Step 3 Gate Review Checklist — Editor (iota-editor)
Status: ✅ APPROVED | Date: 2026-05-17
1. Character Reference Chains
Reginald (Primary) ✅
- Headshot → body_sheet → character_sheet → 2 scene tests: consistent
- 3D animated style (Pixar/DreamWorks-like) — perfect for comedy
- Scene tests demonstrate visual gag (armor in office) clearly
- Bright lighting in all refs, zero noir drift
- Props: sword, shield, crimson surcoat with gold crest
- Minor: crest is lion not “rampant badger” — cosmetic, consistent across images
Sarah (HR) ✅
- Character sheet (4 views) consistent with headshot and body sheet
- Deadpan/unamused expression perfectly preserved across all views
- Props: thick-rimmed glasses, blue lanyard with badge, white coffee mug
- Beige cardigan, light blue blouse — on-profile
- Scene test (supply closet) matches perfectly — holding mug, looking exasperated
Craig (VP) ✅
- Character sheet (4 views) consistent
- Navy Patagonia vest, blue checked shirt, khaki chinos — on-profile
- Slicked-back blonde hair, confident grin, designer stubble
- Finger-gun pose captured — comedy gold
- Scene test in office (glass desk, windows, bright daylight) — nails the tech-bro energy
Gary (Accounting) ✅
- Character sheet (4 views) consistent
- Wire-rimmed glasses, balding, pale yellow shirt, dark tie, pocket protector with pens
- Stooped posture, stressed/terrified expression
- Scene test at desk — surrounded by paper stacks, wax-sealed parchment visible. Great detail.
CEO ✅
- 3 images (headshot, body sheet, composite) — sufficient for 2 shots
- Dark charcoal suit, silver hair, commanding posture
- Calm/bemused expression — NOT menacing. Reads as “amused authority.”
- Pointing gesture captured for the “Apex” scene
Style consistency across all 5 characters: ✅ Same 3D animated style throughout. They look like they belong in the same film.
2. Setting Reference Images
| Setting | Tone | Lighting | Notes | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Supply Closet | Cramped, cluttered | Warm fluorescent tubes | Shelved boxes, colorful supplies | ✅ |
| Corridors | Sterile, corporate | Bright fluorescent | Glass partitions, motivational posters | ✅ |
| Craig’s Office | Sleek, modern | Bright daylight from windows | Glass desk, ergonomic chair, cityscape | ✅ |
| Breakroom | Mundane, functional | Fluorescent + window light | Keurig prominent, post-its on fridge | ✅ |
| Accounting Dept | Oppressively beige | Flat fluorescent | Sea of cubicles, filing cabinets — perfect siege battlefield | ✅ |
| Reginald’s Cubicle | Medieval-ized office | Standard office lighting | Heraldic banners, shield on wall, knight figurine — brilliant comedy detail | ✅ |
| Elevator | Clean, metallic | Warm overhead | Brushed metal walls, button panel | ✅ |
Global tone check: ✅ Every setting is bright, flat, and fluorescently lit. Zero moody shadows, no atmospheric haze, no noir drift. The banality is the point — perfect comedy contrast with Reginald’s armor.
3. Voiceover & Dialogue Stems
VO Stems (10 lines, Fenrir voice) ✅
All 10 VO stems fit within their assigned shot durations. Tightest fits:
- vo_03 (7.6s) in Shot 5b (8s) — 0.4s margin
- vo_05 (6.1s) in Shot 9a (6s) — essentially exact
Dialogue Stems (19 lines) — ✅ with L-cut notes
5 dialogue stems exceed shot duration by >0.5s:
| Stem | Duration | Shot | Shot Dur | Over | L-Cut Plan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| craig_04_400pct | 8.5s | 21 | 6s | +2.5s | Carries into Shot 22 (CEO scene) |
| gary_02_pdf | 8.2s | 14a | 6s | +2.2s | Carries into Shot 15 (Reg reaction) |
| reginald_02_dunsfold | 7.4s | 4 | 6s | +1.4s | Carries into Shot 5a (corridor walk) |
| reginald_03_paradigms | 7.0s | 8 | 6s | +1.0s | Carries into Shot 9 (Craig reaction) |
| reginald_07_deny | 5.5s | 15 | 5s | +0.5s | Carries into Shot 16 (siege wide) |
Editorial assessment: These overruns are NOT failures — they’re opportunities for L-cuts (hearing dialogue over the next shot’s reaction). This is standard editing practice and often improves comedic timing. Will handle in the timeline JSON via audio clip positioning that spans across shot boundaries.
Voice Casting ✅
- Narrator (Fenrir): warm, dry, mock-documentary — appropriate
- Reginald (Orus): deep, theatrical — good for bombastic knight
- Sarah (Aoede): flat, deadpan — perfect foil
- Craig (Puck): enthusiastic, breezy — on-brand tech-bro
- Gary (Sadachbia): nervous, meticulous — fits the bureaucrat
- CEO (Enceladus): calm, authoritative — measured authority
- Sanitized line (“confusion” vs “torment”) ✅ — still works comedically
4. Comedy Tone Gate (Global) ✅
Do these assets, assembled together, feel like a comedy? YES.
- 3D animated Pixar-like style is inherently comedy-coded
- Color palette: sterile office neutrals vs. medieval grime — visual joke is immediate
- All settings bright and banal — the mundanity IS the comedy
- Character expressions support comedy (deadpan, confused, over-the-top, stressed)
- No accidental horror/thriller vibes — Reginald reads as absurd, not threatening
- Reginald’s cubicle with heraldic banners is a standout comedy visual
- Style is consistent across all 23 character images and 7 settings
VERDICT: ✅ STEP 3 GATE APPROVED
All assets pass the Visual Texture & Comedy Tone gate. No noir drift detected anywhere. The 3D animated style, bright lighting, and character designs are perfectly calibrated for pure comedy. Ready for Step 4 (Storyboard).