Create a Repeatable AI Pre-Production Workflow
Goal of this Tutorial:
Learn how to build a unified visual lookbook, storyboard shot list, and pitch deck using Midjourney and Runway without losing visual continuity.
Prerequisites
- •Midjourney account
- •Basic understanding of camera focal lengths
Required Tool Stack
1. The Continuity Problem in Generative Art
The biggest mistake creators make when using generative AI for film pre-production is treating every prompt as an isolated image. This produces jarring shifts in lighting, film stock, and character appearance that ruin client pitch decks.
2. Creating Your Master Visual Seed
Start by generating a single master lighting and palette still that defines the emotional tone of your project. Once you achieve the desired lighting, save the image URL and append it with `--sref [URL] --sw 100` to all subsequent shot prompts.
Cinematic 35mm film still of [character_description] inside [scene_location], [cinematography_lighting], Kodachrome color science, subtle lens halation on highlights, natural skin pores and micro-textures, directed by [director_style] --ar 2.39:1
Midjourney
3. Translating Stills into Motion Animatics
Export your approved keyframes and bring them into Runway Gen-3 Alpha. Use the Image-to-Video mode, specify only the camera movement in text (e.g. 'Slow cinematic dolly push in, 24fps'), and set camera motion speed to 2. This keeps the environment rock-solid while adding subtle life.
Runway
Common Production Mistakes to Avoid
- ✗Over-prompting motion models with too many adjectives that conflict with the source keyframe image.
- ✗Changing aspect ratios between shots in the same scene sequence.
- ✗Failing to lock character wardrobe reference images before generating close-ups.
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