An agentic story operating system
Structure, screenplay material, Whole Film, Graphic Novel, Storyboard, Production Shots, Animatic, Pitch and Reports use one connected project instead of parallel creative files.
About · Origins · Product Principles
Shape the story. See the world. Direct what comes next.
PlotPickle is a local-first AI-native agentic story operating system built around Bryan Harris's 24 Blocks method. Writers shape concepts, words, images and cinematic possibilities in one portable PPF project, then decide what becomes reusable storyworld canon.
Make movie logic visible
Hooks, turning points, causality, arcs, character decisions and visual continuity stay visible while the project moves from script structure into connected previsualization.
A clearer green-light conversation
The goal is persuasive previsualization evidence that helps a creative team discuss whether the story, visual direction and production plan are ready for the next investment.
Not a finishing system
PlotPickle does not aim to replace Final Draft, a professional production crew, editorial, colour, sound finishing or a studio delivery pipeline.
Specific, testable descriptions
The legacy vision included many experiments. These are the commitments that describe PlotPickle now.
- PlotPickle is a downloadable AI-native agentic story operating system for shaping, seeing, testing and presenting a movie before full production.
- PPF is the portable creative source of truth connecting story logic, canon, characters, screenplay material, visuals, shots, sound, approvals and provenance.
- The interactive Storyworld Map, Graphic Novel, Storyboard, Production Shots, Animatic, Pitch and Reports are available now as one connected visual core.
- The 24 Blocks are human-readable first and AI-compatible, not AI-dependent.
- Project owners can use connected AI, local models, manual prompts, future external renderers or no AI at all.
- User-created stories remain under the rights their creators hold unless they deliberately share or license them.
- Collaboration is proposal-based and owner-controlled rather than open public editing.
- Afterglow: Reflections of Sentience is the persistent reference project for verifying the complete visual storyworld workflow.
- PlotPickle does not aim to replace Final Draft or a studio production and finishing pipeline.
From Afterglow to one canonical project
The earlier work was consolidated rather than erased. Historical names remain aliases, not current product architecture.
Afterglow on the page
Bryan Harris wrote the screenplay that became Afterglow in 2017, alongside beats, outlines, pitch materials and later visual experiments.
24 Blocks as a shared story language
The screenplay was divided into manageable dramatic movements so structure, character, dialogue, visuals and optional AI could refer to the same story positions.
OpenStory Studio experiments
GitHub learning resources, public sharing, mood boards, prompt collections and separate Architect, Plus and Visualizer GPTs explored ways to make screenplay development more visible.
One connected visual storyworld
The separate experiments converged into PlotPickle: one local application where planning, screenplay material, Whole Film, Graphic Novel, Storyboard, Production and review use the same canonical project.
The interactive Storyworld Map
PlotPickle unified the PPF relationship index, shared asset identity and the existing Whole Film wall into one interactive map of story logic, characters, locations, hooks, turns, arcs and continuity.
Stable guidance for design and use
Personal history and biography are preserved separately. These principles describe how PlotPickle should behave for every writer.
The writer's decisions define the work
Tools may organize, diagnose, compare or propose. The writer or authorized project owner decides what becomes part of the story.
One story, one canonical project
Planning, screenplay, visuals, review, production and provenance should not become disconnected versions of the same movie.
Make story logic visible
Acts, sequences, Blocks, scenes, mini-blocks, hooks, turning points, arcs and shots provide useful views of causality and audience experience, not creative cages.
Local-first by default
A writer can create, import, revise, visualize and export on their own computer without a PlotPickle account or required cloud service.
AI is optional and bounded
PlotPickle supports no-AI work, manual prompt export, local models and connected providers. AI receives deliberate context and changes nothing without approval.
Suggestions are not canon
Imported interpretations, diagnostics, collaborator proposals and AI outputs remain reviewable until an authorized person accepts them.
Collaboration is deliberate
Private feedback, co-writing, production collaboration, public sharing and open licensing are different choices. GitHub is optional infrastructure.
Rights and provenance travel with the project
Sources, collaborators, licences, generated assets, retained AI assistance and revision decisions remain visible and portable.
Story craft before software controls
PlotPickle explains the screenplay concept before teaching the corresponding field, button, engine or report.
Previsualize before full production
Visual and production tools should test story intention, continuity and feasibility before major production spending. PlotPickle is not a studio production or finishing pipeline.
Extend before duplicating
The Storyworld Map extends Whole Film, while Graphic Novel, Storyboard, Production Shots, Animatic, Pitch and Reports keep their existing responsibilities. Parallel engines are a last resort.
Extensible core, optional integrations
AI providers, GitHub, Google, image and video renderers, music, voice and future services remain optional connections rather than enlarging the required core.
Different resolutions, one PPF source of truth
These existing workspaces already connect screenplay structure to visual development, production shots, animatic playback and decision evidence.
Story Logic
Canon and Characters
24 Blocks
96 Mini-Blocks
Screenplay
Storyworld Map
Graphic Novel and Storyboard
Production Shots
Retained Visual Assets
Animatic Preview
Pitch and Reports
PPF is the portable creative source of truth that keeps structure, canon, screenplay material, visual decisions, production assets, approvals and provenance connected. The canonical local project folder remains authoritative while .ppf packages carry that same project model for exchange.
Use the connected tools available now
The PPF, Storyworld Map, visual-development workspaces, previsualization and review evidence form a complete local-first product. External rendering and scheduling engines remain optional future extensions.
Available now: PPF storyworld
Portable canon, structure, screenplay material, visuals, approvals and provenance remain connected.
Available now: Interactive Storyworld Map
See 24 Blocks and 96 mini-blocks with relationships, hooks, turns, arcs, causality and continuity.
Available now: Graphic Novel + Storyboard
Carry approved characters, locations and visual language through panels and frames.
Available now: Production Shots + Animatic
Direct shots, timing, keyframes and sound, then play the visual material already attached to the project.
Available now: Pitch + Reports
Present story logic, visual direction, continuity, readiness and unresolved decisions for review.
Optional connections: Collab + Buzz
Use GitHub proposals and approvals in Collab, then add optional Buzz rooms, agents and development discussion only after Settings configuration.
PlotPickle develops, visualizes and presents the storyworld before full production. External AI, rendering, repository, scheduling and Buzz services are optional extensions; PlotPickle does not require them or replace a studio production and finishing pipeline.
How the separate experiments were absorbed
Deferred or retired experiments are not silently added to the roadmap.
| Legacy concept | PlotPickle evolution |
|---|---|
| OpenStory Architect | Story Setup, World, Locations, Visual Bible and Research & Canon |
| OpenStory Plus | Story Planner, Screenplay, Read & Learn, Character, Dialogue and Engines |
| OpenStory Visualizer | Graphic Novel, Storyboard, visual references, Production Shots and Animatic |
| GPT prompt front ends | Provider-independent AI Setup, Prompt Lab and bounded context packs |
| GitHub screenplay repository | Optional .ppf project library, backups and owner-controlled proposals |
| Story Education Menu | Read & Learn, core curriculum and specialized learning paths |
| Afterglow public experiment | Persistent reference project for verifying the connected visual storyworld workflow |
| CrewAI coordinator | Possible future plugin or SDK experiment, not required core architecture |
| Real-time collaborative editing | Out of scope; PlotPickle focuses on storyworld coordination and reviewable proposals |
ApplicationPlotPickle 1.0.0-rc.4.0.2
Project schema1.7.0
DistributionDownloadable local server
Software licenceAGPL-3.0-or-later
Educational materialCC BY-SA 4.0 where identified
User projectsNot automatically licensed
Help and support
Choose the path that matches the problem
Use the in-app form for a product suggestion or reproducible problem. Use the source repository for code, release and contribution context. Licensing details remain on the dedicated legal page.