ncs-workflows.

Claude Code: Without the plugin, extract it into ~/.claude/skills/ and invoke /ncs-workflows.

Claude desktop/web: Enable Code execution and file creation. In Customize → Skills, choose + → Create skill → Upload a skill, upload the ZIP, and enable it.

Keep the NCS connection enabled too: the skill teaches the workflow, and the connector provides the tools.

Just ask

Start with a sentence.

Saving a workflow never starts generation. Review it in NCS, or let your AI run it within your daily limit.

  • Research first
    Measure this ad, then build an NCS workflow for my product that beats its hook and pacing: <video URL>
  • Music video
    Measure my song and plan a vertical K-pop music video on its sections, three members plus B-roll: <song URL>
  • Listing tour
    Make a 35-second narrated property tour from this listing, using what each photo actually shows: <listing URL>
  • Run it
    Run my last NCS workflow with a ceiling of 2,000 credits and reshoot any shot whose face drifts.
  • Direct
    Direct the final cut of my latest run. Keep the voiceover above the music and the captions inside the TikTok safe zone.
  • Compare
    Draft three treatments for a 15-second sneaker ad, compare them against my brief in an Arena and save the winner.

FAQ

Questions.

What is the NCS MCP?

An MCP server that connects your AI app to New Character Sheet. Your AI uses NCS tools to research, plan, build, run, review and edit media workflows, all from your own conversation.

Which AI apps work with it?

Claude (desktop, web and Claude Code), ChatGPT, Codex, Cursor and any other app that supports Streamable HTTP MCP servers with OAuth sign-in.

Do I need an API key?

No. Paste one URL and sign in to your NCS account. Only Replicate models or Apify Actors outside the NCS catalog need that provider's key, which you add in NCS Settings, never in a prompt.

What does it cost?

Planning, building, validating, saving, measuring, reviewing and editing a cut are free. Generating media uses your NCS credits at the same prices as the editor's Run button, listed for every model on the NCS pricing page, and only within the limits you set.

Can my AI spend credits without asking?

Only if you allowed spending when you connected, and only up to the daily limit you chose (from none up to 25,000 credits a day; the default is none). Every run or reshoot starts with a quote: your AI starts it on its own when it fits your balance and what's left of today's limit, and asks you about anything bigger. Tell it to check with you first and it will.

Does saving a workflow start generating?

No. Saving never generates. Media is made only when a workflow runs: in NCS, or from your conversation within the daily limit you chose.

Where does the work go?

Workflows save to your NCS account as private graphs, and your AI gives you the link. Runs, takes and every edit round stay attached to the workflow, so you or a later session can pick up where it left off.

Can I change what my AI built?

Yes. It is a normal NCS workflow. Edit nodes on the canvas, or ask your AI to revise it. Its revisions are checked against the version it read, so it never overwrites your changes.

Which models can it use?

Every model in NCS, including Veo, Seedance, Kling, MiniMax, GPT Image, Nano Banana, FLUX, ElevenLabs and Lyria, plus any Replicate model or Apify Actor you have a key for.

What does the Claude Code plugin add?

Six commands (/ncs:produce, /ncs:make, /ncs:music-video, /ncs:listing, /ncs:direct and /ncs:canvas), the NCS workflow skill, and a cut-critic agent that reviews each directed round independently from the rendered file alone.

Does it work with team or organization accounts?

Yes. In Claude and ChatGPT organization accounts, an owner may need to add the connector first. Each person then signs in to their own NCS account.

Can I still use the built-in NCS chat?

Yes. The MCP is another way in. Workflows your AI builds open in the same editor, next to the built-in chat.

Bring your AI. NCS brings the studio.

One URL, one sign-in, and your AI can take an idea all the way to an approved cut.

Connect your AIOpen workflows
NCS MCP for Claude, ChatGPT, Codex and Cursor · New Character Sheet