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Creating an Actor from an Image

ACT3 AI can generate a fully usable digital actor from a single photo or reference image. Upload a portrait or reference, and ACT3 AI builds a consistent digital character that can be placed in any scene, assigned dialogue, given wardrobe, and rendered across your entire production.

When to Use Image-Based Actor Creation​

Use this workflow when you want to:

  • Cast a specific real person (with appropriate consent and rights)
  • Build a character based on a concept image or illustration
  • Use a character design created in another tool (Midjourney, DALL-E, Photoshop)
  • Match a character to an existing visual reference from your production
  • Create a digital actor that closely resembles a real person for commercial or narrative work

What Makes a Good Reference Image​

The quality of the generated actor depends heavily on the source image. Best results come from:

  • Clear, front-facing portrait — the full face visible without heavy shadows
  • Neutral or natural expression — avoids baking an expression permanently into the character
  • Good resolution — at least 512×512 pixels; 1024×1024 or larger preferred
  • Clean background — solid or blurred backgrounds make extraction more accurate
  • No heavy retouching — overly processed images can confuse the AI model

Multiple reference images of the same person or character from different angles produce a more accurate and consistent actor.

Step-by-Step Walkthrough​

Step 1 — Open the Actor Library​

  1. In the editor, click the Actors tab in the left sidebar
  2. Click New Actor
  3. In the creation dialog, select Create from Image (instead of "Describe from Text")

Step 2 — Upload Your Reference Image​

  1. Click Upload Image or drag an image file into the upload zone
  2. Supported formats: JPG, PNG, WEBP, HEIC
  3. For best results, upload a portrait-oriented image that clearly shows the face
  4. Optional: upload additional angles (3/4 view, profile) using + Add Reference Image to improve accuracy

Step 3 — Review Extraction​

ACT3 AI analyzes the uploaded image and displays:

  • Face region — a highlighted box showing what was detected as the face
  • Skin tone — the extracted base tone used for rendering
  • Hair color and style — extracted for use across different shot lighting
  • Approximate age range — used for consistent rendering at different angles

Verify the extraction looks correct. If the face region is incorrectly bounded (e.g., including background elements), use the Crop tool to manually define the face area and re-run extraction.

Step 4 — Name and Configure the Actor​

  1. Enter a Character Name — this is the name used throughout the project to refer to this actor
  2. Set Gender expression if relevant to how the actor will be cast
  3. Set Height — used for scaling relative to other actors in a scene
  4. Add a Description note — for example, "Lead detective, 40s, confident" — this helps the AI maintain character intent across different renderings

Step 5 — Add Wardrobe​

Before saving, optionally assign a starting wardrobe:

  1. Click the Wardrobe tab in the actor dialog
  2. Describe the costume in the text field: "Dark grey business suit, white shirt, no tie, detective badge visible on belt"
  3. Or click AI Suggest Wardrobe and the system will propose outfit options based on the character name and description

See Costume Design for full wardrobe options.

Step 6 — Add Voice​

  1. Click the Voice tab
  2. Select a voice profile that fits the character
  3. Preview voice samples
  4. Save the selection

See Voice Casting for details on voice selection and voice actor requests.

Step 7 — Generate and Preview​

  1. Click Generate Actor
  2. ACT3 AI creates a digital representation of the character based on the uploaded image
  3. The Preview panel shows the actor in a neutral standing pose under standard lighting
  4. Test the character from multiple camera angles using the Rotate Preview button

If the result does not match your intent:

  • Adjust the description — add more specific detail about features, age, or expression
  • Crop and re-upload — if the face region was extracted incorrectly
  • Upload a cleaner image — higher resolution or better lighting in the source photo
  • Re-generate — click Regenerate to get a different interpretation of the same input

Step 8 — Save to Actor Library​

Click Save Actor. The actor is now in your project's Actor Library. You can:

  • Assign the actor to a character name in your script
  • Place the actor in scenes and shots
  • Reuse the actor across all scenes without re-uploading
  • Share the actor with your Organization for use in other projects

Consistency Across Shots​

Once created from an image, the actor maintains consistent appearance across every shot in which they appear — the same face, hair, and general features under different lighting, angles, and emotional expressions. You do not need to re-upload the reference image for each shot.

When creating a digital actor from an image of a real person:

  • Ensure you have the legal right to use the person's likeness
  • For professional productions, secure a written likeness agreement
  • ACT3 AI's terms of service require that users have appropriate rights for any uploaded reference image
  • Do not upload images of third parties without consent for commercial productions