Prepare a couple photo for a zombie short

1. Start with permission and the original file

Choose a shared photograph or two separate portraits of adults who have both agreed to this fictional transformation and to the way you intend to share it. A photo available on a social profile is not a substitute for that permission. If you did not take the picture, make sure you also have permission to use the photograph itself.

Keep an untouched copy. Work from the original camera file or a good-quality export when available, rather than a screenshot of a screenshot. Do not include private documents, addresses, or other personal information in the background.

2. Make both people easy to see

For a shared photo, look for a picture where both faces are visible and neither person is mostly hidden behind the other. Similar distance from the camera makes the relationship between the two subjects easier to describe. A relaxed pose gives you a straightforward reference for posture and expression.

Check the photo at the size it will appear on a phone. If one face becomes a few indistinct pixels, choose a closer photograph. Avoid covering a face with a hand, a phone, heavy sunglasses, or a graphic sticker when recognition matters to the scene.

• Both people are adults and have given permission.
• Both faces are visible in the intended crop.
• Clothing and body positions are easy to distinguish.

3. Plan a crop before you plan the movement

For a vertical composition, try a portrait crop with the couple near the center and some space above their heads. Leave enough room around shoulders and hands for the action you intend to suggest. A tight headshot and a full-body escape are very different starting points.

Do not stretch a landscape photograph to fill a portrait frame. Instead, accept a tighter crop, select a different photo, or change the scene so that it works as a close-up. Decide where a title or caption could sit without covering either face.

4. Separate the reference from the atmosphere

Even lighting is a useful starting point because you can actually inspect expressions and clothing. You can describe moonlight, neon, or distant smoke in the creative brief without first burying the reference image in a dark filter. Keep a natural version next to any edited version for comparison.

Pick one dominant atmosphere: an empty station, a rainy street, or a forest at dusk. Combining several unrelated settings in a single short scene makes it harder to decide what the audience should notice first.

5. Write a brief that protects the important details

Write down three visual anchors you want to retain: the two people, their clothing, and their relative positions, for example. Then add one action and one change in the environment. Treat those anchors as review criteria, not as promises that a generator will always preserve them.

Example brief: “Keep the two adults together in the center, with their original jackets and left-to-right arrangement. The partner on the right has a subtle fictional zombie appearance; the person on the left remains human and reaches for their hand. Fog moves through the empty street. Restrained affection, no graphic injury.”

6. Review the setup before requesting a render

Compare the crop, the brief, and your intended audience. Is the action readable without an explanation? Does the scene respect both people’s comfort level? Is there a reason to show a close-up rather than a wide shot? Answering these questions now gives you a better basis for evaluating a future output.

SiShort Maker currently offers the preparation workflow and local previews. Paid AI video generation is not available yet. A prepared photo or preview is not a rendered video, and no free AI render is included.

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