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Prompt Mortem

The Graveyard FLUX 3 Video Case #001

FLUX 3 Video: The Joker, a Human Ceiling Fan, and The Shining.

mixed

Three 15-second tests examining facial identity, complex choreography and environmental animation. The results ranged from catastrophic identity drift to mechanical movement and underwhelming atmosphere.

Model
Black Forest Labs · FLUX 3 Video
Provider
Black Forest Labs
Modality
Video
Published
3 Nov 2026
Recorded cost
USD 5.10

The assignment

Objective

Evaluate FLUX 3 Video’s suitability for creative filmmaking using three image-to-video experiments: subtle facial acting and identity preservation, complex full-body choreography, and environmental animation. Assess visual consistency, motion quality, prompt adherence, physical plausibility, camera movement, and whether the resulting footage is usable in an actual production.

Expected outcome

Three coherent, cinematic 15-second clips that preserve their starting images while following the requested motion. The facial test should deliver restrained expressions without changing the character’s identity. The choreography test should demonstrate fluid, physically believable athletic movement. The environmental test should maintain architectural consistency while animating lighting, haze, reflections, and camera movement. Ideally, each output should be usable with minimal editing.

Attempts

Attempt 01

Black Forest Labs · FLUX 3 Video · Black Forest Labs · USD 1.70

Original prompt

Prompt · attempt 01

Single continuous cinematic shot. The man sits in a luxurious nightclub VIP booth, watching something off-camera. The camera slowly pushes toward his face. He subtly tilts his head, narrows his eyes with curiosity, then raises one eyebrow. A faint, knowing smile forms at the corner of his mouth. He quietly says "Interesting" in a deep, calm masculine voice.

Restrained, realistic microexpressions, natural blinking and breathing, accurate lip sync. Preserve his exact facial identity, clothing and environment from the reference image. Crimson ambient lighting with natural skin tones, shallow depth of field, photorealistic cinematic quality. No cuts, no exaggerated movements, no subtitles or music. Subtle nightclub ambience.

Input media

Experiment evidence

first_frame.jpg

Start frame · JPG · 1280×704 · 0.04 seconds · 40.6 KB

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Primary generated output

output.mp4

Black Forest Labs · FLUX 3 Video · Output video · MP4 · 1280×704 · 15.042 seconds · 6.55 MB

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Supporting evidence

Technical details
Model
Black Forest Labs · FLUX 3 Video
Provider
Black Forest Labs
Cost
USD 1.70

Attempt 02

Black Forest Labs · FLUX 3 Video · Black Forest Labs · USD 1.70

Original prompt

Prompt · attempt 02

Single continuous cinematic shot. A male performer with long black hair, wearing a black sleeveless shirt and leather trousers, grips a vertical pole on a nightclub stage. He takes two quick steps, builds momentum and launches into an athletic aerial spin. Both feet leave the floor as his body extends horizontally, rotating twice around the pole. His hair swings naturally. He lowers his legs, lands gracefully and turns toward the audience. The camera smoothly tracks around him, keeping his full body visible. Realistic gravity, momentum, anatomy, hand grips and fabric movement. Preserve his exact facial identity, physique and outfit. Crimson ambient lighting, natural skin tones, photorealistic cinematic quality. No cuts, slow motion or subtitles.

Input media

Experiment evidence

first_frame.jpg

Start frame · JPG · 1280×704 · 0.04 seconds · 41.8 KB

Download original

Primary generated output

output.mp4

Black Forest Labs · FLUX 3 Video · Output video · MP4 · 1280×704 · 15.042 seconds · 11.1 MB

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Supporting evidence

Technical details
Model
Black Forest Labs · FLUX 3 Video
Provider
Black Forest Labs
Cost
USD 1.70

Attempt 03

Black Forest Labs · FLUX 3 Video · Black Forest Labs · USD 1.70

Original prompt

Prompt · attempt 03

Single continuous cinematic shot of an empty luxury nightclub. The camera glides slowly forward toward the circular stage, then gently arcs to the right, revealing the illuminated VIP seating behind it. Deep crimson ambient lighting pulses subtly while narrow white spotlights sweep through drifting atmospheric haze. Thin layers of smoke curl naturally around the stage floor. Candle flames flicker gently, and reflections shift realistically across polished black marble. Rich shadows, elegant architecture, realistic volumetric lighting, smooth cinematic camera movement, subtle nightclub ambience. Preserve the exact architecture and composition of the starting image. Photorealistic, atmospheric, luxurious and mysterious. No people, no cuts, no text overlays.

Input media

Experiment evidence

first_frame.jpg

Start frame · JPG · 1280×704 · 0.04 seconds · 58.8 KB

Download original

Primary generated output

output.mp4

Black Forest Labs · FLUX 3 Video · Output video · MP4 · 1280×704 · 15.042 seconds · 9.7 MB

Download original

Supporting evidence

Technical details
Model
Black Forest Labs · FLUX 3 Video
Provider
Black Forest Labs
Cost
USD 1.70

The observations

The results varied considerably by task. The facial animation began with a recognisable character but progressively changed his facial appearance, culminating in an exaggerated Joker-like grin. The athletic performance produced recognisable aerial poses but choppy, repetitive rotation with little expressive choreography. The empty nightclub maintained its architecture more successfully and delivered a coherent camera move, although the requested lighting and atmospheric effects were underwhelming. Overall, environmental consistency was stronger than character performance in these three tests.

The autopsy

What worked

The model produced visually appealing individual frames with reasonably consistent lighting and environments. Clothing and broad body anatomy remained recognisable during portions of the athletic sequence. The nightclub’s architectural geometry held together comparatively well during camera movement. Starting-frame composition and overall cinematic colour treatment were generally preserved. The environmental test demonstrated potential for relatively simple establishing shots.

What failed

Significant identity drift during facial animation. Exaggerated expressions despite requests for restraint. Choppy motion and mechanical, repetitive choreography with insufficient control over transitions and momentum. Weak performance personality and limited prompt adherence. Underdeveloped atmospheric effects in the environmental test. None of the three outputs fully achieved the intended creative result. The choreography prompt’s explicit request for two rotations may also have contributed to the repetitive motion.

Production implications

These results would require substantial selection, regeneration, or post-production to fit a character-driven film. Identity drift makes the facial test unsuitable for continuity-critical scenes, while mechanical movement makes the choreography test difficult to use convincingly. Environmental shots appear more promising, particularly when camera movement is simple and human performance is absent. For this workflow, FLUX 3 Video does not currently offer sufficient confidence to justify further paid testing based on these three attempts alone.

Editorial verdict

FLUX 3 Video: The Joker, a ceiling fan, and a nightclub from The Shining. I wanted three cinematic sequences. Instead, Marcus underwent an unsolicited facial reconstruction, Kai discovered his true calling as industrial ventilation, and the nightclub looked ready to welcome Jack Torrance. Technically, there are things to appreciate. Some frames look great, the environments hold together reasonably well, and the camera movement isn’t hopeless. But I don’t make films out of screenshots. I need movement, consistency, believable physics, and characters who remain the same fucking person throughout the shot. In these tests, FLUX 3 couldn’t reliably deliver that. Three generations later, my wallet is lighter and my confidence is nonexistent. Final verdict: Not fit for my production workflow. At least the comedy was free. 💀

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