What Photos Should You Upload for AI Video? A Portrait Guide

Start with the number of references your scene needs

Ozil Goal AI, My Ride is here AI, Topo Gigio, Bulin 47 and Ghostface each use one portrait for a particular lead. Choose an individual photo rather than a group picture, then check which person the upload slot targets.

Do not upload a group photo as a shortcut for two separate references. In a two-role scene, each image should identify one intended character. Read the slot labels because Image 1 does not always mean the leftmost person in every shot.

Smalltown Boy duo dance, APT, Alors on Danse, Hotel Lobby, Rumpelstiltskin Tip Toe and Zombie Couple require two photos for distinct continuing roles. Prepare one subject per photo and follow the character labels rather than assuming a fixed left and right position.

The Baby Knight photo-to-video template needs separate baby and mother photos. In the Closed on Sunday lead-and-choir effect, the lead photo is required and the choir photo is optional. To cast the Storm Dance lead and crowd, provide two photos; the second identity is repeated across background people.

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Look for readable facial detail

Choose a photo where the eyes, nose, mouth and face outline are visible. Even lighting makes those features easier to inspect than deep shadow or glare. Check the file at normal viewing size: if you struggle to recognize the face, it is a weak reference for a changing video scene.

A front-facing or gently angled portrait with visible hair and shoulders is a useful starting choice. Remove sunglasses or hair covering the eyes where possible. Avoid heavy filters that alter the person's proportions. These choices improve the reference you provide but cannot guarantee a particular AI likeness.

Prepare a supported file without sacrificing the face

The studio accepts JPEG, PNG and WebP files up to 10 MB. If your phone stores a photo in another format, export it to a supported format before uploading. When reducing a large file, keep enough visible facial detail to recognize the subject.

Crop out competing faces rather than making the intended face a tiny part of the frame. Leave the head outline and some shoulders visible. Do not crop so tightly that eyes, chin or hair are cut off; review the selected thumbnail after upload.

Check thumbnails against the role labels

In APT, identities move between positions as shots change. In Alors on Danse, the opening left and right roles continue beyond the keyboard. In AI Zombie, the first portrait is for the opening male character, while the second follows the later female character.

For Storm Dance, the second photo is not a companion standing beside the lead: it guides multiple background people. Use the swap control before confirmation when you want to reverse a two-photo assignment. Changing casting after a completed generation requires another request.

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Use the reference as a review checklist

Before submitting, confirm permission to use each likeness and check your photo, source length, crop and credit quote. After completion, compare recognizable features through side views, turns and partial face cover, not just one opening frame.

Keep the original reference available while reviewing the MP4. If the face differs, identify whether the problem is the wrong role, a poor portrait, a difficult source angle or an inconsistent generated shot. Repeatedly submitting the same uncertain input can spend credits without resolving the cause.

Diagnose an identity that looks different