Director's Lookbook

Search the 683 cards by feeling, mood, era, technique or style name. Use it to identify a named look ("Kodak Gold" finds Gold 200), to find a replacement for one card in a hand, or to browse one suit. Examples: {"query": "film noir"}, {"query": "90s camcorder"}, {"query": "cozy rainy", "suit": "color"}, {"query": "bossa nova", "suit": "score", "top": 3}. Returns ranked cards (id, suit, kind, name, what, example image). When nothing matches directly it says so and returns related styles or did-you-mean suggestions. For a full matched set of cards for a project use deal_hand instead.

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "query": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 300,
      "description": "A feeling, mood, era, technique or style name, e.g. \"dreamy 70s summer\", \"anamorphic\", \"risograph\", \"lo-fi beats\". Words after \"no\"/\"not\" count against a card.",
      "minLength": 1
    },
    "suit": {
      "type": "string",
      "enum": [
        "type",
        "camera",
        "film",
        "color",
        "score",
        "web"
      ],
      "description": "Optional filter. type = typefaces, camera = shots, moves, lenses and lighting, film = looks and mediums, color = palettes and grades, score = music styles, web = site motion and layout."
    },
    "top": {
      "type": "integer",
      "minimum": 1,
      "maximum": 50,
      "default": 8,
      "description": "How many results (1 to 50, default 8)."
    }
  },
  "required": [
    "query"
  ],
  "additionalProperties": false
}

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "results": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "object",
        "properties": {
          "id": {
            "type": "string",
            "description": "card id"
          },
          "suit": {
            "type": "string",
            "description": "type, camera, film, color, score or web"
          },
          "kind": {
            "type": "string",
            "description": "the kind within the suit, e.g. stock, light, move"
          },
          "name": {
            "type": "string",
            "description": "the style name"
          },
          "score": {
            "type": "integer"
          },
          "feels": {
            "type": "array",
            "items": {
              "type": "string"
            }
          },
          "what": {
            "type": "string",
            "description": "one line: what the style is"
          },
          "image": {
            "type": "string",
            "description": "example image URL"
          }
        }
      }
    },
    "count": {
      "type": "integer"
    },
    "matched": {
      "type": "integer"
    },
    "note": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "set when nothing matched directly"
    },
    "suggestions": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "object"
      },
      "description": "did-you-mean cards when nothing matched"
    },
    "error": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "Set instead of the fields above when the input was wrong."
    },
    "site": {
      "type": "string"
    }
  }
}

Start here for a project: deal one matched card per slot for a creative job from a plain-language feeling. photo = one image (film, camera, color, light); still = image with title type; cover = album or poster art (film, color, type); video or reel = clip or short (film, camera, color, type, score, light); lyric = lyric video (same as reel); song = music only (score); site = website (film, color, type, web); game = key art, store capsule, sprites, UI and loop music (film, color, type, score); drama = a short drama ad where the ad is the show (film, camera, color, type, score, light, and three shots: hook, twist, payoff); all = every suit. Example: {"feeling": "lonely astronaut on a desert planet at dusk", "job": "video", "shots": 3}. Same seed + same inputs = same hand; a new seed re-deals; hold keeps chosen cards ({"film": "film-gold-200"}). For job drama the hand also carries three shots (hook close-up, twist reveal, payoff wide or push) and the look is dealt from the feeling, with the subject read as the product. Returns the hand (slot to card id and name), why each card was picked, clashes, and a site_url showing the hand with pictures. Next step: brief with the hand ids.

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "feeling": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 300,
      "description": "The feeling or scene in plain words, e.g. \"rainy cafe at night, melancholy\". Words after \"no\"/\"not\" count against a card. For drama, the story's feeling or situation, e.g. \"a quiet breakup at a dinner table\"."
    },
    "job": {
      "type": "string",
      "enum": [
        "photo",
        "still",
        "cover",
        "video",
        "reel",
        "lyric",
        "song",
        "site",
        "game",
        "drama",
        "all"
      ],
      "default": "photo",
      "description": "What the hand is for (default photo); see the job list above."
    },
    "seed": {
      "type": "integer",
      "minimum": 0,
      "maximum": 9007199254740991,
      "description": "Optional integer for a repeatable deal. Omit for a fresh random deal."
    },
    "hold": {
      "type": "object",
      "propertyNames": {
        "enum": [
          "type",
          "camera",
          "film",
          "color",
          "score",
          "web",
          "light"
        ]
      },
      "additionalProperties": {
        "type": "string",
        "maxLength": 80
      },
      "maxProperties": 7,
      "description": "Optional cards to keep, as {slot: card id}, e.g. {\"film\": \"film-gold-200\", \"score\": \"score-bossa-nova\"}. Slots: type, camera, film, color, score, web, light."
    },
    "subject": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 300,
      "description": "Optional subject, e.g. \"a jazz singer\". It is folded into the feeling so scene and person words count. For drama, the product being advertised (used for the setting check, not for picking the look)."
    },
    "aspect": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 12,
      "pattern": "^\\d+(\\.\\d+)?:\\d+(\\.\\d+)?$",
      "description": "Optional frame for the clash check, e.g. \"2.39:1\" for a film or \"9:16\" for a reel (default 9:16 for reel and lyric). Pass the same aspect to brief."
    },
    "shots": {
      "type": "integer",
      "minimum": 2,
      "maximum": 6,
      "description": "Optional, for video, reel, lyric or all: also pick a shot list of this many camera cards (the dealt camera first, then matched shots and moves). Pass them all to brief to get one SHOT block each. A drama hand always has 3 (hook, twist, payoff)."
    },
    "moods": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string",
        "enum": [
          "cozy",
          "eerie",
          "nostalgic",
          "epic",
          "playful",
          "tense",
          "dreamy",
          "gritty",
          "elegant",
          "kinetic",
          "melancholy",
          "hopeful",
          "futuristic",
          "handmade",
          "serene",
          "bold"
        ]
      },
      "maxItems": 12,
      "description": "Optional mood chips that weigh more than words. One or more of: cozy, eerie, nostalgic, epic, playful, tense, dreamy, gritty, elegant, kinetic, melancholy, hopeful, futuristic, handmade, serene, bold."
    }
  },
  "additionalProperties": false
}

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "hand": {
      "type": "object",
      "additionalProperties": {
        "type": "string"
      },
      "description": "slot to card id"
    },
    "names": {
      "type": "object",
      "additionalProperties": {
        "type": "string"
      },
      "description": "slot to card name"
    },
    "images": {
      "type": "object",
      "additionalProperties": {
        "type": "string"
      },
      "description": "slot to example image URL"
    },
    "note": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "why each card was picked"
    },
    "moods_read": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string"
      }
    },
    "neg_moods_read": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string"
      }
    },
    "lint": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string"
      }
    },
    "shots": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string"
      },
      "description": "shot list camera ids when shots was asked"
    },
    "weak": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string"
      },
      "description": "slots filled on little evidence"
    },
    "alternatives": {
      "type": "object",
      "additionalProperties": {
        "type": "array",
        "items": {
          "type": "string"
        }
      },
      "description": "slot to other card ids worth a look"
    },
    "swapped": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string"
      },
      "description": "cards swapped to clear a clash"
    },
    "warnings": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string"
      },
      "description": "holds or options that could not be honoured"
    },
    "job_used": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "the job the hand was dealt for"
    },
    "site_url": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "opens the hand on directorslookbook.app"
    },
    "error": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "Set instead of the fields above when the input was wrong."
    },
    "site": {
      "type": "string"
    }
  }
}

Turn card ids into paste-ready prompt blocks, worded verbatim from the cards: IMAGE PROMPT, VIDEO PROMPT, PALETTE (hexes), TYPE, SUNO STYLE and SUNO EXCLUDE, SITE PROMPT, or for job game: KEY ART, CAPSULE, SPRITE/TILESET, UI MOCKUP, MUSIC; for job drama: SHOT blocks for the hook, twist and payoff plus BEATS (timing, shot, what happens, a placeholder line with its length rule), END CARD (title, promise, call to action, set in the type card), CAPTION RULES (safe band y 210 to 1345 on 1080x1920, nothing in the bottom 30%) and DON'T. Pass the ids from deal_hand (or find_styles), at most one card per suit, except camera: several camera cards make a shot list (one SHOT block each). A camera card of kind light lights every shot; a film card of kind fx adds a post effect. tool respells the blocks: midjourney (--ar, --style raw, --sref with the film card's example image), runway or kling (camera line first, 5 or 10 s clips), suno (music blocks only). seconds splits a running time over the shots, beats says what happens in each, vocals picks lyrics or instrumental. A lens card in a shot list shapes every shot. Example: {"hand_ids": ["film-gold-200", "camera-closeup", "color-golden-hour"], "job": "photo", "subject": "an older woman teaching a young man to dance", "tool": "midjourney"}. Drama example: {"hand_ids": ["type-futura", "film-vision3-500t", "color-blue-hour", "camera-closeup", "camera-pull", "camera-push"], "job": "drama", "subject": "a meal-kit app", "feeling": "a quiet breakup at a dinner table", "title": "Dinner for Two", "seconds": 30}. Also returns the don't-list, tone words, deliverables, lint warnings and a site_url.

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "hand_ids": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string",
        "maxLength": 80
      },
      "minItems": 1,
      "maxItems": 12,
      "description": "Card ids from deal_hand or find_styles, e.g. [\"film-gold-200\", \"camera-closeup\", \"color-golden-hour\"]. One per suit, except several camera cards = a shot list."
    },
    "job": {
      "type": "string",
      "enum": [
        "photo",
        "still",
        "cover",
        "video",
        "reel",
        "lyric",
        "song",
        "site",
        "game",
        "drama",
        "all"
      ],
      "default": "reel",
      "description": "What the brief is for (default reel); use the job you dealt for. photo = a still image, video = reel, song = Suno blocks only, site = SITE PROMPT, game = key art set, drama = short drama ad (beats, end card, caption rules)."
    },
    "subject": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 300,
      "description": "Who or what is in the shot, e.g. \"a lighthouse keeper on a rocky coast\". Without it the prompts say [your subject]. For drama, the product being advertised."
    },
    "title": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 300,
      "description": "Optional title lettering for the image or key art (set in the type card). For drama, the show or brand name on the end card."
    },
    "feeling": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 300,
      "description": "Drama only: the story's feeling or situation, e.g. \"a quiet breakup at a dinner table\". The hook opens on it and every shot carries it."
    },
    "aspect": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 12,
      "pattern": "^\\d+(\\.\\d+)?:\\d+(\\.\\d+)?$",
      "description": "Optional aspect ratio, e.g. \"16:9\", \"9:16\", \"4:5\", \"1:1\", \"2.39:1\". Default 9:16 for reel and lyric, 16:9 for game."
    },
    "tool": {
      "type": "string",
      "enum": [
        "any",
        "midjourney",
        "runway",
        "kling",
        "suno"
      ],
      "default": "any",
      "description": "Target tool: any (plain prose), midjourney, runway or kling (camera line first, shots capped at 10 s), suno (music blocks only)."
    },
    "beats": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string",
        "maxLength": 200
      },
      "maxItems": 12,
      "description": "Optional: what happens in each shot, in order, e.g. [\"they sit in silence\", \"she slides a photo across the table\"]. Beat n goes into SHOT n (or the one VIDEO PROMPT)."
    },
    "vocals": {
      "type": "string",
      "enum": [
        "lyrics",
        "instrumental"
      ],
      "description": "Optional for music: \"lyrics\" lifts vocal bans out of SUNO EXCLUDE so a sung track can exist; \"instrumental\" adds them."
    },
    "seconds": {
      "type": "integer",
      "minimum": 1,
      "maximum": 600,
      "description": "Optional running time in seconds, e.g. 15 for a reel or 60 for a short: split across the SHOT blocks (or the one VIDEO PROMPT) as \"Duration: N s.\" Drama: 15 to 60, default 30, timed hook, twist, payoff."
    }
  },
  "required": [
    "hand_ids"
  ],
  "additionalProperties": false
}

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "job": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "the job as asked"
    },
    "aspect": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "the frame the blocks use"
    },
    "tool": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "the tool the blocks are spelled for"
    },
    "seconds": {
      "type": "integer",
      "description": "drama: the running time the beats are timed to"
    },
    "beat_plan": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "object",
        "properties": {
          "beat": {
            "type": "string",
            "description": "HOOK, TWIST or PAYOFF"
          },
          "start": {
            "type": "integer"
          },
          "end": {
            "type": "integer"
          },
          "shot": {
            "type": "string",
            "description": "camera card id"
          },
          "block": {
            "type": "string",
            "description": "the SHOT block for this beat"
          }
        }
      },
      "description": "drama: each beat with its seconds and shot"
    },
    "end_card_from": {
      "type": "integer",
      "description": "drama: the second the end card starts"
    },
    "shot_order": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string"
      },
      "description": "the SHOT block names in order"
    },
    "hand": {
      "type": "object"
    },
    "blocks": {
      "type": "object",
      "additionalProperties": {
        "type": "string"
      },
      "description": "block name to paste-ready text"
    },
    "handover": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string"
      }
    },
    "lint": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string"
      }
    },
    "ignored": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "suits the job does not use"
    },
    "job_note": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "a note for this job"
    },
    "substitute": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "set when a stand-in card covers a genre the library lacks"
    },
    "job_internal": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "the deck term when it differs from the job asked (video = reel, photo = still)"
    },
    "site_url": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "opens the hand on directorslookbook.app"
    },
    "error": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "Set instead of the fields above when the input was wrong."
    },
    "site": {
      "type": "string"
    }
  }
}

One card in full: what it is, the prompt wording ("ask"), what not to do, feels, moods, pairs, swatch hexes or font details, plus image, clip and music_sample URLs when it has them. Example: {"id": "film-gold-200"}. A wrong id returns did-you-mean suggestions.

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "id": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 80,
      "description": "Card id from find_styles or deal_hand, e.g. \"film-gold-200\", \"camera-dutch\", \"score-bossa-nova\"."
    }
  },
  "required": [
    "id"
  ],
  "additionalProperties": false
}

{
  "type": "object",
  "description": "The public card fields (id, suit, kind, name, what, ask, not, feels, moods, pairs, colors or font or bpm, image, clip, music_sample) plus site_url."
}

Card counts per suit and per kind (for example camera: shot, move, lens, light). Use it to see what the lookbook covers before searching.

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {},
  "additionalProperties": false
}

{
  "type": "object",
  "additionalProperties": true,
  "description": "suit to {count, kinds}"
}

Check card ids you combined yourself for clashes before briefing: black-and-white film with a colour grade, two grades stacked, daylight with a night palette, an anamorphic lens in a vertical frame, an interior light with an outdoor subject. Example: {"hand_ids": ["film-pushed-bw-1600", "color-teal-orange"], "aspect": "9:16"}. ok: true means clean. deal_hand and brief already lint their own output.

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "hand_ids": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string",
        "maxLength": 80
      },
      "minItems": 1,
      "maxItems": 12,
      "description": "Card ids to check."
    },
    "aspect": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 12,
      "pattern": "^\\d+(\\.\\d+)?:\\d+(\\.\\d+)?$",
      "description": "Optional frame, e.g. \"9:16\"."
    },
    "subject": {
      "type": "string",
      "maxLength": 300,
      "description": "Optional subject; enables the light-vs-setting check."
    }
  },
  "required": [
    "hand_ids"
  ],
  "additionalProperties": false
}

{
  "type": "object",
  "properties": {
    "problems": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "string"
      }
    },
    "ok": {
      "type": "boolean"
    },
    "error": {
      "type": "string",
      "description": "Set instead of the fields above when the input was wrong."
    },
    "site": {
      "type": "string"
    }
  }
}