Project Overview

In this project, I created a series of stylized AI-generated animated character portraits set in a shared utopian universe called “Pixar Sweater Weather Group of Friends.” The creative intent was to test visual consistency and diversity of design across multiple characters while maintaining a unified, storybook like style demonstrating strong emotional tone and cohesive visual storytelling using AI and editing tools.

Tools & Workflow

ChatGPT – Character Ideation & Prompt Scaffolding

Midjourney – Moodboards & Consistent Character Generation

Figma – Post-Processing, Refinement & Color System Alignment

Adobe - Adjustments in upscaling, skin tone consistency, visual alignment

Inspiration & Visual Research

Grounding the Characters Through Sketching

I clarified what the character needed to communicate emotionally

I identified visual constraints early (shape language, balance, posture)
I established a human led creative intent that AI could execute against

Establishing a Core Color System in Figma

Primary color system that would anchor the visual world before generating any imagery.

Prompting Strategy: From Sketch Reference to Locked Character

I treated my sketches as reference anchors, using them to guide how I described proportions, expression, softness, and overall character energy within prompts.

Does this output align with the character I sketched—or is it drifting into something unintended?

Cross Tool Prompt Exploration & Testing

Each generated output was evaluated against three criteria:

Sketch alignment – Does this match the original proportions and emotional read?
System fit – Does it work within the established color and lighting system?
Scalability – Could this character be convincingly reproduced in future scenes?

Expanding the Character System: Expression & Pose Variation

I shifted focus to system level character expansion exploring how each character could express emotion and movement while remaining visually consistent.

Fixing AI Artifacts

Skin Tone Consistency & Cultural Nuance

Scaling the World : Backgrounds, New Characters & Story Development

Story sequencing where each image was designed to communicate:

Emotional state
Relationship dynamics
A sense of forward movement in the story

Exploring Motion: Experimenting With Animated Prompting

What I Learned From Motion Exploration:

Strong static systems are prerequisites for motion
Characters that aren’t consistent in still form will not hold up in animation
Prompt discipline becomes even more critical when time and movement are introduced
Even minimal motion can dramatically increase emotional engagement

Scalable content

Reusable Prompt (Placeholders)

A friendly, stylized 3D illustration of a young girl with light brown skin and voluminous curly orange hair styled into two puff buns. She has soft freckles across her cheeks, warm expressive eyes, a small rounded nose, and a gentle, joyful presence. She is wearing a fuzzy mint-colored knit sweater with pink and yellow embroidered flower appliqués, classic blue jeans, and pink sneakers, along with a small pastel backpack.

The character is [pose/action], expressing [emotion/expression], maintaining the same facial proportions, hair texture, skin tone, and outfit details as the reference character.

The scene takes place in [background/scene context], captured in a [camera framing: full-body / medium / portrait] shot, with soft studio-style lighting, even illumination, subtle shadows, and a clean, child-friendly aesthetic.

Pixar-inspired, high-quality 3D character design, soft materials, cozy fabric textures, smooth skin shading, rounded forms, and polished animation-ready rendering. Maintain consistent character identity, proportions, and visual style across generations.

Parameters

--seed 28473619

--style reference: [UPLOAD THIS IMAGE AS A STYLE REF OR IMAGE PROMPT]

--v 6

--stylize 400

--quality 2

--chaos 0

--ar 2:3

Key Takeaway

By building repeatable prompting systems, I shifted the project from:

Creative exploration → Scalable content infrastructure