Before you begin
OpenMontage installed and verified on your computer, a demo video rendered locally with zero API keys, and your first prompt-to-video production running inside Claude Code.
Tools used
- OpenMontage (free, open source, AGPL-3.0)
Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Copilot or Windsurf- Python 3.10+
- Node.js 18+
- FFmpeg
- Optional API keys: ElevenLabs, OpenAI, fal, Pexels and others
Requirements
- A Mac, Linux or Windows computer with a few GB of free disk space (the install is roughly 700 MB)
- Python 3.10 or newer, Node.js 18 or newer and FFmpeg
- An AI coding assistant such as Claude Code
- Comfort running a handful of terminal commands
On this page · 9 steps
Your progress
0 of 9 steps
The walkthrough
Step 01 / 09
Meet OpenMontage
OpenMontage is an open-source, agentic video production system. It works like a real production team (researcher, scriptwriter, voice artist and editor), except every role is an AI agent driven by your coding assistant. You give it one prompt. It researches the topic, writes the script, generates the visuals, pulls B-roll, adds music, voiceover and sound effects, then composes and renders a finished video. It covers animated explainers, product ads, UGC-style videos, documentary montages and cinematic trailers. It is free and open source (AGPL-3.0). Out of the box it runs locally with free tools; cloud providers such as ElevenLabs or Veo are optional extras you unlock with your own API keys.
Step 02 / 09
Install the prerequisites
OpenMontage needs Python 3.10 or newer, FFmpeg, Node.js 18 or newer and an AI coding assistant. On a Mac, Homebrew installs everything in one line. Check the versions afterward.
Check before continuing
Continue from here