A gentle storybook episode with two original animal characters that must look the same in every scene.
Untested. We have not rendered a video from this brief yet. Rendering costs credits, so it has not been run; the draft steps (scenes, edits, price quote) are free.
Hook (nine words or fewer)
“A paper fox crosses a very wet garden.”
Frame 1, already in motion
An orange paper fox mid-step on a wet leaf, raindrops already hitting it.
The brief to paste
Make a 60-second storybook mini-episode with AutoShort. Art style WATERCOLOR, 9:16, English narration (language en). Hook, my first spoken line and first caption: "A paper fox crosses a very wet garden." Frame 1 is already moving: an orange paper fox mid-step on a wet leaf, raindrops hitting it. Scenes, one idea each: 1. Hook: Pip the fox steps out into the rain. 2. Pip sees a glowing window across the garden. 3. Pip tries the open path and gets soaked. 4. Moss the snail appears with a tiny lantern on its shell. 5. Moss shows a dry way under the leaves. 6. They walk it together, slowly. 7. They arrive at the window. A warm, cosy ending. Look of every image: soft storybook watercolour. Character lock, repeated at the start of every scene visual: "Pip, a curious fox made of folded orange paper, sharp ears, white paper tail tip; Moss, a sleepy green snail with a tiny lantern on its shell". Exactly one or two characters per scene, never a third animal. No people, no writing in images. Ending: A warm and cosy last line. Keep both characters looking identical in every scene. If a scene visual would show a third creature, remove it. Write the scenes yourself and show me the narration and the visual of every scene before anything renders. Keep the narration to about 145 words. Price it with autoshort_estimate_cost. Render only after I say yes.
- Art style
WATERCOLOR(Watercolor). Storybook look from the repo template. The character description must be repeated in each scene visual: the product only locks a character automatically for STICKMAN.- Length and format
- 60 seconds, 9:16.
- Language
- Narration: English (en).
- Voice
- Not selectable on the draft path: the product narrates with its default voice. Steer the delivery with short sentences and plain punctuation; premium ElevenLabs voices are a separate paid option (see the options table). A gentle narrator comes from short sentences.
- Caption look
- Picked automatically through MCP. In the dashboard's Motion graphics (beta) style, the "Paper" look is the first one listed for this genre.
- Estimated cost
- 40 credits (about $0.63 on the Starter plan, $0.80 at the $0.02-per-credit list rate). Ask for the price first: autoshort_estimate_cost quotes it for free.
- Tools it triggers
autoshort_list_optionsautoshort_draft_videoautoshort_get_draftautoshort_update_draftautoshort_estimate_costautoshort_render_draft
Visual direction for the images
- Paste the same character description (colour, material, one marking) at the start of every scene visual. The visual limit per scene is 600 characters; keep the description to about 150.
- One subject per scene wherever the story allows it. Duos drift: name exactly who is in the frame.
- Ask for the pose you want ("on all four paws"), because models default to the pose they see most.
- Rain and lantern light give a continuous look; use them in every scene.
Two variations
Bedtime, 45 seconds: “Pip the fox cannot sleep tonight.”
Same characters, a slower bedtime story that ends with Pip asleep.
Make a 45-second bedtime storybook episode with AutoShort. Art style WATERCOLOR, 9:16, English narration (language en). Hook, my first spoken line and first caption: "Pip the fox cannot sleep tonight." Frame 1 is already moving: an orange paper fox turning over in a leaf bed, eyes wide open, a lantern glowing nearby. Scenes, one idea each: 1. Hook: Pip turns over again. 2. Moss the snail glides by with a lantern. 3. Moss shows Pip the slowest, calmest way to breathe. 4. They watch the rain on the window. 5. Pip falls asleep. Moss keeps the lantern low. Look of every image: soft storybook watercolour, character lock "Pip, a curious fox made of folded orange paper; Moss, a sleepy green snail with a tiny lantern" at the start of every scene visual, no people, no writing in images. Ending: A hushed last line. Write the scenes yourself and show me the narration and the visual of every scene before anything renders. Keep the narration to about 108 words. Price it with autoshort_estimate_cost. Render only after I say yes.
Comedy beat, 30 seconds: “Pip tried to outrun the rain. The rain won.”
A single joke: the fox is wetter every scene.
Make a 30-second comedy storybook short with AutoShort. Art style WATERCOLOR, 9:16, English narration (language en). Hook, my first spoken line and first caption: "Pip tried to outrun the rain. The rain won." Frame 1 is already moving: an orange paper fox sprinting along a garden path, raindrops splashing behind. Scenes, one idea each: 1. Hook: the sprint. 2. A puddle appears. Pip leaps. Pip lands in it. 3. Pip wrings out its tail. 4. Moss the snail passes, dry under a leaf. 5. Moss says nothing. Pip says nothing. Look of every image: soft storybook watercolour, character lock "Pip, a fox made of folded orange paper; Moss, a green snail with a tiny lantern" at the start of every scene visual, no people, no writing in images. Ending: A deadpan last line. Write the scenes yourself and show me the narration and the visual of every scene before anything renders. Keep the narration to about 70 words. Price it with autoshort_estimate_cost. Render only after I say yes.
Do not
Do not describe two animals as one character sheet or one scene when you can avoid it: a second, unrequested animal appeared in a shot and failed an episode.
What we saw: Shot 4 showed a second, small capybara-like animal next to the main one and a distorted body; the episode failed QA and was not posted. (our note: qa-dumpling-ep4.md, line 29.)
Do not leave the pose to the model: a character drawn upright in every view stood up whenever it was startled.
What we saw: The animal was drawn upright in every reference view, so the model stood her up when startled; "on all four legs" is the fix. (our note: qa-dumpling-ep1.md, line 64.)
Do not open "In a soft watercolour world..." on a wide forest group shot.
What we saw: A bedtime story opened on a wide establishing frame and a 16-plus-word "In a soft watercolour world..." first sentence. (our note: hook-first-2026-10-26.md, line 20.)
Do not let the look change between scenes: name the same style words and light in every visual.
What we saw: The look drifted between realistic fur in some shots and cartoon in others. (our note: qa-dumpling-ep1.md, line 47.)
Related real videos (not made from this recipe)
StoryShort fox bedtime story, watercolour, 25 Oct (sibling product, not this recipe)
Made in our sibling product StoryShort, not through AutoShort. YouTube: 0 views at the 28 Oct read. Facebook Reel: 343 views, 3-second rate 9.9 %, biggest drop at 0:02. It opened on a wide establishing shot.
Our note: measurements-2026-10-28-storyshort.md, line 11,31.
Also see Kids-safe bedtime stories use case, all prompts and what each step costs.