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API Overview

The ReelBot Developer API provides programmatic access to video generation capabilities.

Key Concepts

Video Types

The API supports the same two video types as the Video Studio:

TypeDescriptionRequirements
narratedVideo with AI voiceover and captionsRequires script and either voiceId or voiceoverKey
cinematicMusic-only video without narrationOnly requires topic and brollKeys

Assets

Videos are composed from assets in your Asset Library:

  • B-roll: Video clips that form the visual content
  • Music: Background audio track (optional)
  • Voiceover: Pre-generated voiceover file (optional, alternative to voiceId)

Asset keys follow the S3 path format:

users/{userId}/b-roll/filename.mp4
users/{userId}/music/filename.mp3
shared/b-roll/filename.mp4
shared/music/filename.mp3

Projects

When you generate a video via API, a Project is created. The project:

  • Has a unique projectId for tracking
  • Progresses through statuses: queuedprocessingcompleted (or failed)
  • Contains the output video when complete

Quotas

API requests consume the same quotas as the Video Studio:

  • Video Generations: Each successful generation uses 1 credit
  • AI Credits: Used if generating voiceover via voiceId

Quotas are determined by your subscription plan.


Request Flow

A typical API workflow follows these steps:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ 1. POST /video/generate │
│ → Returns projectId │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 2. GET /video/status/{projectId} (poll every 3-5 sec) │
│ → Returns status: queued | processing | completed │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 3. GET /video/download/{projectId} (when completed) │
│ → Returns pre-signed download URL │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Typical Processing Times

Video DurationApproximate Processing Time
15 seconds1-2 minutes
30 seconds2-3 minutes
45 seconds3-4 minutes
60 seconds4-5 minutes

Processing times vary based on queue depth and video complexity.


API Versioning

The current API version is v1.

All endpoints are prefixed with /api/v1/.

Future versions will be announced in advance, and v1 will remain supported during transition periods.


Content-Type

All POST requests must include:

Content-Type: application/json

All responses are JSON.


What You Can Build

The Developer API enables:

  • Automated content pipelines: Generate videos from RSS feeds, databases, or CMS
  • Batch processing: Queue dozens of videos overnight
  • Custom dashboards: Build internal tools for your team
  • Integrations: Connect to Zapier, Make, n8n, or custom workflows
  • White-label solutions: Power video generation in your own products

Limitations

The API has the following limitations:

  • 1 API key per account: You can revoke and regenerate if needed
  • Assets must exist: You cannot upload assets via API (use the Asset Library)
  • Same quotas apply: API usage counts against your plan limits
  • No webhook support yet: You must poll for status updates

Next Steps

Authentication — Learn how to generate and use API keys

Generate Video — Full endpoint documentation