What to fill in
| Bracket | What to put | Example |
|---|---|---|
| [character name] | Call your character with @, or write "the character" and attach a clear front-facing reference. | @Captain Rosa |
| The emotions | Replace "and others" with the exact list your UI or story needs. | "smug, shocked, crying, cheering, sleepy" |
When do you use an expression sheet?
Whenever a character has to react. Dialogue systems need a portrait per mood. Win and lose screens need a face that matches the moment. Social and community teams need reactions they can post the same day.
One sheet covers all of it, ready for the UI and narrative teams, instead of nine separate requests to an illustrator.
What breaks, and how do you fix it?
Three things: the face drifts between cells, so cell nine doesn't look like cell one. Expressions come out generic or over the top. And framing changes across the grid, so the portraits don't line up in the UI.
- Attach a clear front-facing reference. The model holds a face better when it can see it.
- Name the exact emotions. "Happy, sad, angry" gets you stock faces. "Smug" and "sleepy" get you your character.
- Ask for the same framing in every cell. Same crop, same head size, same angle.
- If the face drifts, switch models. Rerun on another model and compare. Compare image models does this in one request.
Variations to try
Create six separate images of @[character], each a different emote (laughing, angry, thumbs up, crying, love, confused), bust shot on a plain background.
Create a 2x2 grid of @[character] in neutral, happy, worried and angry, same three-quarter framing in every cell.
FAQ
Do I need a trained character?
+
No. You can attach a reference image and write "the character". A character you've already set up in Genie and call with @ stays on-model more reliably.
Can I get each expression as a separate image?
+
Yes. Ask for separate images instead of a grid. The grid is faster to review; separate images are easier to drop into UI.
How many expressions can one sheet hold?
+
Nine is the sweet spot for a 3x3 grid at readable size. For more, run a second sheet with the same reference and framing.
