🎬 AI Video Generator

🚨 New Feature: Added auto-generate-video.c — automatically generates multiple videos from a .txt file of ideas.

This repository contains my AI Video Generator, a C-based tool that automates short-form content video creation using AI. It includes standalone programs for AI prompting, text-to-speech, subtitle generation, and audio/video merging; all combined in one master program for content generation.

This master program is ideal for creating quick AI-powered video content without any subscriptions or extra tools. Just write an idea, confirm the script, and let it do the rest. 🚀

Watch demo: demo link

Watch example output: example link

📚 Table of Contents

• Overview
• Installation Instructions
• Standalone Programs
• Master Program
• Auto Batch Generator
• Bug Reports & Feature Suggestions
• License

📖 Overview

This project includes 4 standalone programs and 2 automation program:

1. Each standalone program can be used independently for its specific functionality.
2. The automation programs (prompt-to-video.c and auto-generate-video.c) combine everything into automated AI-powered video generation workflows.

Originally made to avoid overpriced tools and test my C skills, this project uses:

• C as the primary language
• Some Python for JSON parsing
• System calls like read, write, dup2, pipe, execl, fork, and more

⚙️ Installation Instructions

📋 Requirements

Make sure you have the following installed:

• python3
• gcc compiler
• A terminal or shell (Zsh or Bash)
• Homebrew

✅ macOS is HIGHLY recommended. Other operating systems will require adjustments.

Step 1: Clone the Repository

git clone <repo-url>
cd video-generator

Step 2: Install Dependencies

make install

This installs:

• ffmpeg – for video/audio processing
• curl – for HTTP requests
• Whisper – for subtitle generation

⚠️ Requires Homebrew (for macOS)

Step 3: Add Your DeepSeek API Key

Edit the Makefile and replace:

KEY = "PLACEHOLDER"

with:

KEY = "your-api-key-here"

Step 4: Export Required Paths

If you're using Zsh (macOS default):

make setup-env
source ~/.zshrc

If you're using Bash:

Uncomment the Bash lines in the setup-env section of the Makefile, then run:

make setup-env
source ~/.bashrc

Step 5: Build All Executables

make

Note: make all is an equivalent command

This compiles all the programs:

• text_to_audio
• http-request
• add-subs
• merge-audio
• prompt-to-video
• auto-generate-video

You're now ready to use the tools individually or together through prompt-to-video.

🧹 Keep Your Directory Tidy

If your directory gets too cluttered, you can run:

make clean

This deletes all the files produced by make, including executables. Be sure to recompile everything before next use (See step 5)!

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🧱 Standalone Programs

This project includes four standalone programs that can be used independently or as part of the master program prompt-to-video.c:

1. http-request.c

Prompts DeepSeek AI directly from the terminal. It parses the JSON response and saves only the AI's generated text into a file called ai-out.

🔹 Usage:
./http-request

2. text_to_audio.c

Converts a text file into an audio file. You can choose between .aiff, .mp3, or .wav formats using flags.

🔹 Usage:
./text_to_audio -[flag] input_text_file
(Use no flag for .aiff, -mmp3 for .mp3, -wav for .wav)
Default (AIFF):
./text_to_audio input_text_file

3. add-subs.c

Burns subtitles onto a video. It uses the Whisper model to generate a .srt file, converts it to .ass, and overlays it on the video.

🔹 Usage:
./add-subs input_video.mp4 output_video.mp4

4. merge-audio.c

Merges an audio file onto a video and automatically truncates the video to match the audio length.

🔹 Usage:
./merge-audio input_audio input_video output_video

🛠 Master Program

The prompt-to-video program is the all-in-one tool that automates the creation of short-form AI-generated videos. It combines all standalone programs:

• http-request.c to generate the video script via DeepSeek AI
• text_to_audio.c to convert the script into audio
• merge-audio.c to overlay the audio on a background video (and auto-truncate)
• add-subs.c to generate subtitles and burn them onto the video

No manual steps are required once you confirm the AI-generated script — the video is fully created with voiceover and subtitles in one shot.

Running the Program

There are two ways to run prompt-to-video:

1. Default Background Video

./prompt-to-video

To use this method, you must define the DEFAULT_VIDEO macro at the top of prompt-to-video.c:

#define DEFAULT_VIDEO "path/to/background-video.mp4"

Don't forget to recompile after editing:

make prompt-to-video

2. Specify a Background Video Manually

./prompt-to-video path/to/background-video.mp4

This method lets you pick any video file on the fly.

Generated Video

⚠️ The final video will be saved automatically in the /video-generator/videos directory.

🚀 Auto Batch Generator

A new feature! The program auto-generate-video.c automates video creation by reading ideas line-by-line from a .txt file and generating a corresponding video for each idea. Each output video file is indexed in the order the idea was read.

Usage

./auto-generate-video <input.txt> <background-video-path.mp4>

• If no background video path is specified, define the DEFAULT_VIDEO macro at the top of the source file with the default video path.

• The program produces indexed video files (inside /video-generator/videos directory) corresponding to each line in the input text file.

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🐛 Bug Reports & Feature Suggestions

If you encounter any bugs or have ideas for new features, feel free to open an issue in the Issues section.

You can also start a conversation or ask questions in the Discussions tab!

License

MIT License

Copyright (c) 2025 Karl-A. Michaud

Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:

The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.

THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.