higgsfield-pipeline

# Higgsfield Production Pipeline

## QUICK FACTS
*Generated-checked block (build_index.py verifies anchors). Read the linked sections for full context — these lines are routing aids, not the rules themselves.*
- 8-stage Master Chain: Popcorn → Seedream/Soul → Animate → Recast → Lipsync → Vibe Motion → Upscale → Assemble; most good short-form uses 3–5 stages [→](#the-master-production-chain)
- Lock 9 project fields before touching any tool; "what must stay consistent" is the load-bearing one [→](#step-01-start-with-the-project-not-the-prompt)
- One job per scene — six scene purposes; a good scene prompt answers six questions [→](#step-06-give-every-scene-one-job)
- 7 reusable prompt-module types: character identity, camera, lighting, style, motion, negative prompt, continuity [→](#step-07-use-prompt-modules)
- 80% rule: keep what worked, fix only the mistake; every diagnosed failure becomes a new negative rule [→](#step-0809-fix-failures-protect-what-worked)
- Build in 8 passes: Concept → Project script → Scene breakdown → Shot list → Image prompts → Video prompts → Review → Fix [→](#step-10-build-the-project-in-passes)
- Use the EXACT same character description (copy-paste) in every Popcorn prompt — continuity without Soul ID [→](#stage-1-storyboard-with-popcorn)
- Seedream edits the image, not the video — always edit the Hero Frame before animating, never after [→](#stage-2-image-editing-with-seedream)
- Model by scene type: Sora 2 for stunts/epic ("one continuous shot, no cuts"), Kling 2.6 portraits, Seedance quiet interiors [→](#stage-3-animate-by-scene-type)
- Recast swaps identity while preserving motion, camera, and lighting; the "prompt" is the reference image you upload [→](#stage-4-recast-character-swap)
- Audio routing: existing video + speech → Lipsync Studio; new content with audio → Kling 3.0; talking head → Kling Avatars 2.0 [→](#stage-5-lipsync-audio)
- Higgsfield has no native timeline editor — assemble in DaVinci Resolve / Premiere / CapCut [→](#stage-8-assembly)
- Pipeline E hard rules: 15-second cap per scene, one generation per style, feed the previous scene's video as continuity reference [→](#stage-5-seedance-20-with-keyframe-previous-video)
- Soul Cinema keyframes: deliberately short 5–15 word prompts with enhancer ON — long prompts starve the enhancer [→](#stage-1-soul-cinema-keyframe-style-first-enhancer-on)
- Never describe character age in Seedance prompts; >15s per scene degrades prompt adherence — split the scene [→](#pipeline-e-pitfalls)
- Draw a top-down schema when 2+ characters, a key prop placement, or complex camera geometry — prompt in absolute terms ("A 2m from B") [→](#spatial-blocking-top-down-schema-for-multi-character-scenes)
- Never animate a "good enough" image; if the character looks wrong in the Hero Frame, Recast is the fix — not the animation prompt [→](#pipeline-pitfalls)


## The Core Insight

Every Higgsfield tool is strong individually. The real power is when you chain them.
A professional result almost always involves at least 3 tools in sequence.
This skill documents the key chains and how to prompt for each stage.

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## Building Complete AI Projects — The 10-Step Methodology

The Core Insight above answers *why* you chain tools. The next
question is *how to plan the project* before any tool is touched.
Most people skip planning and start prompting straight from a
creative impulse — a generation here, a clip there, hoping the
pieces will connect. They don't. A project that's planned at the
script and bible level lands consistently; a project assembled
prompt-by-prompt drifts on character, style, and continuity within
three or four generations.

This section documents a 10-step methodology for building complete
AI projects — from idea through finished sequence — that sits
upstream of the Master Production Chain below. Use these 10 Steps
as a planning discipline; use Pipelines A-E to execute the
tool-level chain once your project plan is locked. The closing §
Simple Workflow gives the imperative-action version of the same 10
Steps if you want the execution recipe before the principles.

### Step 01 — Start With the Project, Not the Prompt

Before writing a single prompt, define what you are building. The
AI cannot read your intent; if you skip this step the model fills
in the gaps with whatever the prompt happens to suggest, and the
project drifts within the first few generations.

Lock these nine fields before any tool is touched:

- Project type
- Main subject
- Visual style
- Scene goal
- Audience
- Mood
- Length
- Setting
- What must stay consistent

The last field is the load-bearing one. If you don't know what
must stay consistent across the project, every other field can be
locked and the result will still feel disjointed.

### Step 02 — Build a Master Script

A Master Script is the project blueprint — the single document
that keeps every scene connected to the same goal. It does not
have to be a Hollywood screenplay; it just needs to explain the
full idea clearly.

> **Master Script disambiguation.** "Master Script" in this
> context means the structured project document, not a screenplay.
> The source explicitly notes "it does not have to be a Hollywood
> screenplay; it just needs to explain the full idea clearly."
> This is distinct from Hollywood screenplay craft (slug lines,
> action lines, character cues, transitions) — that's a different
> discipline and is not in this skill's scope.

The Master Script should include:

- The story or concept
- The scene order
- The main characters or products
- The visual style
- The camera rules
- The setting
- The emotional tone
- The continuity rules
- What should never happen

Without a Master Script, each prompt becomes its own random
island. With one, every prompt belongs to the same project —
characters carry between scenes, the visual style holds, and the
negative rules ("what should never happen") stay out of the
output.

### Step 03 — Use GPT as Your Creative Assistant

Do not