---
name: start-frame-lock
title: Start-frame character lock
summary: Keep the same face in image-to-video models by giving every shot its own start frame of the character.
tags: [video, character]
---
# Start-frame character lock

Video models that support saved characters (Kling Elements and similar) often ignore the character when a shot has no start frame. The result is a stranger with the right outfit. The fix is cheap: make a start frame for every shot first.

## Steps
1. **Reference sheet.** One clean image of the character: front face, full body, same outfit. This is the only source of truth.
2. **Start frame per shot.** Use an image model that accepts a reference image. Prompt: "Cinematic film still, 16:9, the opening frame of this shot: [the character from the reference image, exactly the same face, hair and outfit] [what happens in the first second]."
3. **Check the frame.** Face, hair, outfit, hands. Reject and regenerate before you spend any video time on it.
4. **Video.** Start frame + the saved character in the prompt + the motion for this shot. Keep the camera move simple for the first second so the model stays on the start frame.
5. **Verify.** Pull 3 frames from every clip (start, middle, end) and compare with the reference sheet side by side.

## Why it works
The start frame pins identity at frame one; the saved character keeps it while the camera moves. Either one alone drifts.

## Common mistakes
- A start frame from a different lighting setup than the shot description: the model fights the light and the face shifts.
- Close-up start frame for a wide moving shot: the model invents a new body.
- Batch-generating video before checking start frames.