Usman Gul - Today we're announcing @metalraise $4.5M Seed Round, led by @a16z @sp

Name: Usman Gul - Today we're announcing @metalraise $4.5M Seed Round, led by @a16z @sp
Uploaded: 2026-09-01T00:00:00Z
Duration: 47 s
Channel: Metal
Description: A single continuous line-drawing narrative on textured paper where every caption is paired with a self-drawing sketch that morphs into the next image, the traveling line being the signature move. Pacing is slow and deliberate, and the monochrome ink world gives way to a 3D purple arch landscape at the product reveal.

Metal · Sep 2026 · 0:47 · AI-annotated

Length: 0:47
Scenes: 24 · 2.0 s avg
Product on screen: 0:39
Features shown: 1
Voiceover: Yes

Metal’s 0:47 launch film runs 24 scenes, about 2.0 s each. The product shows up at 0:39 and 1 feature is revealed. There is no explicit call to action; a voiceover carries the film. A single continuous line-drawing narrative on textured paper where every caption is paired with a self-drawing sketch that morphs into the next image, the traveling line being the signature move. Pacing is slow and deliberate, and the monochrome ink world gives way to a 3D purple arch landscape at the product reveal.

No filming indicatedEstimated needs: 1 official logo — reused across the film · 19 graphic passages — draw or supply · 2 3D passages — build or supply

Plan my film from this onePrintable storyboard

Is this your launch? to your site or press kit.

More like this

0:38

SaaS Explainer Video Consumer Intelligence Platform | MFour x MotionCue

MFour · Jul 2026

1:42

WithAI YC Launch Video

WithAI · May 2026

2:21

Best SaaS Launch Video | ServiceUp

ServiceUp · Oct 2026

Scenes

Structure

Style

Sound

1. HookGraphics3s
  A cream paper background hosts a hand-drawn line illustration. Purple constellation lines and stars fill the sky as a sailboat draws itself across a lake flanked by mountain ranges, while a centered serif caption fades in.
  Cut → Cut · Push in · Medium dark serif, centered, fades in with a slight scale
  No filming indicatedEstimated needs: 1 graphic passage — draw or supply
  - SoundClick
  - Camerapush in · linear, 2.6s
  - Voice“We used to cross oceans by the stars, then paper maps, waiting for a landmark before we dared to turn.”
  - Text“We used to cross oceans by the stars” · scale
  Similar scenes
2. HookGraphics1.3s
  A hand-drawn line illustration shows a sailboat on a lake between pine-lined mountains, with purple constellations overhead. The landscape scrolls left at layered speeds while the centered serif caption fades out.
3. HookGraphics1.2s
  On a plain off-white background, the line “Then paper maps” stays fixed at center while a thin dark line draws a folded paper map outline around it, beginning from a horizontal line entering at the left edge and adding fold marks.
4. HookGraphics1.2s
  A thin black line-art sketch of an open paper map tilts in 3D perspective on a white field. The drawing builds itself in, adding coastline, a compass rose, depth numbers and a dashed route with an anchor as the pages spread.
5. HookGraphics1.4s
  On a pale field, a thin horizontal rule holds a tilted line-drawn nautical map that slides off to the left, then a line-drawn coastline with small triangular markers slides off to the right. The centered serif caption Waiting for a landmark slides in between them.
6. HookGraphics2.2s
  A hand-drawn line illustration of a ship's bow, masts and rigging tracks left across off-white paper, a tree-lined coast sitting top right. A serif caption slides out to the left edge as the rigging fills the frame.
7. HookGraphics2.2s
  A black line drawing of a ship's mast and rigging on white opens the shot, then pulls back to reveal a nautical chart with a compass rose, anchor, and dashed route. A single sentence appears centered above the map.
8. HookGraphics1s
  A hand-drawn nautical chart with dashed routes, anchors and compass roses fills the frame, then resolves into a sketch-style GPS device tilted in perspective, its screen showing a street map with a route. Above the device, a serif caption fades in word by word.
9. HookGraphics1.7s
  A line-drawn GPS unit tilts in perspective on a pale lavender field while the headline above it finishes reading. A thick route line traces across the sketched map, the device drifts left, and a thin leader line extends to the right edge.
10. HookGraphics1.7s
  A line-art woman in athletic wear runs leftward along a thin horizontal line on a cream background, a small dome tent outline resting on the line to her right. The serif caption sits at top center as its second word fades in.
11. HookGraphics1.4s
  On a cream background, a thin black line sketch unfolds from a central horizon into a landscape of flowers, mountains, a tent and a rolling suitcase, while the serif headline adds the words journey and adventure in light gray.
12. HookGraphics1.2s
  A thin gray line-drawing of a wheeled suitcase stands centered on a textured off-white background, with a serif headline above and thin leader lines extending sideways. The drawing changes to a pair of binoculars as the headline gains the word adventure.
13. HookGraphics1s
  On a cream background, a line-drawn pair of binoculars leaves a trail of overlapping copies before settling into a single pair, while a thin wavy line draws itself from the eyepieces across the frame. A dark serif caption sits centered above the illustration.
14. HookTitle card0.8s
  On a light gray field, the serif line “works this way now.” holds at the top while a tangled black scribble below untangles into the cursive word “now.”

Usman Gul - Today we're announcing @metalraise $4.5M Seed Round, led by @a16z @sp, scene by scene

· 24 scenes as text

01 · Hook · 0:00–0:03
A cream paper background hosts a hand-drawn line illustration. Purple constellation lines and stars fill the sky as a sailboat draws itself across a lake flanked by mountain ranges, while a centered serif caption fades in.
On-screen text: “We used to cross oceans by the stars”
Camera: Push in
02 · Hook · 0:03–0:04
A hand-drawn line illustration shows a sailboat on a lake between pine-lined mountains, with purple constellations overhead. The landscape scrolls left at layered speeds while the centered serif caption fades out.
On-screen text: “We used to cross oceans by the stars”
Techniques: Parallax
Camera: Static
03 · Hook · 0:04–0:05
On a plain off-white background, the line “Then paper maps” stays fixed at center while a thin dark line draws a folded paper map outline around it, beginning from a horizontal line entering at the left edge and adding fold marks.
On-screen text: “Then paper maps”
Camera: Static
04 · Hook · 0:05–0:06
A thin black line-art sketch of an open paper map tilts in 3D perspective on a white field. The drawing builds itself in, adding coastline, a compass rose, depth numbers and a dashed route with an anchor as the pages spread.
Camera: Pan
05 · Hook · 0:06–0:08
On a pale field, a thin horizontal rule holds a tilted line-drawn nautical map that slides off to the left, then a line-drawn coastline with small triangular markers slides off to the right. The centered serif caption Waiting for a landmark slides in between them.
On-screen text: “Waiting for a landmark”
Techniques: Kinetic type
Camera: Static
06 · Hook · 0:08–0:10
A hand-drawn line illustration of a ship's bow, masts and rigging tracks left across off-white paper, a tree-lined coast sitting top right. A serif caption slides out to the left edge as the rigging fills the frame.
On-screen text: “Waiting for a landmark before we dared to turn”, “1144”
Techniques: Kinetic type
Camera: Push in
07 · Hook · 0:10–0:12
A black line drawing of a ship's mast and rigging on white opens the shot, then pulls back to reveal a nautical chart with a compass rose, anchor, and dashed route. A single sentence appears centered above the map.
On-screen text: “Today, you set a destination.”
Camera: Pan
08 · Hook · 0:12–0:13
A hand-drawn nautical chart with dashed routes, anchors and compass roses fills the frame, then resolves into a sketch-style GPS device tilted in perspective, its screen showing a street map with a route. Above the device, a serif caption fades in word by word.
On-screen text: “Today, you set a destination.”, “The route draws itself.”
Techniques: Kinetic type
Camera: Static
09 · Hook · 0:13–0:15
A line-drawn GPS unit tilts in perspective on a pale lavender field while the headline above it finishes reading. A thick route line traces across the sketched map, the device drifts left, and a thin leader line extends to the right edge.
On-screen text: “The route draws itself.”
Techniques: 3D mockup
Camera: Pan
10 · Hook · 0:15–0:16
A line-art woman in athletic wear runs leftward along a thin horizontal line on a cream background, a small dome tent outline resting on the line to her right. The serif caption sits at top center as its second word fades in.
On-screen text: “Every pursuit, expedition,”
Techniques: Kinetic type
Camera: Pan
11 · Hook · 0:16–0:18
On a cream background, a thin black line sketch unfolds from a central horizon into a landscape of flowers, mountains, a tent and a rolling suitcase, while the serif headline adds the words journey and adventure in light gray.
On-screen text: “Every pursuit, expedition, journey, adventure”
Techniques: Kinetic type
Camera: Pan
12 · Hook · 0:18–0:19
A thin gray line-drawing of a wheeled suitcase stands centered on a textured off-white background, with a serif headline above and thin leader lines extending sideways. The drawing changes to a pair of binoculars as the headline gains the word adventure.
On-screen text: “Every pursuit, expedition, journey, adventure”
Techniques: Kinetic type
Camera: Static
13 · Hook · 0:19–0:20
On a cream background, a line-drawn pair of binoculars leaves a trail of overlapping copies before settling into a single pair, while a thin wavy line draws itself from the eyepieces across the frame. A dark serif caption sits centered above the illustration.
On-screen text: “Every pursuit, expedition,”, “works this way now.”
Camera: Static
14 · Hook · 0:20–0:21
On a light gray field, the serif line “works this way now.” holds at the top while a tangled black scribble below untangles into the cursive word “now.”
On-screen text: “works this way now.”, “Now”
Techniques: Morph
Camera: Static
15 · Problem · 0:21–0:22
A thin cursive 'now' scribble and a line-art man at a desk sit on a paper background under the serif line 'works this way now.' The text scales into 'Except one.' as the man duplicates into a second figure and a line is drawn in from the left.
On-screen text: “works this way now.”, “Now”, “Except one.”
Techniques: Kinetic type
Camera: Static
16 · Problem · 0:22–0:29
A black line drawing of a man at a desk with a monitor sits centered on a light gray background. Oars and wavy lines appear, turning the desk into a boat he rows leftward, while serif headlines swap above him phrase by phrase.
On-screen text: “Except one.”, “Fundraising never got its map”, “Eighty years of instinct and grind.”, “That ran on who you knew.”
Techniques: Kinetic type
Camera: Push in
17 · Problem · 0:29–0:30
A line-drawn illustration of rolling waves and a small figure on a ladder sits at the bottom of a textured off-white field, with a centered serif sentence above it. The composition pans left, the drawing exits frame left and the text fades as the background warms to a lavender gradient.
On-screen text: “That ran on who you knew.”
Camera: Static
18 · Problem · 0:30–0:32
A black silhouette of a suited man walks in from the left on a light gradient field as a thin curved line draws from him across the frame to a small purple marker. The centered serif line “That ends today.” holds still while a fainter line fades out above it.
On-screen text: “That ran on who you knew.”, “That ends today.”
Camera: Static
19 · Feature reveal · 0:32–0:34
A black silhouette of a man stands on a plain off-white field while a purple line draws itself from a small arch in the distance, winding in an S-curve to form a path behind him. A serif headline fades in across the top.
On-screen text: “That ran on who you knew.”, “This one runs on what you know.”
Camera: Pull out
20 · Feature reveal · 0:34–0:35
A dark serif headline sits on a plain off-white field above a blurred black figure and a rising purple ribbon. The text swaps to a lighter line as the ribbon resolves into a central 3D arch, its opening filled with a slow swirling liquid texture.
On-screen text: “This one runs on what you know.”, “Say where you're going.”
Techniques: Morph, Masking
Camera: Static
21 · Feature reveal · 0:35–0:36
A dark serif headline sits above a purple arch doorway on a pale lavender field, the arch filled with soft wavy shapes. The arch grows and rises, filling the frame and passing over the text.
On-screen text: “Say where you're going.”
Camera: Static
22 · Feature reveal · 0:36–0:39
The camera starts inside a tall purple arch and pulls back over a pale 3D field of winding paths and small arches. A serif headline scales in at center, then the frame wipes to white as a purple line slides in from the left.
On-screen text: “Say where you're going.”, “The round runs itself”
Techniques: Kinetic type, Masking
Camera: Push in
23 · Product intro · 0:39–0:42
A purple band carrying white serif text scales in across a paper-textured background, then exits to the right. A thin purple line draws itself into a pill outline, and the second line of text slides in inside it.
On-screen text: “Fundraising didn't need more hustle.”, “It needed intelligence”
Techniques: Kinetic type, Morph
Camera: Static
24 · Product intro · 0:42–0:47
A thin purple line and a serif caption on the left give way to a centered purple square logo with a white m, the word metal set below in black. The lockup holds steady on a light gray field.
On-screen text: “It needed intelligence”
Camera: Static

More like this

Usman Gul - Today we're announcing @metalraise $4.5M Seed Round, led by @a16z @sp, scene by scene

01 · Hook · 0:00–0:03

02 · Hook · 0:03–0:04

03 · Hook · 0:04–0:05

04 · Hook · 0:05–0:06

05 · Hook · 0:06–0:08

06 · Hook · 0:08–0:10

07 · Hook · 0:10–0:12

08 · Hook · 0:12–0:13

09 · Hook · 0:13–0:15

10 · Hook · 0:15–0:16

11 · Hook · 0:16–0:18

12 · Hook · 0:18–0:19

13 · Hook · 0:19–0:20

14 · Hook · 0:20–0:21

15 · Problem · 0:21–0:22

16 · Problem · 0:22–0:29

17 · Problem · 0:29–0:30

18 · Problem · 0:30–0:32

19 · Feature reveal · 0:32–0:34

20 · Feature reveal · 0:34–0:35

21 · Feature reveal · 0:35–0:36

22 · Feature reveal · 0:36–0:39

23 · Product intro · 0:39–0:42

24 · Product intro · 0:42–0:47