APACHE 2.0 open-source Runway alternative

The open source
video director

OpenCode is to Cursor what OpenVideo is to Runway. A local judge → refine → best-of-N agent that turns a prompt into a multi-shot film on your GPU — ComfyUI + MiniMax H3.

Install free → Try the director UI Docs

terminal · same pattern as opencode.ai/install NVIDIA GPU

$ curl -fsSL https://open-video.ai/install | bash

local-first Apache 2.0 ComfyUI + MiniMax H3 Arena #1 open model

demo.mp4 · director cut

00 Same pattern across creative work

OpenCode open · code agent ↔ Cursor Open Design open · design workspace ↔ Claude Design

OpenVideo open · video director ↔ Runway / Seedance

We take install UX + open-core from OpenCode, local agent product from Open Design, and creator-facing product DNA from OpenArt — applied only to video.

Apache 2.0 open core · Local-first on your GPU · Model: MiniMax H3 · Arena #1 open · Engine: ComfyUI · Agent hosts: Claude · Cursor · OpenCode · MCP

01 The thesis

Open video models already match closed quality. open-video is the agent layer that delivers it — judge → refine → best-of-N quality loop, multi-shot stitching, reference-packing. 100% open, local-first, free.

01 judge → 02 refine → 03 best-of-N repeat until the take is great

02 Three interfaces

One engine. Three ways to direct it.

Same multi-surface idea as OpenCode (TUI · desktop · IDE) and Open Design (app · skills · MCP): one director brain, three ways in.

App

For everyone

A friendly desktop app. Describe the scene, pick a style, hit render. The director loop runs unattended — it judges, refines, picks the best take, and stitches the shots into a film.

CLI / API

For developers

A scriptable CLI and HTTP API. Pipe prompts, control shots, swap models, and wire best-of-N quality into your own pipelines, services, and products.

Skill

For agent hosts

A packaged skill for agent hosts — Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, OpenCode, or any MCP-aware agent. Same pattern as Open Design skills: drop in, direct film end-to-end.

03 Built on open models

Standing on the shoulders of open giants.

No closed dependencies. Every layer of the stack is open weights and open source — auditable, hackable, and yours to run locally.

ComfyUI

node runtime

MiniMax H3

video model

VideoScore

judge / reward

woodfantasy

open weights refpack

04 Quickstart

Install like OpenCode. Film on your GPU.

Same one-liner pattern as opencode.ai/install and Open Design. No sign-up. Local NVIDIA GPU required for real renders.

bash — open-video

1 $ curl -fsSL https://open-video.ai/install | bash

2 $ open-video "a neon koi swimming through rain, slow dolly"

? # needs NVIDIA GPU · ~60GB disk for first download · see docs docs

05 Open vs closed

Why not just use Runway?

Same job as the closed products — concept to film — without the meter, the watermark, or the black box. Pattern learned from OpenCode vs Cursor.

	OpenVideo	Runway / Seedance
Runs on your GPU	Yes · local-first	No · cloud only
Cost for unlimited local use	Free (Apache 2.0)	Per-second / subscription
Director loop (judge → refine)	Open · auditable	Closed · internal
Model choice	Pluggable (H3 today)	Vendor-fixed
Region / watermark locks	None on your machine	Common
Agent skill / CLI / MCP	First-class	Limited / proprietary