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Using the API

Base URL: http://localhost:3456/api/v1. All requests and responses are JSON.

Authentication

Send your key as a bearer token on every request.

Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY

Missing or invalid keys return 401 with authentication_error.

The async flow

• POST /api/v1/videos validates the request, charges credits, and returns 202 with a video object in processing.
• Poll GET /api/v1/videos/:id every 5 to 10 seconds. The stage and progress fields move as the script is written and Seedance renders.
• When status is succeeded, download output_url. On failed, credits are already refunded and error explains why.

Renders typically take 2 to 5 minutes. The SDKs wrap polling in waitForOutput / wait_for_output.

Dry runs

Add "dry_run": true to validate a request and see the price without rendering or charging. Use this in tests and CI.

curl -X POST http://localhost:3456/api/v1/videos \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"character_id":"your-character-id","story":"A weekday product demo","duration":6,"dry_run":true}'

Versioning

Responses carry an Arclight-Version header. The current version is 2026-09-01. See API versions.