Slide Creator — HTML → PDF Presentations

Build slide decks as HTML, export to pixel-perfect 16:9 PDF via headless Chromium.

Output format: PDF — not Microsoft PowerPoint (.pptx). The PDF preserves exact layout, fonts, and colors across all devices.

Why HTML → PDF

CSS layout (Grid/Flexbox) is far more flexible than any PPT editor
Full web typography, gradients, SVG, animations (print degrades gracefully)
Git-friendly, reproducible, scriptable
One command → PDF with exact 16:9 page dimensions

Workflow

0. Identify Scenario (new)

Before any other step, identify the presentation scenario. Read references/content-scaffolding.md for full templates.

Scenario keyword	Template to use
pitch / investor / fundraising	`pitch-deck`
conference / keynote / summit / talk	`conference-keynote`
product launch / launch event	`product-launch`
report / research / analysis	`research-report`
(none of the above)	ask user which scenario fits best

Each template defines: slide count, page titles, required content per page.

0.5 Bilingual Layout (if needed)

If the audience is bilingual (e.g. HK, Singapore, global Chinese conference), or the user mentions Chinese + English:

Use the bilingual layout mode from references/content-scaffolding.md
Heading: English (large) + Chinese subtitle (smaller, --text-muted)
Body bullets: Chinese first, English parenthetical optional
Avoid pure English-only decks for HK/TW/SG audiences

1. Plan the Deck

Define slide count and content per slide based on the scenario template. Each slide = one <section class="slide">.

1.5 Art Direction (run this before building)

Run this step whenever the user hasn't provided a specific visual style. Read skills/slide-creator/references/art-direction.md for the full style taxonomy, CSS token templates, and style-brief output format.

Step A — Ask 4 questions:

Audience & setting: who is this for, and in what context (investors / internal team / public keynote)?
Mood keywords: how should the audience feel (authoritative / energetic / friendly / geeky-modern)?
Brand constraints: any required brand colors, logo, or fonts?
Reference material: any template references to align with (images, web links, existing deck screenshots)?

Step B — Generate a visual style picker page: Do NOT present style options as text descriptions — users can't evaluate styles from words alone.

Reference handling rules:

If user provides image files/screenshots: sample palette (primary/surface/accent), inspect layout density, corner radius, typography tone from the visual.
If user provides web URLs: use web_fetch to extract design cues. Critical — follow this extraction protocol to avoid misreading the style:
1. Ignore the brand name / domain name — never infer visual style from the product's industry or name (e.g. "Neo" does NOT mean neon, "Opera" does NOT mean European luxury).
2. Read copy tone & vocabulary — the words used on the page reveal mood (e.g. "surgical precision", "quiet confidence" → restrained; "unleash", "radically" → bold/aggressive).
3. Extract explicit color vocabulary — look for CSS keywords in the fetched text, or color names mentioned in body text / alt tags. Warm vs cool, light vs dark, muted vs saturated.
4. Infer layout density — count words per section; sparse = editorial/luxury, dense = technical/functional.
5. Identify decorative motifs — mentioned or implied (e.g. geometry, gradients, photography, illustration, line art, brutalism).
6. Cross-check against art-direction.md — find the closest matching template, then describe the delta (e.g. "Style G but warmer, replace blue with burnt orange, add subtle grid lines").
7. When uncertain: be conservative — under-promise the style match and present 3 options where Option A is your best interpretation, B is safer/cleaner, C is more experimental. Never confidently assert a style that contradicts the actual visual evidence.
If user provides both: prioritize image cues first, URL cues second.
If no references are provided: use built-in style taxonomy defaults.

Then:

Create output/style-picker/index.html — a single page with 3 side-by-side mini slide previews (16:9 aspect ratio), each fully rendered with real CSS (colors, fonts, layout, decorative elements). Each preview must look like an actual slide, not a color chip.
Build these 3 options as: (A) Reference-faithful, (B) Safer corporate variant, (C) Bolder creative variant.
preview_serve the directory and show the preview URL.
Each card has a label below: style name + one-line description.
Add onclick highlight so the user can click to indicate their choice.

User picks by saying "Choose A" / "I want B" / "Blend A+C" etc.

Step C — Generate style-brief.md: Once user selects a style, write a style-brief.md (template in art-direction.md) in the project directory. All subsequent HTML/CSS work must follow this brief.

Step D — Ask for brand assets (logo / colors): After user picks a style, ask:

"Do you have a logo or brand color to include? You can upload an image file, and I’ll embed the logo across the slides."

If logo uploaded: embed as base64 in HTML (use base64.b64encode in bash), place in top-left or top-right corner at ≤60px height. If brand color given: override --accent in CSS token block with user's color.

2. Choose a Theme

If Art Direction was completed, the style-brief.md is the theme spec — skip this table. Otherwise, use as a quick fallback:

Style	Background	Accent	Font	Mood
Dark tech	`#000` / `#0a0a0a`	bright orange/blue/green	Inter, Space Grotesk	Bold, modern
Light clean	`#fff` / `#f8f8f8`	navy, teal, coral	Inter, DM Sans	Professional, minimal
Gradient	dark gradient	vibrant accent	Any sans-serif	Creative, energetic
Corporate	`#1a1a2e` / white	brand color	system fonts	Trustworthy, formal
Playful	soft pastels	warm pop colors	Nunito, Poppins	Friendly, casual

3. Build HTML + CSS

Create a project directory with index.html + styles.css.

Start from assets/base.css — structural skeleton (slide dimensions, print rules, layout helpers) with NO colors or fonts. Layer your theme on top:

/* Example theme layer — customize freely */
body {
  font-family: 'Inter', sans-serif;
  color: #fff;
  background: #000;
}
.slide { background: #0a0a0a; }
.slide-tag { background: rgba(0,120,255,0.15); color: #0078ff; }
.card { background: rgba(255,255,255,0.04); border: 1px solid rgba(255,255,255,0.08); }

Mandatory structural rules (in base.css — don't remove):

.slide { width: 1280px; height: 720px; page-break-after: always; overflow: hidden; }
@page { size: 1280px 720px; margin: 0; }

Key rules:

Use px units — never vh/vw/rem/% for slide dimensions
Google Fonts: use <link> in <head>, export script waits for network idle
Viewport meta: <meta name="viewport" content="width=1280">
Content must fit within 720px height — overflow is clipped

4. Preview (Optional)

Use preview_serve to preview in browser before exporting.

5. Export to PDF

python3 skills/slide-creator/scripts/export_pdf.py --dir <project-dir> --output output/<name>.pdf

Options:

--dir — directory containing index.html (required)
--output / -o — output PDF path (default: <dir>/deck.pdf)
--width — slide width in px (default: 1280)
--height — slide height in px (default: 720)

6. Verify

The script prints slide count and confirms output path. Extra check:

import fitz
doc = fitz.open("output/deck.pdf")
print(f"Pages: {doc.page_count}")
for p in doc:
    r = p.rect
    print(f"  {r.width*96/72:.0f}x{r.height*96/72:.0f}px")

Style Guidelines

No default brand — every deck gets a theme tailored to its content
Prefer Art Direction-first workflow (questions → references → user pick → style-brief.md)
Ask the user for preference: dark/light, accent color, font, mood
Each slide should have clear visual hierarchy: tag → title → content
Keep text concise — slides are visual, not documents
Use .bg-glow with theme-colored radial gradients for depth
Do not use web_search for style exploration by default; prioritize user-provided reference images/links plus templates in art-direction.md.
When the user provides reference links, use web_fetch to extract design cues (color tone / voice / layout), but implement final CSS using local templates and token variables.
When the user asks for "art-direction advice / style advice", always generate a visual style-picker preview page (3 options) — never rely on text-only descriptions.
Build HTML strictly against chosen style brief, then export PDF (do not skip brief unless user explicitly opts out)
After style is chosen, always ask about logo / brand assets before building
For HK/TW/SG/bilingual audiences, default to bilingual layout unless user says English only

Style Microtweaks (after style is chosen)

If user says "change primary color to red" / "switch the font" / "increase corner radius", do NOT restart art direction. Instead, directly patch the --accent / --font-head / --radius CSS variable in styles.css. Only restart art direction if user wants a completely different style.

Gotchas

Chromium deps: first run needs python3 -m playwright install chromium && python3 -m playwright install-deps chromium
Fonts: Google Fonts need HTTP — the export script starts a local server automatically
Emoji rendering: headless Chromium may lack emoji fonts — use SVG icons instead
Large images: embed as base64 or use relative paths (local server serves the project dir)
Slide overflow: content exceeding 720px height is clipped — design within bounds