Pagecast

What is Pagecast?

Pagecast is an MCP server that lets AI control a real browser to record interactions and export polished product demos as GIF or MP4, with automatic tooltip zoom overlays or cinematic pan effects. It is built for developers who want to generate professional-looking demo videos from AI-driven browser sessions without manual screen recording or video editing.

How to use Pagecast?

Add Pagecast to Claude Code with claude mcp add pagecast -- npx -y @mcpware/pagecast or run directly with npx @mcpware/pagecast. First, install a Playwright browser with npx playwright install chromium. The server provides MCP tools such as record_page, interact_page, smart_export, cinematic_export, convert_to_gif, and convert_to_mp4 to record, interact, and export in different modes.

Key features of Pagecast

• AI-driven browser recording and export
• Tooltip and cinematic zoom overlay modes
• Platform-aware presets (GitHub, YouTube, TikTok, etc.)
• Cursor highlight and click ripple effects
• Two-pass ffmpeg palette optimization for GIFs
• Headless mode for automated background recording

Use cases of Pagecast

• Automatically generate a polished GIF for a GitHub README after every UI change
• Create a TikTok or Instagram Reels demo video from a web app
• Record plain screen captures for bug reports or QA captures
• Produce a cinematic walkthrough for social media or product pages

FAQ from Pagecast

What are the system requirements?

Node.js ≥ 20 and ffmpeg are required. You also need to install a Playwright browser with npx playwright install chromium.

How does Pagecast compare to other screen recorders?

Pagecast is the only tool where the AI records the browser and automatically applies zoom effects (tooltip or cinematic) without manual editing. Alternatives like Screen Studio and AutoZoom require manual recording; Playwright MCP outputs only raw .webm.

Does Pagecast work in headless mode?

Yes. Add --headless when adding the MCP server, for example claude mcp add pagecast -- npx -y @mcpware/pagecast --headless.

Where are recordings saved?

Recordings are saved to the ./recordings directory by default. You can override this with the environment variable RECORDING_OUTPUT_DIR.

What export modes are available?

Three modes: Tooltip (full viewport with magnified inset near interactions), Cinematic (camera crops and pans to follow each interaction), and Plain (standard GIF/MP4 conversion with no zoom effects).