Create AI screencast videos with Claude, VEED, OpenAI and automated slides

Description

Create AI screencast videos with VEED and automated slides

Overview

This n8n workflow automatically generates presentation-style "screen recording" videos with AI-generated slides and a talking head avatar overlay. You provide a topic and intention, and the workflow handles everything: scriptwriting, slide generation, avatar creation, voiceover, and video composition.

Output: Horizontal (16:9) AI-generated videos with animated slides as the main content and a lip-synced avatar in picture-in-picture, ready for YouTube, LinkedIn, or professional presentations.

What It Does

Topic + Intention → Claude writes script → Parallel processing:
├── OpenAI generates avatar → ElevenLabs voiceover → VEED lip-sync
└── FAL Flux Pro generates slides
→ Creatomate composites everything → Saved to Google Drive + logged to Sheets

Pipeline Breakdown

| Step | Tool | What Happens |
|------|------|--------------|
| 1. Script Generation | Claude Sonnet 4 | Creates hook, script (25-40 sec), slide prompts, caption, and avatar description |
| 2. Avatar Generation | OpenAI gpt-image-1 | Generates photorealistic portrait image (1024×1536) |
| 3. Slide Generation | FAL Flux Pro | Creates 5-7 professional slides (1920×1080) with text overlays |
| 4. Voiceover | ElevenLabs | Converts script to natural speech (multiple voice options) |
| 5. Talking Head | VEED Fabric 1.0 | Lip-syncs avatar to audio, creates 9:16 talking head video |
| 6. Video Composition | Creatomate | Combines slides + avatar in 16:9 PiP layout |
| 7. Storage | Google Drive | Uploads final MP4 |
| 8. Logging | Google Sheets | Records all metadata (script, caption, URLs, timestamps) |

Required Connections

API Keys (entered in Configuration node)

| Service | Key Type | Where to Get |
|---------|----------|--------------|
| Anthropic | API Key | https://console.anthropic.com/settings/keys |
| OpenAI | API Key | https://platform.openai.com/api-keys |
| ElevenLabs | API Key | https://elevenlabs.io/app/settings/api-keys |
| FAL.ai | API Key | https://fal.ai/dashboard/keys |
| Creatomate | API Key | https://creatomate.com/dashboard/settings |

> ⚠️ OpenAI Note: gpt-image-1 requires organization verification. Go to https://platform.openai.com/settings/organization/general to verify.

n8n Credentials (connect in n8n)

| Node | Credential Type | Purpose |
|------|-----------------|---------|
| 🎬 Generate Talking Head (VEED) | FAL.ai API | VEED video rendering |
| 📤 Upload to Drive | Google Drive OAuth2 | Store final videos |
| 📝 Log to Sheets | Google Sheets OAuth2 | Track all generated content |

Configuration Options

Edit the ⚙️ Workflow Configuration node to customize:

{
// 📝 CONTENT SETTINGS
topic: "How AI is transforming content creation",
intention: "informative", // informative, lead_generation, disruption
brand_name: "YOUR_BRAND_NAME",
target_audience: "sales teams and marketers",
trending_hashtags: "#AIvideo #ContentCreation #VideoMarketing",

// 🎨 SLIDE STYLE
slide_style: "vibrant_colorful", // See slide styles below

// 🎥 VIDEO SETTINGS
video_resolution: "720p", // VEED only supports 720p
seconds_per_slide: 6, // How long each slide shows

// 🖼️ BACKGROUND (Optional)
background: "", // URL, gradient array, or empty

// 🔑 API KEYS (Required)
anthropic_api_key: "YOUR_ANTHROPIC_API_KEY",
openai_api_key: "YOUR_OPENAI_API_KEY",
elevenlabs_api_key: "YOUR_ELEVENLABS_API_KEY",
creatomate_api_key: "YOUR_CREATOMATE_API_KEY",
fal_api_key: "YOUR_FAL_API_KEY",

// 🎤 VOICE SELECTION
voice_selection: "susie", // cristina, enrique, susie, jeff, custom

// 🎨 AVATAR OPTIONS (Optional)
custom_avatar_description: "", // Leave empty for AI-generated
custom_avatar_image_url: "", // Direct URL to use existing image

// 📝 CUSTOM SCRIPT (Optional)
custom_script: "" // Leave empty for AI-generated
}

Slide Style Options

| Style | Description | Best For |
|-------|-------------|----------|
| dark_professional | Dark gradients, white text, sleek look | Tech, SaaS, premium brands |
| light_modern | Light backgrounds, dark text, clean | Corporate, educational |
| vibrant_colorful | Bold colors, energetic, eye-catching | Social media, startups |
| minimalist | Lots of whitespace, simple, elegant | Luxury, professional services |
| tech_corporate | Blue tones, geometric shapes | Enterprise, B2B |

Background Options

| Type | Example | Description |
|------|---------|-------------|
| None | "" | Full bleed layout, slides take 78% width |
| URL | "https://example.com/bg.jpg" | Image background with margins |
| Gradient | ["#ff6b6b", "#feca57", "#48dbfb"] | Gradient background with margins |

Voice Options

| Voice | Language | Description |
|-------|----------|-------------|
| cristina | Spanish | Female voice |
| enrique | Spanish | Male voice |
| susie | English | Female voice (default) |
| jeff | English | Male voice |
| custom | Any | Use your ElevenLabs voice clone ID |

Intention Types

| Intention | Content Style | Best For |
|-----------|---------------|----------|
| informative | Educational, value-driven, builds trust | Thought leadership, tutorials |
| lead_generation | Creates curiosity, soft CTA | Product awareness, funnels |
| disruption | Bold, provocative, scroll-stopping | Viral potential, brand awareness |

Custom Avatar & Script Options

Custom Avatar Description

Leave custom_avatar_description empty to let Claude decide, or provide your own:

custom_avatar_description: "female marketing influencer, cool, working in tech"

Examples:
"a woman in her 20s with gym clothes"
"a bearded man in his 30s wearing a hoodie"
"a professional woman with glasses in business casual"

Custom Avatar Image URL

Skip avatar generation entirely by providing a direct URL:

custom_avatar_image_url: "https://example.com/my-avatar.png"

> Image should be portrait orientation, high quality, with the subject looking at camera.

Custom Script

Leave custom_script empty to let Claude write it, or provide your own:

custom_script: "This is my custom script. AI is changing how we create content..."

Guidelines for custom scripts:
Keep it 25-40 seconds when read aloud (60-100 words)
Avoid special characters for TTS compatibility
Write naturally, as if speaking

Behavior Matrix

| custom_avatar_description | custom_avatar_image_url | custom_script | What Claude Generates |
|---------------------------|-------------------------|---------------|----------------------|
| Empty | Empty | Empty | Avatar + Script + Slides + Caption |
| Provided | Empty | Empty | Script + Slides + Caption |
| Empty | Provided | Empty | Script + Slides + Caption |
| Empty | Empty | Provided | Avatar + Slides + Caption |
| Provided | Provided | Provided | Slides + Caption only |

Video Layout

The final video uses a picture-in-picture (PiP) layout:

Without Background (Full Bleed)
┌─────────────────────────────────┬──────┐
│ │ │
│ │ │
│ SLIDES (78%) │AVATAR│
│ │(22%) │
│ │ │
│ │ │
└─────────────────────────────────┴──────┘

With Background (Margins + Rounded Corners)
┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ BG ┌───────────────────────────┐ ┌────┐ │
│ │ │ │ │ │
│ │ SLIDES (74%) │ │AVA │ │
│ │ │ │TAR │ │
│ │ │ │20% │ │
│ └───────────────────────────┘ └────┘ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘

Output

Per Video Generated

| Asset | Format | Location |
|-------|--------|----------|
| Final Video | MP4 (1920×1080, 60fps) | Google Drive folder |
| Avatar Image | PNG (1024×1536) | tmpfiles.org (temporary) |
| Slide Images | PNG (1920×1080) | FAL CDN (temporary) |
| Voiceover | MP3 | tmpfiles.org (temporary) |
| Metadata | Row entry | Google Sheets |

Google Sheets Columns

| Column | Description |
|--------|-------------|
| topic | Video topic |
| intention | Content intention used |
| brand_name | Brand mentioned |
| slide_style | Visual style used |
| content_theme | 2-3 word theme summary |
| script | Full voiceover script |
| caption | Ready-to-post caption with hashtags |
| num_slides | Number of slides generated |
| video_url | Google Drive link to final video |
| avatar_video_url | VEED talking head video URL |
| audio_url | Temporary audio URL |
| status | done/error |
| created_at | Timestamp |

Estimated Costs Per Video

| Service | Usage | Approximate Cost |
|---------|-------|------------------|
| Claude Sonnet 4 | 2K tokens | $0.01 |
| OpenAI gpt-image-1 | 1 image (1024×1536) | ~$0.04-0.08 |
| FAL Flux Pro | 5-7 images (1920×1080) | ~$0.10-0.15 |
| ElevenLabs | 100 words | $0.01-0.02 |
| VEED/FAL.ai | 1 video render | ~$0.10-0.20 |
| Creatomate | 1 video composition | ~$0.10-0.20 |
| Total | | ~$0.35-0.65 per video |

> Costs vary based on script length and current API pricing.

Setup Checklist

Step 1: Import Workflow
[ ] Import create-ai-screencast-videos-with-veed-and-automated-slides.json into n8n

Step 2: Configure API Keys
[ ] Open the ⚙️ Workflow Configuration node
[ ] Replace all YOUR_*_API_KEY placeholders with your actual API keys
[ ] Verify your OpenAI organization at https://platform.openai.com/settings/organization/general

Step 3: Connect n8n Credentials
[ ] Click on 🎬 Generate Talking Head (VEED) node → Add FAL.ai credential
[ ] Click on 📤 Upload to Drive node → Add Google Drive OAuth2 credential
[ ] Click on 📝 Log to Sheets node → Add Google Sheets OAuth2 credential

Step 4: Configure Storage
[ ] Update the 📤 Upload to Drive node with your Google Drive folder URL
[ ] Update the 📝 Log to Sheets node with your Google Sheets URL
[ ] Create column headers in your Google Sheet (see Output section)

Step 5: Customize Content
[ ] Update topic, brand_name, target_audience, and trending_hashtags
[ ] Choose your preferred slide_style and voice_selection
[ ] Optionally configure background, custom_avatar_description, and/or custom_script

Step 6: Test
[ ] Execute the workflow
[ ] Check Google Drive for the output video
[ ] Verify metadata was logged to Google Sheets

MCP Integration (Optional)

This workflow can be exposed to Claude Desktop via n8n's Model Context Protocol (MCP) integration.

To enable MCP:

Add a Webhook Trigger node to the workflow (in addition to the Manual Trigger)
Connect it to the ⚙️ Workflow Configuration node
Go to Settings → Instance-level MCP → Enable the workflow
Configure Claude Desktop with your n8n MCP server URL

Claude Desktop Configuration (Windows):

{
"mcpServers": {
"n8n-mcp": {
"command": "supergateway",
"args": [
"--streamableHttp",
"https://YOUR_N8N_INSTANCE.app.n8n.cloud/mcp-server/http",
"--header",
"authorization:Bearer YOUR_MCP_ACCESS_TOKEN"
]
}
}
}

> Note: Install supergateway globally first: npm install -g supergateway

Limitations & Notes

Technical Limitations

tmpfiles.org**: Temporary file URLs expire after ~1 hour. Final videos are safe in Google Drive.
VEED processing**: Takes 1-3 minutes for the talking head.
Creatomate processing**: Takes 30-60 seconds for composition.
Total workflow time**: ~3-5 minutes per video.

Content Considerations

Scripts are optimized for 25-40 seconds (TTS-friendly)
Avatar images are AI-generated (not real people)
Slides are dynamically generated based on script length
Slide count: 5-7 slides depending on script duration

Best Practices

Start simple: Test with default settings before customizing
Review scripts: Claude generates good content but review before posting
Monitor costs: Check API usage dashboards weekly
Use backgrounds: Adding a background image creates a more polished look
Match voice to content: Use Spanish voices for Spanish content

Troubleshooting

| Issue | Solution |
|-------|----------|
| "Organization must be verified" | Verify at platform.openai.com/settings/organization/general |
| VEED authentication error | Re-add FAL.ai credential to VEED node |
| Google Drive "no binary field" | Ensure Download Video outputs to binary field |
| JSON parse error from Claude | Workflow has fallback content; check Claude node output |
| Slides not matching script | Increase seconds_per_slide for fewer slides |
| Avatar cut off in PiP | Avatar is designed for right-side placement |
| MCP "Server disconnected" | Install supergateway globally: npm install -g supergateway |
| Render timeout | Increase wait time in "⏳ Wait for Render" node |

Version History

| Version | Date | Changes |
|---------|------|---------|
| 2.1 | Jan 2026 | Renamed workflow, improved documentation with section sticky notes, consolidated setup information |
| 2.0 | Jan 2026 | Added dynamic slide count, background options, FAL Flux Pro for slides, improved PiP layout |
| 1.0 | Jan 2026 | Initial release with fixed slide count, basic composition |

Credits

Built with:
n8n** - Workflow automation
Anthropic Claude** - Script & slide prompt generation
OpenAI** - Avatar image generation
FAL.ai** - Slide image generation (Flux Pro)
ElevenLabs** - Voice synthesis
VEED Fabric** - AI lip-sync video rendering
Creatomate** - Video composition
Google Workspace** - Storage & logging