Your memories.
An AI creative partner.
Create cinematic photo slideshows on Mac with MCP. Let your assistant help arrange the photographs, shape the motion, and set the rhythm—then make the final call yourself.
A creative brief becomes an editable project
Vayessa is a cinematic photo slideshow app for Mac with Model Context Protocol (MCP) support. With Studio, a connected AI assistant can inspect your project, import photos, arrange slides, adjust motion and music, preview frames, and export video.
MCP is the connection between your assistant and Vayessa’s tools. You describe the result, the assistant makes tool calls, and Vayessa applies the edits to the project. You can review and refine that same project in the app.
Vayessa focuses on photo-led stories with motion, titles, and sound. Choose it when you want to turn a collection of memories into a cinematic slideshow.
What can an assistant do in Vayessa?
| Creative task | Available tools include |
|---|---|
| Understand the project | Inspect slides, timing, audio, and preview frames. |
| Build a sequence | Add photos, inspect images, clean up and arrange slides. |
| Shape the movement | Apply themes, adjust framing, transitions and custom motion. |
| Add visual identity | Create titles, captions, animated text and motion layers. |
| Set the soundtrack | Add music, beat or fit timing, and extra audio clips. |
| Finish the story | Apply finishing looks, preview, and export video. |
AI voice-over uses ElevenLabs and requires your own key, entered in the app. Feature availability depends on the installed version and license.
Connect the assistant you use
Vayessa includes connection actions under File → AI Assistants. Turn on AI Control first. AI control is a Studio feature; AI services may have separate account or plan requirements.
- Claude Desktop: choose Connect Claude Desktop…, approve the configuration change, then quit and reopen Claude Desktop. Follow the full setup guide.
- Claude Code: choose Copy Claude Code Command and review the copied command before running it in your terminal.
- Codex: choose Connect Codex…, then start a new Codex app or CLI session.
- Gemini: use the separate connection action for Antigravity or Gemini CLI. Restart Antigravity, or start a new Gemini CLI session and check its MCP connections.
- ChatGPT: uses the separate Share with ChatGPT… flow, which exposes a session-specific HTTPS MCP endpoint through an ngrok tunnel. This requires additional setup and a ChatGPT configuration that supports custom MCP connections. Keep the connector URL private and turn sharing off when finished.
Local desktop connections and ChatGPT’s remote connection use different setup flows. Start by asking your assistant to inspect the current project without editing it.
Give the story a direction
Use Vayessa to inspect my current project first. Build a calm travel slideshow from /Users/your-name/Pictures/Highlands. Propose an order before editing, use gentle movement, and preview the opening and closing frames. Ask before replacing any existing work.
This is an example prompt. Replace the path with your own folder. The assistant must be connected and able to access Vayessa before it can act on the request.
Work through a complete slideshow workflow or learn how to choose musical timing.
Stay in the director’s chair
Keep Vayessa open while using a connected assistant. Save your work, inspect the project before changes, and review the actual frames and playback before exporting. Assistant access gives real editing control; the quality of the result still needs your judgement.
To disable control, use File → AI Assistants → AI Control: On — turn off. ChatGPT sharing is a separate opt-in connection; turn that off from the same menu when no longer needed. See the privacy notice and the policies of your chosen AI provider before sharing personal media.
Questions about Vayessa MCP
Do I need Studio to use MCP?
Yes. AI control is included in the Studio plan. You can download the app first and compare the available plans on the pricing page.
Does MCP generate the photographs?
The core workflow described here uses your existing photographs. MCP gives the assistant access to Vayessa’s editing tools; it is not itself an image-generation model.
Can I keep editing by hand?
Yes. The assistant works on the Vayessa project, which you can inspect and refine in the app.
Is the homepage demo a recording of MCP editing?
No. The homepage slideshow is an illustrative web motion study. These guides describe the application workflow; that website demo is not evidence of an assistant session.
Make something worth revisiting.
Bring your photographs, find your rhythm, and shape your story.