MediaPress?

I am trying to design a theme that effectively turns WordPress into MediaPress. It is slow going because my coding skills are basic.

Has anyone done anything like this?

I want an end product that is something like…

• Large latest video presented at top of home page (click to start playing immediately).
  Or, single large photo for single picture posts.
  Or, selection of thumbnails with horz scrolling for photo collection posts.
  Or, excerpt for good old fashioned blogging.
• AJAX style expand box with additional details for video/photo(s).
  Full post text for blogs.
• AJAX style expand box for comments (all media).
• Separate index (archive.php?) pages for Video, Photo and Text (blog).
• Possibly some sort of scrolling icon-preview for videos (to display horz or vert on home page – similar to video sharing sites).
• Auto generate mRSS and Video Sitemap.
• Non of the other usual stuff that WordPress themes look like (you know, sidebar, calendar etc.).

I would like the work flow to be something like…

• Create new post.
• Give title and mark with appropriate category: Video, Photography, Blog.
• Upload media (give proper titles and descriptions).
• “Attach” the media to the post but *don’t* insert/embed it into the content.
  Might need to use Custom Fields???
• Upload small and fullsize thumbnail images for videos.
  Upload thumbnail for photo(s) or select “Album Cover” image.
• For video posts, text of the post becomes the “description/details” for that video.
  Same for single photos and collections/albums.
• Hit “Publish”.

= Latest media shows on front/home page, all RSS/Sitemap updated.

I think it would be possible to create a Theme that does this. It might need some clever hard-coding in PHP but I think possible.

I’m working on it anyway. Just wondering if anyone else is/has/was/might…

Incidentally, I will be setting this up on my own website (for demo/test) but hope to deploy it for advocacy type organisations free.