gemini-video-understanding
Analyze and understand videos using Google's Gemini API. Use when the user asks to analyze, understand, describe, summarize, transcribe, or extract information from videos. Supports local video files (MP4, MOV, WebM, etc.) and YouTube URLs. Can answer questions about video content, describe scenes, identify objects/people/actions, extract text/timestamps, and more. Use this skill when user provides a video file path or YouTube link and wants to understand its content.
When & Why to Use This Skill
The Gemini Video Understanding skill leverages Google's powerful Gemini API to transform how users interact with video media. By supporting both local files and YouTube URLs, it provides a comprehensive suite of tools for AI-driven video analysis, including automated summarization, scene description, and precise information extraction. This skill is optimized for users needing to bridge the gap between visual content and actionable text-based insights, making it an essential tool for researchers, creators, and data analysts.
Use Cases
- Video Content Summarization: Efficiently condense long-form YouTube tutorials, webinars, or lectures into key bullet points and executive summaries.
- Automated Transcription and Text Extraction: Identify and extract on-screen text, subtitles, and dialogue with accurate timestamps for documentation and searchability.
- Visual Asset Auditing: Automatically identify specific objects, people, or actions within security footage or research videos without manual review.
- Accessibility Enhancement: Generate detailed natural language descriptions of visual scenes to create alt-text or audio descriptions for video content.
- Targeted Information Retrieval: Ask specific questions about video content (e.g., 'At what time does the speaker mention the budget?') to locate relevant segments instantly.
| name | gemini-video-understanding |
|---|---|
| description | Analyze and understand videos using Google's Gemini API. Use when the user asks to analyze, understand, describe, summarize, transcribe, or extract information from videos. Supports local video files (MP4, MOV, WebM, etc.) and YouTube URLs. Can answer questions about video content, describe scenes, identify objects/people/actions, extract text/timestamps, and more. Use this skill when user provides a video file path or YouTube link and wants to understand its content. |
Gemini Video Understanding
uv run ~/.claude/skills/gemini-video-understanding/scripts/understand_video.py \
--source "path/to/video.mp4" \
--prompt "Describe what happens in this video" \
[--fast] \
[--fps 1] \
[--start 0] \
[--end 60]
Source Types
- Local files:
--source "video.mp4"— MP4, MOV, WebM, AVI, MKV, etc. - YouTube:
--source "https://youtube.com/watch?v=..."— Any YouTube URL
Options
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
--fast |
Use faster flash model instead of pro |
--fps |
Frame rate sampling (default: 1 fps). Use 2+ for fast action |
--start |
Start time in seconds for clipping |
--end |
End time in seconds for clipping |
Example Prompts
- "Summarize this video in 3 bullet points"
- "What text appears on screen? Include timestamps"
- "Describe the main actions and events with timestamps"
- "Identify all people and what they're doing"
API Key
Uses GEMINI_API_KEY env var, or pass --api-key KEY.
Updating Models
Edit ~/.claude/skills/gemini-video-understanding/config.json:
{
"default_model": "gemini-3-pro-preview",
"fast_model": "gemini-3-flash-preview"
}