Template Manifest Schema

The manifest is the portable contract between planning and generation. Keep it JSON so it can be validated before a backend is selected.

Top-Level Shape

{
  "schema_version": "1.0",
  "template_id": "workshop-clear-light",
  "name": "Workshop Clear Light",
  "aspect_ratio": "16:9",
  "theme": {},
  "assets": [],
  "layouts": []
}

Required fields:

• schema_version: currently "1.0"
• template_id: lowercase letters, numbers, and hyphens
• name: human-facing template name
• aspect_ratio: "16:9" or "4:3"
• theme: color and typography roles
• assets: local references and permission notes; may be empty
• layouts: one or more reusable layout definitions

Theme

{
  "colors": {
    "primary": "#2457C5",
    "secondary": "#5B6B8C",
    "accent": "#20A37A",
    "background": "#F7F9FC",
    "surface": "#FFFFFF",
    "text": "#172033",
    "muted": "#667085"
  },
  "typography": {
    "heading": {"family": "Aptos Display", "size_pt": 30},
    "body": {"family": "Aptos", "size_pt": 18},
    "caption": {"family": "Aptos", "size_pt": 11}
  }
}

All seven color roles are required and must be six-digit hex values. All three typography roles are required. Font family is a name, not a bundled font file; record permission before distributing a non-system font.

Assets

{
  "id": "brand-logo",
  "kind": "logo",
  "path": "/local/path/logo.svg",
  "license_note": "Provided by the user for this project"
}

• Keep path local.
• Do not embed base64 data, tokens, or private binary files in the manifest.
• kind is logo, image, icon, or font.
• license_note is required for every asset.

Layouts

{
  "id": "comparison",
  "name": "Side-by-side comparison",
  "usage_note": "Compare two options using the same criteria.",
  "placeholders": [
    {"id": "title", "kind": "text", "required": true, "max_characters": 70},
    {"id": "left", "kind": "rich-text", "required": true, "max_characters": 260},
    {"id": "right", "kind": "rich-text", "required": true, "max_characters": 260},
    {"id": "source", "kind": "source", "required": false, "max_characters": 160}
  ]
}

Rules:

• layout and placeholder ids must be unique lowercase hyphen ids
• name and usage_note must be non-empty
• every layout has at least one placeholder
• kind uses a value from references/layout-catalog.md
• required is boolean
• max_characters, when supplied, is a positive integer

Brief Linkage

The brief may contain requested_layouts. Every requested id must exist in the manifest. The helper copies those layouts into the generated slide inventory in the requested order. If the field is omitted, all manifest layouts are included.

Validation Boundary

The bundled helper validates structure and cross-references. It does not:

• open local assets
• verify font installation
• upload anything
• assess visual quality
• guarantee that a backend preserves every object

After backend generation, render the deck and perform a visual inspection.