> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://easy-peasy.ai/docs/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Explainer videos > Make an animated explainer video: the Video Agent writes and narrates it, and draws boards of characters, icons, charts and maps that appear on the words the narrator says. An Explainer is an animated video built from boards: simple characters, icons, arrows, numbers, charts and maps on a plain background, each appearing on the exact word the narrator says it. Use it to explain a topic, a product, a process or a story, as a video of up to 10 minutes or as a vertical Short. Open **Videos** > **Video Agent** and choose **Explainer** as the media type. > [!NOTE] > > Explainers are available on every plan. On the Free plan you can make a 30-second Explainer; it isn't charged and counts toward your 2 projects per billing period. ## Make an Explainer **1. Describe the topic** In **Your idea**, say what the video should explain and who it's for. Add the facts that must be in it, such as names, numbers and links; the agent checks facts about real organisations and places on the web. **2. Choose the kind and length** Under **Kind**, pick **Video** (up to 10 minutes, with chapters) or **Short** (vertical, 20 to 60 seconds, built around a hook). For a Short, **Short style** picks the structure: **Auto**, **Quiz**, **This vs that**, **Top list** or **Quick explainer**. A video can be **Landscape** (16:9) or **Portrait** (9:16). Set the **Target duration**, or leave it on **Auto**. **3. Choose the look** Under **Look**, pick how the boards are drawn. Hover over a look to see it move. | Look | What it looks like | | - | - | | **Classic** | Colour icons that pop in on a white board | | **3D Glass** | Glass cards and 3D icons on a night sky | | **Kinetic Type** | The narration itself in big type, a few words at a time | | **Paper Cutout** | Stop-motion paper craft | | **Neon Night** | Neon signs on a brick wall | | **Whiteboard** | Drawn by hand with a pen as you watch | | **Chalkboard** | Drawn in chalk on a green board | 3D Glass, Kinetic Type, Paper Cutout and Neon Night play sound effects as elements appear; turn them off with **Sound effects**. **4. Pick your characters (optional)** If you've saved characters, they show under **Your characters**. Pick up to 4 to make them the cast of the video, so a series keeps the same characters with the same names and looks. See [Recurring characters](#recurring-characters). **5. Choose the voice, music and language** Pick the narrator under **Voice** and the **Background music**. In **Advanced**, set the **Language**; when you choose a language other than English and haven't picked a voice, the narrator switches to a native speaker of it. **Captions** are off by default because the boards already show the key words; you can turn them on here or later in the editor. **6. Click Generate video** The agent writes the script, records the narration, plans and draws the boards, and opens the project in the **AI Video Editor**. A 1-minute video usually takes 2 to 3 minutes; a 10-minute one about 5. ## What goes on the boards The agent picks a board for each moment of the narration: * Characters with speech lines, a title and chapter cards * Cause and effect with arrows, cycles and exchanges, lists and comparisons (**this vs that**) * Big numbers that count up, charts (bars, lines, donuts, pictograms) and timelines, made only from the numbers and years the narrator says * Maps that zoom to the countries, regions and cities the narrator names * Quizzes with a countdown, and numbered top lists, mostly in Shorts Videos over 90 seconds end with a short recap of their main points. ## Edit the boards Click a board on the timeline to edit it in the left panel. Edits show in the preview right away. * Change any text, highlight words in the header, swap icons, and change a character's colour, mood, pose or name. * Move when an element appears. * **Redo this board** plans a new board for the same narration, with your cast and look. It costs 2 credits. **Revert to the original board** undoes your edits. * **Look of the whole video** switches every board to another look. ## Shorts, translations and YouTube These are in the editor's top bar for Explainer projects: | Button | What it does | Credits | | - | - | - | | **YouTube** | A title, a description with chapters and sources, and hashtags, ready to copy into YouTube Studio | Free | | **Shorts** | Turns one chapter into a vertical Short with new boards, keeping its narration | 20 per Short | | **Translate** | Makes a new video in another language: the narration, chapter titles and character names are translated and voiced by a native narrator, and the boards are drawn again in the same look | 60 + 10 per minute of the video | ## Recurring characters In the editor, select a board with a named character and click **Save as a recurring character**. Saved characters appear under **Your characters** when you make your next Explainer. ## Languages Explainers can be made in 29 languages, including English, Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Russian, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Hindi and Arabic. Arabic videos are drawn right to left. ## Credits | Part | Cost | | - | - | | An Explainer or a Short | 80 credits plus 10 per minute (1 minute: 90, 10 minutes: 180) | | Narration | Text-to-speech characters: half the length of the narration | | Music | **Library** tracks are free. **Auto** and **AI Generate** use 600 text-to-speech characters. | | **Redo this board** | 2 credits | | **Shorts** | 20 credits each | | **Translate** | 60 credits plus 10 per minute | | Exporting the MP4 in the editor | 2 credits | You're never charged more than the price shown before you generate. A video that comes out shorter costs less. > **A number or name on a board is wrong** > > Click the board and fix the text in the left panel. Charts and big numbers only show numbers the narrator says, so check the narration too. > **The narration is in the wrong language** > > Set the **Language** in **Advanced** before you generate. **Auto** follows the language of your idea. > **[Video Agent](/docs/videos/video-agent.md)** > > The other kinds of video the agent makes. > **[Video Editor](/docs/videos/video-editor.md)** > > Edit and export the project. This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.