I Love The Smiths: the elevator scene, starring you and your person

How to make an I Love The Smiths video yourself

You do not need this page to make one. This is how the video is put together, with the prompts for every shot, so you can build it with any picture model and image-to-video model you like.

1. Step 1

   Draw the two of them side by side

   Use a picture model that takes reference photos and draw the opening two-shot from the waist up: the first person on the left in big black headphones, the second on the right holding a few folders, both faces large. Describe the elevator in full and say there are no buttons, numbers or writing in it.

2. Step 2

   Draw the close shots, then the later ones from the earlier

   Draw each close shot from that person's photo alone. For the stunned close shot, add the first close shot of the same person as a second reference, and for the last two-shot, add the opening one, asking the model to keep the clothes and the elevator but put the headphones round the neck.

3. Step 3

   Animate, trim to the lines and cut

   Give each still to an image-to-video model. Trim the shots to 2.1, 1.3, 2.8, 2.8 and 7 seconds, lay them end to end at 9:16 with hard cuts, and add the scene's sound on TikTok from its beginning, so the line lands half a second in and "Sorry?" at about 2.6 seconds.

The shots, second by second

The prompts, shot by shot

Each shot is made in two steps. Give its still prompt to a picture model with the photos listed for that shot as references, then give the picture it draws to an image-to-video model with the motion prompt. Add these endings to every prompt: they set the look and keep the faces the same from shot to shot.

1. 0–2.1sThe line

   Photos to attach, in orderImage 1: In the headphonesImage 2: Says the line

   Still prompt

   Copy

   A medium two-shot from the waist up: two people stand side by side close together, their heads in the upper half of the frame, both faces large and fully in view. On the left, the person in image 1, wearing exactly the clothes they wear in image 1, every layer of them, down to the collar, with big black over-ear headphones with a thick padded band and no logo on their ears, stares straight ahead with a blank, faraway look, mouth closed. On the right, the person in image 2, wearing exactly the clothes they wear in image 2, every layer of them, down to the collar, with a few plain beige cardboard folders held against their chest, faces the camera with their eyes glancing sideways at the one in the headphones, a small curious smile. They are inside a small old office elevator: dark polished wood-panelled walls with thin brushed-steel strips between the panels, warm dim light from the ceiling. No buttons, floor numbers, signs or writing anywhere. Nobody else is in the elevator.

   Motion prompt

   Copy

   Immediately the one on the right turns their head to the one on the left and says a few short words to them with a warm little smile. The one on the left keeps staring straight ahead and does not hear, the headphones on their ears. The camera holds still. It stays the same elevator under the same warm, dim light throughout.

2. 2.1–3.4s"Sorry?"

   Photo to attachIn the headphones

   Still prompt

   Copy

   A close shot from the chest up: their head and shoulders fill the frame. The person in the reference photo, wearing exactly the clothes they wear in the photo, every layer of them, down to the collar, with big black over-ear headphones with a thick padded band and no logo on their ears, one hand raised to the ear cup on the right, about to lift it off. Their head is turned toward the right edge of the picture, eyebrows drawn together in a puzzled frown, face in full view. Behind them is a small old office elevator: dark polished wood-panelled walls with thin brushed-steel strips between the panels, warm dim light from the ceiling. No buttons, floor numbers, signs or writing anywhere.

   Motion prompt

   Copy

   Immediately they lift the ear cup off their ear and ask a one-word question toward the right of the picture, frowning, puzzled. Then they hold still, listening. The camera holds still. It stays the same elevator under the same warm, dim light throughout.

3. 3.4–6.2sAgain

   Photo to attachSays the line

   Still prompt

   Copy

   A close shot from the chest up: their head and shoulders fill the frame. The person in the reference photo, wearing exactly the clothes they wear in the photo, every layer of them, down to the collar, with a few plain beige cardboard folders held against their chest, is turned toward the left edge of the picture with a warm, amused smile, mouth closed, face in full view. Behind them is a small old office elevator: dark polished wood-panelled walls with thin brushed-steel strips between the panels, warm dim light from the ceiling. No buttons, floor numbers, signs or writing anywhere.

   Motion prompt

   Copy

   Immediately they say one short sentence toward the left of the picture, a little louder and slower, with a warm smile, then hold the smile and glance down shyly. The camera holds still. It stays the same elevator under the same warm, dim light throughout.

4. 6.2–9sSpeechless

   Photo to attachIn the headphones

   Still prompt

   Copy

   A close shot from the chest up: their head and shoulders fill the frame. The person in the reference photo, wearing exactly the clothes they wear in the photo and in the other frame, every layer of them, down to the collar, the same headphones now hanging around their neck, not on their ears. Their head is turned toward the right edge of the picture, lips parted and eyebrows raised, stunned, face in full view. Behind them is the same elevator as in the other frame, with nothing written anywhere.

   Motion prompt

   Copy

   They stay frozen, staring toward the right of the picture, stunned and charmed, lips parted; they blink slowly once and swallow. They do not talk. The camera holds still. It stays the same elevator under the same warm, dim light throughout.

5. 9–16sThe song

   Photos to attach, in orderImage 1: In the headphonesImage 2: Says the line

   Still prompt

   Copy

   A medium two-shot from the waist up, the two side by side as in the other frame, both faces fully in view. On the left, the person in image 1, in the same clothes as in the other frame, the headphones now hanging around their neck, is turned toward the one on the right, staring at them, stunned, lips parted. On the right, the person in image 2, in the same clothes as in the other frame, with a few plain beige cardboard folders held against their chest, half turned toward the one on the left with a warm smile. They are inside the same elevator as in the other frame, with nothing written anywhere. Nobody else is in the elevator.

   Motion prompt

   Copy

   The one on the right says a few more words to the one on the left with a warm smile and a small nod, then faces ahead, closes their eyes and softly mouths the words of a song, swaying gently from side to side, a dreamy smile on their face. The one on the left keeps staring at them, stunned and charmed, lips parted. The camera holds still. It stays the same elevator under the same warm, dim light throughout.

Where it goes wrong

• Go by place and prop, not gender

  Write "the person on the left in the headphones" and "the person on the right with the folders", never "the man" and "the woman". Gendered parts break the moment two friends of the same gender play it, and they invite the model to swap who is who.

• Send only one photo to a one-person shot

  Sent both photos for a close-up of one person, a picture model can mix the two faces or draw the wrong one. Give each close shot only the photo of the person in it, and keep both photos for the two-shots, with each person's place said.

• Start the "Sorry?" with the hand on the cup

  That shot lasts just over a second, and a clip that starts with the hands down spends it reaching up. Draw the hand already on the ear cup and start the motion with "Immediately", so the cup comes off on the first frames.

• Do not name the band, the song or the film

  A picture model draws what it is told about: names bring record sleeves, posters, lettering and lookalikes of the actors. Describe the moment instead, someone saying a few words with a smile, and leave the words themselves to the sound.

• Only people who said yes

  Use your own photo and one of someone who agreed. The trend is full of celebrity pairs; do not use celebrities, the actors from the film, or anyone who has not agreed to be in it: a realistic video of real people in a moment they never had, made without their consent, can hurt them, and platforms take it down.

• Label it as AI-generated

  Switch on TikTok's AI-generated content label before you post. A flirty elevator moment between two real people is exactly the kind of clip viewers take at face value, and they trust a post that says it is AI.