5.3 YAML Control in Seedance 2

🧠 Why YAML Works

AI doesn’t think—it interprets structure. Instead of one long, confusing prompt, we divide everything into logical blocks: camera, action, lighting, transitions. Clear structure = predictable results.

🎬 Central principle

Without a storyboard, the model improvises and breaks continuity. We start with a clear character and a 6-shot storyboard: drone → scale · wide → speed · medium → control · close-up → emotion · action → jump · wide → release.

🔒 The Identity Lock

We lock in the character using the reference. This preserves their face, proportions, and design—no drift, no redesigns.

YAML — identity lock

character:
  id: protagonist
  base: "matching reference @image1 with strict identity lock"
  lock:
    - face
    - proportions
    - design
  consistency: "all shots — no drift, no redesign"

🔎 What the lock preserves

•Face — with no change between shots
•Aspect ratios — stable body and scale
•Design — consistent wardrobe and features

🧱 The Building Blocks: Camera, Action, Lighting, Transitions

Each block controls one dimension of the scene. See a complete shot, with time blocks in the format 00_02:

YAML — shot block

shot_03:
  camera:
    type: tracking
    angle: low
    behavior: steady
  action:
    00_02: "rider accelerates, dust rises behind"
    02_04: "jump off the cliff edge, body leans forward"
  lighting:
    key: "golden hour, sun from camera left"
    mood: "warm, high contrast"
  transition_out: whip_pan

💡 Functional separation

The strength of YAML is that it isolates each function. Camera ≠ action. When something breaks, it’s obvious which block to adjust—you don’t rewrite everything.

📐 The Essential YAML Rules

If the structure breaks, the result breaks. These are the non-negotiable rules:

One function per field

Camera ≠ action. Do not mix roles in the same field.

Simple, controlled camera

A logical path per shot, without excessive movement.

Physical movement, not ideas

Describe what moves, not abstract concepts.

Always include lighting

Never leave the light source to chance.

Set time blocks

00_02, 02_04... — divide the action over time.

Write the transitions

Explicit in every shot — never implicit.

✂️ The Transitions — Applied

Transitions control pacing, emotion, and attention. They define how the scene is felt.

cut

Hard cut → structure

The foundation that organizes the sequence.

whip_pan

Fast pan → speed

Connects shots with energy and movement.

smash_cut

Impact cut → impact

Abrupt cut for shock or surprise.

match_on_action

Match-on-action cut → fluidity

Hide the cut within a continuous movement.

⚠️ AI limitations

In Seedance, transitions often break — movement can drift, timing can fail, shots can collapse. That’s normal. AI doesn’t execute perfectly — it approximates. You need to iterate.

🎞️ Cinematic Structure

A good sequence flows. This is the backbone of every well-directed scene in Seedance 2:

🎥 Final idea

This is cinematic structure. The goal isn't just to generate video — it's to control it like a filmmaker.

📝 Task — 6-Shot Sequence in YAML

Create a sequence of 6 shots:

🎬Build a storyboard
🧾Write a YAML prompt
✂️Apply at least 3 transitions

The goal is control, not just generation. 🎬

📌 Module Summary

✓

YAML is control — AI interprets structure; it doesn't think.

✓

Identity Lock — strict identity lock preserves the face, proportions, and design.

✓

One function per field — time blocks 00_02; explicit transitions.

✓

Flow — scale → speed → emotion → action → release.

Next Module:

5.4 — Practical Visual Effects

← Back to Track Next Module →