Format and length

Two choices on the brief form do more for structural quality than any other: format and length. This page covers when each option suits which kind of video.

Format

Two formats shipped today: Documentary and Listicle. More are queued (Commentary, Compilation, Explainer, Tutorial, Shorts) and surface as they land.

Documentary

The default. Linear narrative, single subject, sustained tone. The script follows a recognisable beginning-middle-end shape: hook, context, deepening, payoff.

Use Documentary for:

• History, biography, deep-dive explainers.
• Science and space topics where the structure benefits from a clear narrative arc.
• True crime cases told as single-thread investigations.
• Cultural and literary analysis.
• Most niches that want a sober, considered voice.

Documentary scripts are structurally simpler than they look. The pipeline allocates roughly 10 percent of the runtime to the hook, 65 percent to the body sections, and 25 percent to the payoff. Scene count adapts to length, an 8-minute documentary lands around 7 to 9 scenes; a 30-minute around 18 to 22.

Listicle

For ranked or enumerated sets. "Top 7 mistakes the Allies made at Dunkirk." "5 startups that almost killed Google." "10 inventions Edison wrongly took credit for."

The pipeline knows to write a hook, then equal-weight item beats, then a payoff that ties them together.

Listicle requires an item count (3 to 50). The brief form will warn you if the count doesn't fit the length. Quick reference for what suits what:

• 8 minutes: 3 to 7 items. Less than 3 and the "listicle" doesn't read as one; more than 7 and items get under a minute each, which reads thin.
• 12 minutes: 5 to 10 items. The sweet spot. Each item lands as a complete unit.
• 20 minutes: 7 to 15 items. Bigger lists, deeper per-item treatment.
• 30 minutes: 10 to 25 items. Survey-style territory, each item is a brief sketch rather than a deep treatment.

A 50-item list in 8 minutes is technically allowed but will read as rapid-fire. The listicle item-count validator surfaces a warning on the brief form when the per-item budget drops below about 30 seconds.

What's coming

Commentary, Compilation, Explainer, Tutorial, and Shorts are queued. The brief form's format chips will gain them as they ship. Until then, the closest analogue:

• Commentary: pick Documentary + use the brief's tone field to say "deadpan commentary, dry humour."
• Compilation: pick Listicle.
• Explainer and Tutorial: pick Documentary; the niche-specific prompting handles the conventions.
• Shorts: not yet on the auto path. Coming as part of the dedicated Shorts pipeline.

Length

Four supported rungs: 8, 12, 20, or 30 minutes. The script generator targets the chosen minute count and validates the script after; you'll see a "duration check" warning on the outline if a scene came back materially over or under.

Picking the rung

8 minutes is the sweet spot for new channels. Long enough that YouTube reads it as serious long-form content, short enough that you can iterate quickly on what's working and what isn't. Most new channels should start here.

12 minutes is the workhorse rung. Most full-time long-form operators land here. Long enough for proper arc development, short enough that watch-time-completion stays viable. If you're picking one length to publish on for the next three months, this is usually it.

20 minutes is where AI-assisted production starts to compete with manual production on absolute quality. The narrative arc has space to breathe, secondary characters can land, you can support proper digressions. Upside is biggest if you nail the angle.

30 minutes is for properly deep dives, definitive treatments of a subject, or sponsorship-worthy showcase pieces. The longer rungs benefit disproportionately from a well-written brief; a half-baked brief produces a noticeably worse 30-minute video than 8-minute video because there's more script for Claude to fill.

Length and credits

The Pro long-form formula is fixed: 100 credits of setup plus 50 credits per target minute. So:

• 8 minutes: 500 credits.
• 12 minutes: 700 credits.
• 20 minutes: 1,100 credits.
• 30 minutes: 1,600 credits.

The brief form's live cost preview shows the credit hit before you submit. See Plans and pricing and Credits explained for the full credit economy.

Length and listicle item count

The listicle item-count validator does two things: rejects briefs with fewer than 3 or more than 50 items, and warns when the per-item budget drops below 30 seconds. The validator is helpful, listen to it. A listicle that fights the per-item budget reads as either thin or rushed.

Picking together

A few common combinations and what they suit:

• 8-minute Documentary. The cadence-builder's rung. New channel, finding angle, iterating on what lands.
• 12-minute Documentary. The cornerstone. Most long-form operators publish here for the bulk of their catalogue.
• 20-minute Documentary. The signature piece. Quarterly deep dives or anchors of a series.
• 12-minute Listicle (6 to 8 items). Highly clippable format, often outperforms Documentary on impressions per subscriber.
• 30-minute Documentary. The definitive piece. Sponsor-ready or evergreen-anchor territory.

What's next

Niche selection covers picking the niche, which interacts with format and length in ways worth knowing.

Brief writing strategy covers the brief itself, the highest-leverage choice on the form.

Cadence covers how often to publish, the length you pick and the cadence you sustain are linked.

Cheers,
Carl