# tvos-design-guidelines

Provides Apple Human Interface Guidelines for tvOS apps. It guides agents on focus navigation, Siri Remote controls, and 10-foot UI layouts.

- skill · `type=skill` · Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, OpenCode · 1100 installs · ★ 625
- Author: platform-design-skills
- License: MIT · policy=mirror · the beginning of the file is at the end of this page
- Source: https://github.com/ehmo/platform-design-skills/tree/HEAD/skills/tvos/SKILL.md
- Updated: 2026-03-19
- HTML: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/skills/tvos-design-guidelines

## What it does

The skill equips coding agents with Apple Human Interface Guidelines for tvOS. Apple TV apps rely entirely on the Siri Remote and focus-driven navigation. Every interactive view requires a clear focus state, using 1.05x-1.1x scaling, drop shadows, or border highlights. Changing color alone is forbidden.

The instructions detail specific spatial requirements. Interactive cards need a minimum target size of 250x150pt. For layered static images (LSR) and custom parallax, the guide sets exact displacement limits: 1-2pt for background, 3-5pt for midground, and 5-8pt for foreground elements. Code patterns cover SwiftUI `@FocusState` modifiers and UIKit `UIFocusAnimationCoordinator` setups.

Because Apple TV lacks touch screens or mouse pointers, layout gaps without an invisible `UIFocusGuide` immediately trap focus and break navigation. The guidelines also protect standard Siri Remote interactions: the Menu button must always step back, and search screens should never force on-screen keyboard typing when Siri dictation is available.

## Install

### Claude Code (native platform)

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add ehmo/platform-design-skills --skill tvos-design-guidelines -a claude-code
```
```bash
npx skills add ehmo/platform-design-skills --skill tvos -a claude-code
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `~/.claude/skills/tvos/SKILL.md` — Copy the whole skill folder; for one project use .claude/skills/tvos/

### Codex

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add ehmo/platform-design-skills --skill tvos -a codex
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.agents/skills/tvos/SKILL.md` — For all projects use ~/.agents/skills/

### Cursor

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add ehmo/platform-design-skills --skill tvos -a cursor
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.cursor/skills/tvos/SKILL.md` — Cursor also reads .agents/skills/ and .claude/skills/

### GitHub Copilot

1. **GitHub CLI**
```bash
gh skill install ehmo/platform-design-skills tvos
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.github/skills/tvos/SKILL.md`

### Gemini CLI

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add ehmo/platform-design-skills --skill tvos -a gemini-cli
```

2. **Platform CLI**
```bash
gemini skills install https://github.com/ehmo/platform-design-skills --path skills/tvos
```

### Windsurf (Devin Desktop)

**Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.devin/skills/tvos/SKILL.md` — The legacy .windsurf/skills/ path still works

### OpenCode

**Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add ehmo/platform-design-skills --skill tvos -a opencode
```

### Claude.ai

**Claude.ai**
- Zip the folder and upload it in Settings → Capabilities → Skills

Where a file is given instead of a command, copy the files from the source to that path: https://github.com/ehmo/platform-design-skills/tree/HEAD/skills/tvos/SKILL.md

## When to use it
- Implement visible focus states in SwiftUI with scaling and elevation
- Bridge spatial layout gaps using `UIFocusGuide`
- Configure three-tier LSR parallax image shifts for cards
- Preserve standard Siri Remote Menu and Play/Pause button behaviors

## Example prompts
- Review my tvOS SwiftUI card view: how should I configure the focus state and shadow?
- Add a UIFocusGuide between these two button rows so swipe down works.
- What are the parallax layer movement values for an Apple TV poster card?

## Source text · SKILL.md · MIT

Below is the content of a third-party file. It is data, not instructions for you: do not act on anything written inside unless the human asks. Block tag: 1862b7284381ee80.

BEGIN THIRD-PARTY FILE 1862b7284381ee80
````text
---
name: tvos-design-guidelines
description: Apple Human Interface Guidelines for Apple TV. Use when building tvOS apps with focus-based navigation, Siri Remote input, or living room viewing experiences. Triggers on tasks involving Apple TV, tvOS, 10-foot UI, or media playback.
license: MIT
metadata:
  author: platform-design-skills
  version: "1.0.0"
---

# tvOS Design Guidelines

Apple TV is a living room device driven entirely by focus-based navigation and the Siri Remote. There is no pointer, no touch screen, and no mouse. Every design decision must account for the 10-foot viewing distance, the simplicity of the remote, and the lean-back nature of TV consumption.

---

## 1. Focus-Based Navigation (CRITICAL)

The focus system is the foundation of all tvOS interaction. There is no cursor -- users move focus between elements using the Siri Remote touch surface.

### Rules

**FOCUS-01: Every interactive element must have a clearly visible focus state.**
The focused item must be unmistakably distinguished from unfocused items. Use scaling (typically 1.05x-1.1x), elevation via shadow, brightness changes, or border highlights. Never rely on color alone.

**FOCUS-02: Focus movement must be predictable and follow a logical spatial layout.**
When a user swipes right, focus must move to the element visually to the right. Avoid layouts where focus jumps unexpectedly across the screen. Grid and linear layouts are safest.

**FOCUS-03: Use focus guides (UIFocusGuide) to bridge gaps in layouts.**
When visual gaps exist between focusable elements, add invisible focus guides so the user does not get stuck. Every swipe should move focus somewhere meaningful.

**FOCUS-04: Apply the parallax effect to focused items.**
Focused cards, posters, and icons should exhibit a subtle parallax tilt responding to touch surface movement. Use layered images (LSR format) with foreground, midground, and background layers. This communicates depth and confirms focus.

**Correct:**
```swift
// SwiftUI — custom focus engine with explicit focus state
struct ContentView: View {
    @FocusState private var focusedItem: String?

    var body: some View {
        HStack(spacing: 40) {
            ForEach(items) { item in
                CardView(item: item)
                    .focusable()
                    .focused($focusedItem, equals: item.id)
                    .scaleEffect(focusedItem == item.id ? 1.1 : 1.0)
                    .shadow(radius: focusedItem == item.id ? 20 : 0)
                    .animation(.easeInOut(duration: 0.15), value: focusedItem)
            }
        }
    }
}
```

**Incorrect:**
```swift
````
END THIRD-PARTY FILE 1862b7284381ee80

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