Hook Analysis

Most videos die in the first second.

Upload your TikTok, Reel, or Short. We score the first three seconds against a 7-dimension forensic rubric, name every failure point, and write five hooks that won't die.

Drop a video

mp4, mov, or webm. Under 100MB.

First scorecard free · no login · no card

What you get

A forensic report. Not a feel-good summary.

Every scorecard cites timestamps. Every observation is one sentence. Every rewrite is shootable with the setup you already have.

HookLab
Forensic Report · v1
Hook Score
0
/ 100
The Verdict
Strong audio entry. Curiosity gap collapses by 0.8s when the face cuts out.

Sample · sourced from the engine

Why it died

ordered by severity

  1. 01

    The cutaway at 0.6s severs the face-to-claim connection before the curiosity gap closes.

  2. 02

    No on-screen text in the first 2.0s leaves the verbal hook unreinforced.

  3. 03

    The hand-into-frame opener is the platform default — pattern interrupt fails by 0.4s.

The Rubric

Seven dimensions. Weighted.

The composite is a weighted average of the seven scores below. Each dimension carries an observation grounded in a specific moment of the clip.

01
Visual Entryweight 0.20 · 20%
62/ 100t = 0.6s

The face fills 40% of frame at t=0.0, but a wide cutaway lands at 0.6s and drains the entry.

02
Curiosity Gapweight 0.20 · 20%
71/ 100t = 0.0s

The opening phrase poses a clear question in the first 6 spoken words.

03
Audio Entryweight 0.15 · 15%
92/ 100t = 0.0s

Voice enters mid-sentence at 0ms with peak -2.6 dBFS. Sharp and deliberate.

04
Pattern Interruptweight 0.15 · 15%
38/ 100t = 0.0s

The hand-into-frame opener is platform-default. No tonal violation in the first 600ms.

05
Face & Emotionweight 0.10 · 10%
55/ 100t = 1.4s

Face is present and neutral at t=0.5. Expression locks only at 1.4s — too late for the curiosity bridge.

06
Text Timingweight 0.10 · 10%
22/ 100t = 2.4s

No on-screen text in the first 2.0s. A small caption arrives at 2.4s, undersized for thumb-read.

07
Stakes Signalweight 0.10 · 10%
64/ 100t = 1.1s

The phrase "watch what happens at the end" implies a time-bound payoff inside the first sentence.

The Rewrites

Five hooks. Each leads with motion or curiosity within the first four words.

  1. 01
    Three things broke before I figured this out.

    opening actionPunch-in on face from t=0.0, mouth already mid-sentence.

    repairsvisualEntry·curiosityGap·patternInterrupt
  2. 02
    Nobody told me this would actually work.

    opening actionBold white text fills upper third at t=0.0, face below.

    repairstextTiming·visualEntry·curiosityGap
  3. 03
    Stop scrolling — this one cost me a year.

    opening actionHold a single object into tight close-up at t=0.0.

    repairspatternInterrupt·stakesSignal·visualEntry
  4. 04
    Watch the first ten seconds. I'll explain after.

    opening actionLocked face, eyes to lens, no cuts through t=2.0.

    repairsfaceEmotion·stakesSignal·curiosityGap
  5. 05
    I was wrong about this for ten years.

    opening actionWalk into frame at t=0.0, camera already rolling.

    repairspatternInterrupt·visualEntry·faceEmotion
Alternate Openings

Three visual openings. No dialog. Designed to make the existing audio land harder.

  1. A

    Extreme close-up on eyes, direct gaze from t=0.0, no cut.

    repairs · visualEntry, faceEmotion, patternInterrupt
  2. B

    Hands slam an object onto a surface at t=0.0.

    repairs · visualEntry, patternInterrupt, stakesSignal
  3. C

    Split frame: before-state left, after-state right, at t=0.0.

    repairs · visualEntry, curiosityGap, textTiming
HookLab · Issued in real time
Most videos die in the first second.
The method

Three seconds. Three steps.

  1. 01Extract

    Seven frames at t = 0.0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 3.0 seconds. The first three seconds of audio. Onset and peak measured.

  2. 02Score

    Claude Sonnet 4.6 analyzes every frame against seven weighted dimensions: visual entry, curiosity gap, audio entry, pattern interrupt, face & emotion, text timing, stakes signal.

  3. 03Rewrite

    Five rewritten scripts. Three alternate openings. Each repairs a specific dimension you failed, with a shot direction you can shoot today.

Pricing

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