---
title: "How to add a circle reveal transition with Claude (tested prompt and ffmpeg command)"
description: "Clip B grows out of a circle in the middle of clip A until it fills the screen. Install one skill and ask Claude Code, or run the ffmpeg command we tested yourself."
url: https://www.recharm.com/effects/circle-reveal-transition
---

# How to add a circle reveal transition with Claude

Clip B grows out of a circle in the middle of clip A until it fills the screen.

Made by the command on this page, from our own test clips.

## Get this effect

1. ### Switch to Code in your [Claude Desktop App](https://claude.com/download)

2. ### Install the skill (once)

   ```
   Install the Recharm video effects skill: download https://recharm-growth-staging.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/website/downloads/recharm-video-effects.zip and unzip it into ~/.claude/skills
   ```

3. ### Ask for the effect

   ```
   Join clipA.mp4 and clipB.mp4 with a circle reveal transition
   Length of the transition in seconds: 0.6
   ```

## Several videos, several effects, one ask

Put your clips in the folder, mention them with @, and ask for everything at once. Claude runs one tested script after another on each clip, then joins them.

Put a sale badge on **@clip1.mp4**, give **@clip2.mp4** a VHS look, then join them with a circle reveal transition.

## Settings you can change

Ask Claude to change any of these, or edit them at the top of the command.

| Setting | Default | What it does                         |
| ------- | ------- | ------------------------------------ |
| `D`     | `0.6`   | Length of the transition in seconds. |

## In other editors

From each editor’s own help pages, in our words. We haven’t run these ourselves.

Built in: **Circle wipe** · desktop and mobile

1. In the timeline, select a clip in the main track, then click the more icon.
2. Choose Add transition, then pick a circle wipe in the Transitions panel.
3. Adjust duration and direction in the Duration section; circle wipes run inward or outward.

Needs Canva's new timeline editor, still rolling out; transitions aren't available in page mode for video designs.

Source: [Free Video Transitions: Add motion in between clips](https://www.canva.com/features/video-transitions/) (Canva), checked October 22, 2026.

## Without the skill

Don’t want to install the skill? Paste this prompt into Claude Code and Claude writes the command itself.

```
Join clipA.mp4 and clipB.mp4 with a 0.6 second circle reveal: B appears inside a circle in the middle of A that grows until it fills the frame (ffmpeg xfade circleopen). Crossfade the audio over the same 0.6 seconds. Match B's size and frame rate to A. Use ffmpeg and save it as output.mp4.
```

## Run it without Claude

This is the exact command we tested. Save it as `circle-reveal-transition.sh` and run:

```
sh circle-reveal-transition.sh clipA.mp4 clipB.mp4 output.mp4
```

```
#!/bin/sh
# Circle reveal transition: clip B opens out of a growing circle in the middle of clip A, over 0.6s. The sound crossfades underneath.
# Usage: sh circle-reveal-transition.sh clipA.mp4 clipB.mp4 output.mp4  (both clips need an audio track)
set -e
A="$1"; B="$2"; OUT="$3"
D=0.6   # transition length in seconds

LEN=$(ffprobe -v error -show_entries format=duration -of csv=p=0 "$A")
OFFSET=$(echo "$LEN - $D" | bc)
SIZE=$(ffprobe -v error -select_streams v:0 -show_entries stream=width,height -of csv=s=x:p=0 "$A")
FPS=$(ffprobe -v error -select_streams v:0 -show_entries stream=r_frame_rate -of csv=p=0 "$A")
W=${SIZE%x*}; H=${SIZE#*x}
# xfade needs both clips at the same size and frame rate, so B is fitted to A first
ffmpeg -y -i "$A" -i "$B" -filter_complex "\
[0:v]fps=$FPS,format=yuv420p,setsar=1[a];\
[1:v]scale=$W:$H:force_original_aspect_ratio=increase,crop=$W:$H,fps=$FPS,format=yuv420p,setsar=1[b];\
[a][b]xfade=transition=circleopen:duration=$D:offset=$OFFSET[v];\
[0:a][1:a]acrossfade=d=$D[au]" \
  -map "[v]" -map "[au]" -c:v libx264 -crf 18 -pix_fmt yuv420p -c:a aac "$OUT"
```

## More transitions

- [Barn door transition **Barn door transition**](https://www.recharm.com/effects/barn-door)
- [Blinds transition **Blinds transition**](https://www.recharm.com/effects/blinds-transition)
- [Block dissolve **Block dissolve**](https://www.recharm.com/effects/block-dissolve)
- [Blur transition **Blur transition**](https://www.recharm.com/effects/blur-transition)
- [Bounce transition **Bounce transition**](https://www.recharm.com/effects/bounce-transition)

## Find 3x _winning ads_

Recharm cuts your ad footage into tagged, searchable clips: hooks, testimonials, product shots. Find the shots that win, add the effect with Claude, and ship 3x more ad edits.

[Start 14-day free trial](https://www.recharm.com/get-started)