Appendix I. A Complete Data Chain for Backlit Takeover E001#

This appendix strings episode one into a single traceable chain, from the intake card to the platform receipt. The examples drop irrelevant fields and keep the business semantics. Read for how the same IDs, facts, states and decisions travel between workstations — not to copy the amounts and characters.

I.1 Project and episode intake#

project:
  project_id: prj_backlight_acquisition
  title: Backlit Takeover
  commercial_mode: paid_unlock_with_IAA_test
  format: vertical_microdrama
  aspect_ratio: "9:16"
  audience: working women aged 25-44 who favor evidence-driven public reversals
  series_promise: every act of oppression accumulates into a verifiable counter-move

episode:
  episode_id: ep001
  target_duration_s: 72
  opening_question: why is the board deleting Lin Xia's name
  episode_change: the woman who was cast out returns as the acquirer's representative
  must_payoff: the red acquisition folder is formally accepted
  new_debt: how does Gu Zhou know why she left three years ago

The project ID stays fixed across every asset and event; the display title can change later. The episode contract decides what this episode must deliver, and cannot be rewritten by a lucky effect in one generated shot.

I.2 Facts and knowledge#

facts:
  - fact_id: fact_lin_removed
    value: Lin Xia was struck off the board that morning
    known_by: [lin_xia, lin_wei, board_members]
    audience_knows_at: ep001_00_02
  - fact_id: fact_offer_valid
    value: Yuancheng Technology has submitted a 480 million CNY acquisition offer
    known_by: [lin_xia, gu_zhou]
    audience_knows_at: ep001_00_58
  - fact_id: fact_gu_past
    value: Gu Zhou knows why Lin Xia left three years ago
    known_by: [gu_zhou]
    audience_reveal: implication_only

Every contract, phone and subtitle references fact_offer_valid rather than typing the amount separately. Lin Wei does not know the offer before the document opens, so she can only challenge the document's authenticity — she cannot state the figure.

I.3 Beats and the time budget#

Each beat's exit becomes the next beat's entry. The time budget includes action and reaction, not an estimate from word count.

I.4 Core assets#

assets:
  - asset_id: identity_lin_v03
    entity: char_lin_xia
    lifecycle: locked
    rights: synthetic_commercial_cleared
    anchors: [left_eye_mole, left_hair_part, narrow_oval_face]
  - asset_id: location_boardroom_v05
    entity: loc_boardroom
    lifecycle: locked
    plan: boardroom_plan_v05
    fixed: [north_windows, east_door, west_screen]
  - asset_id: prop_red_folder_v03
    entity: prop_red_contract_folder
    lifecycle: locked
    states: [closed, dual_grip, open]
  - asset_id: voice_lin_v05
    entity: char_lin_xia
    lifecycle: locked
    rights: synthetic_voice_project_scope

Every asset records its source task, checksum, approval and rights. A beautiful but unlocked candidate never enters prompt reference selection.

I.5 Scene entry state#

scene_state:
  scene_id: sc003_boardroom
  story_time: 18:12
  weather: heavy_rain_outside
  location_version: location_boardroom_v05
  lin:
    wardrobe: charcoal_suit_v02
    wetness: {shoulders: 0.35, hair_ends: 0.30}
    left_hand: holds_red_folder
    right_hand: free
    knowledge: [fact_lin_removed, fact_offer_valid]
  wei:
    position: north_chair
    knowledge: [fact_lin_removed]
  gu:
    position: east_middle_chair
    knowledge: [fact_offer_valid, fact_gu_past]

The state packet contains only facts relevant to this scene. The future mother thread, later injuries and absent characters stay out.

I.6 Selected shot list#

shots:
  - shot_id: sh001_nameplate
    job: the carrier of her identity is removed
    risk: low
    fallback: none
  - shot_id: sh010_lin_enters
    job: Lin Xia enters the shared space from outside the door
    risk: medium
    fallback: [door_handle, shoe_threshold, half_body_stop]
  - shot_id: sh015_folder_handoff
    job: the folder's holder changes from Lin Xia to Gu Zhou
    risk: high
    fallback: [lin_hand, folder_slide, gu_hand]
  - shot_id: sh018_gu_line
    job: imply that Gu Zhou knows the past
    risk: high
    fallback: voice_over_reaction

Risk drives the order of validation and the insurance coverage. It does not mean a high-risk shot automatically gets a bigger budget.

I.7 The handoff state packet#

shot_state_packet:
  shot_id: sh015_folder_handoff
  duration_target_s: 2.8
  state_in:
    folder_holder: lin_left_hand
    gu_right_hand: on_table
  peak:
    dual_grip: true
    min_frames: 6
  state_out:
    folder_holder: gu_right_hand
    lin_left_hand: released
  axis: axis_lin_gu_table
  direction: screen_left_to_right
  identity_refs: [identity_lin_v03_3q, identity_gu_v04_3q]
  required: [folder_wine_red, both_faces_stable, eye_contact]
  forbidden: [mirror, duplicate_folder, hand_swap, extra_fingers]

I.8 The prompt compilation record#

prompt_manifest:
  run_id: prun_sh015_a04
  compiler: context_compiler_2.1
  template: handoff_4.2
  adapter: provider_b_1.8
  episode_pack_checksum: sha256:111
  state_packet_checksum: sha256:222
  identity_bundle_checksum: sha256:333
  selected_refs: [lin_3q_v03, gu_3q_v04, folder_dual_v02]
  excluded: [lin_front_angle_conflict, wardrobe_v01_retired]
  rendered_prompt_checksum: sha256:444

The prompt text can change with the adapter; the semantic facts and their provenance stay checkable.

I.9 Four attempts#

attempt_a04:
  hypothesis: micro-motion can relieve stiffness without breaking the action
  held_constant: [model, keyframes, references, duration, camera]
  cost_usd: 6.80
  identity: pass
  action: pass
  performance: pass
  usable_frames: [8, 66]
  recommendation: approve_candidate

The operator recommends only; visual and continuity approve jointly.

I.10 Sound and dialogue#

line:
  line_id: line_lin_qualification
  text: My standing is inside.
  intent: replace_identity_argument_with_proof
  duration_s: 1.12
  voice: voice_lin_v05

music_cue:
  cue_id: cue_offer
  theme: theme_countermove_v03
  in: 00:56.200
  stems: [pulse, low_strings]
  out: unresolved_after_gu_line

Music leaves half a beat of space before the document lands. Dialogue, Foley and music do not compete for the same instant.

I.11 Edit selection#

edit_selection:
  shot_id: sh015_folder_handoff
  take: candidate_a04
  use_frames: [12, 62]
  handles: {before: 4, after: 4}
  reason: the two-handed peak is clear, identity and end state pass
  rejected:
    candidate_a02: folder_duplicate
    candidate_a03: performance_stiff

The edit cannot override an action gate because A02 has a better composition.

I.12 Graphic facts#

graphic:
  graphic_id: gfx_offer_page_v03
  source_fact: fact_offer_valid
  title: Yuancheng Technology Acquisition Offer
  amount: 480,000,000 CNY
  date: 2026-10-18
  font_rights: font_sans_cn_v02
  tracking: track_sh016_page
  ocr_required: 0.98

The paper underneath is generated as video; the precise text is tracked and composited in post. Other language versions reflow from the fields.

I.13 QC findings and repair#

issue:
  issue_id: issue_ep001_042
  observation: a short shot after the handoff still shows Lin Xia holding the folder
  expected: holder_gu_zhou
  root_layer: edit_selection
  fix: replace_tail_with_candidate_a04_frames_54_62
  regression: [sh014, sh015, sh016, prop_timeline, music_cue]
  close_evidence: [cut_v04_frame, state_diff_pass]

The issue routes to editing rather than regeneration, because an approved take already contains the correct end state.

I.14 Rights snapshot#

rights_snapshot:
  snapshot_id: rights_ep001_rc04
  character_images: synthetic_commercial_cleared
  voices: project_scope_cleared
  music: commissioned_all_media_term_3y
  fonts: video_embedding_cleared
  sfx: licensed_commercial
  client_marks: approved_ep001_only
  blockers: []

I.15 The release candidate#

release_candidate:
  rc_id: ep001_rc04
  picture_lock: cut_v04
  mix: mix_v06
  subtitles: [zh_cn_v04]
  graphics: [gfx_offer_page_v03, gfx_phone_confirm_v02]
  qc_report: qc_ep001_rc04_pass
  rights_snapshot: rights_ep001_rc04
  files:
    master: ep001_rc04_master.mp4
    clean: ep001_rc04_clean.mp4
    subtitle: ep001_rc04_zh.srt
  checksums: signed_manifest_04
  approvers: [producer, story, visual, sound, qc, rights, release]

I.16 Receipts and rollback#

After a limited platform release, preserve the content ID, upload time, file hashes, the transcoded preview and event verification. The rollback target is rc03, but rc03 does not contain the final amount graphic, so it can only serve as an emergency stop rather than a long-term substitute. The runbook states explicitly that rc04 must be republished after recovery.

I.17 Cost ledger#

Real cost includes people, failures, waiting, rights and delivery — not only API calls.

I.18 Selected event chain#

episode_pack.locked
asset.identity.locked
shot_plan.approved
generation.attempt.completed × 4
candidate.approved
prop.transfer.committed
picture_lock.created
qc.issue.opened
qc.issue.closed
release_candidate.signed
release.published_limited
release.verified

Every event carries causation and correlation, so the whole chain can be rebuilt backwards from the release.

I.19 The random shot audit#

An auditor picks the handoff at 00:58 from the finished episode and gives the team two minutes to find the beat, the shot packet, the identities, the state, the prompt, the attempts, the take, the edit, the Foley, the issue, the cost and the rights. Anything missing is recorded as a break in the chain.

I.20 A replication exercise#

Substitute your own project's characters and facts while keeping the same chain. Give one group only the finished episode and the release manifest and have them find every input backwards; have another rebuild the release package forwards from the intake card. The system is complete only when both paths meet at the same IDs and versions.