Stages previews a local desktop companion for Codex

• Stages is previewing CS as a local companion to Codex, with hundreds of creative-app workflows described in the announcement.
• Generation remains cloud-based, Hollywood clarified; some other app functions work offline.
• A test for The Last Artist reached 546 of 1,357 previs images after four hours, according to his progress update.
• CUE builds a personalized creative profile through an onboarding interview; answers become lasting guidance only after approval in the setup preview.

The built-in browser opens Stages Pro inside the desktop workspace, and CUE can become a tiny animated desktop companion. The supporting-cast sheets are the good stuff: guards, technicians and waiters get detailed visual specifications for reuse across a film.

Dustin Hollywood, Stages’ founder and CEO, describes CS as a desktop creative companion to Codex. The preview interface also carries the name Cast Studio.

Hollywood says hundreds of built-in workflows were designed by artists with decades of experience, naming:

• TouchDesigner
• Blender
• After Effects
• Premiere

He says these workflows help start projects faster with less token burn.

Generation models do not run locally yet, Hollywood says in a clarification about offline use. He describes the local and cloud workspaces as synced, but onboarding defines specific transfer boundaries:

• Account media: CS can access the same account media library.
• Pro projects: Import links project records and existing asset references. It does not copy every Pro project tool or protected source.
• Pro chats: Ordinary chat text has a separate transfer path.
• CUE guidance: Existing account guidance retains its original source and permissions.

One browser-preview build also reports a disconnected cloud workspace, while local browsing remains available.

Hollywood calls CUE’s personalized creative profile a “custom taste engine.” The preview’s 15-question interview asks about:

• Influences and inspirations
• Music preferences
• Desired projects and films, plus what the creator likes watching

For The Last Artist, Hollywood says he is specifying the whole cast for reuse by agents. His reference sheets extend to supporting roles, with turnarounds, portraits and small continuity details.

Storyboarding and character development are packaged as skills that users tag and click in the desktop preview. Hollywood says those skills are also coming to Stages Pro.

• Feature-film previs: Hollywood reported CS generating image 546 of a planned 1,357 after four hours. This was an image-generation test for the film’s previs, rather than a completed-film runtime claim.

• Training content: Hollywood says an unnamed brand has licensed Stages to develop autonomous training content across its company. He shared a CS test project titled “Hotel Training - Film.”

The desktop demo shows a generated 3D model syncing with Blender.

A wind-chime film test divides production across three named agents:

1. Basquiat: Generate the cinematic wind-chime image.
2. Kahu: Animate the wind chime with a gentle breeze.
3. Monet: Export the finished 1280×720 MP4.

CS can minimize into a floating task window while other applications remain open. Hollywood says that window can surface updates and accept direction for tasks coordinated across those apps.

CUE Companions adds selectable animated characters and voice input. One preview accepts the spoken direction “Make the opening feel quieter” within a brand-film project.

Hollywood initially described CS as powered partly by GPT and Claude in the rollout announcement. He later clarified the split: CS runs on OpenAI, generative-media tools and open-source software; Pro’s backend retains Claude alongside GPT models.

While testing OpenAI’s Dots, he reported slow replies and timeouts, including several tasks he completed himself.

Hollywood has called the desktop app imminent and promised demos at STAGES OPEN, the Stages Pro v5 release event. These previews give no fixed calendar date or desktop price.

The Stages website offers email signups for release updates; Stages Pro is the web entry point.