Artist's Choice · OpenArt Music Video Awards · 2025
Artist’s Choice · OpenArt Music Video Awards · 2025
Jenna Ortega
Jenna Ortega
Jenna Ortega
A dark fairy tale for Stellar. A woman goes on four dates, turns each guy into a pony, then makes a fur coat out of them. Stellar picked it himself.
A dark fairy tale for Stellar. A woman goes on four dates, turns each guy into a pony, then makes a fur coat out of them. Stellar picked it himself.
10
10
days of active work
days of active work
98
98
shots in the final cut, 2:04 long
shots in the final cut, 2:04 long
2,000+
2,000+
stills generated
stills generated
200+
200+
video clips generated
video clips generated
Overview
Overview
I made a two minute AI music video for Stellar's song "Jenna Ortega", start to finish, on my own. Concept, characters, sets, every shot, the edit and the finish.
I made a two minute AI music video for Stellar’s song “Jenna Ortega”, start to finish, on my own. Concept, characters, sets, every shot, the edit and the finish.
It won the Artist's Choice award at the first OpenArt Music Video Awards, picked by Stellar himself. A year on, it's a useful marker of how much the process has changed.
It won the Artist’s Choice award at the first OpenArt Music Video Awards, picked by Stellar himself. A year on, it’s a useful marker of how much the process has changed.
01 · The numbers
01 · The numbers
What it took
What it took
What it took
Active time
Active time
About 10 days: 2 concept, 1 character design, 4 stills, 1 video, 1 edit, 1 polish. Plus a day to swap a character.
About 10 days: 2 concept, 1 character design, 4 stills, 1 video, 1 edit, 1 polish. Plus a day to swap a character.
Generation cost
Generation cost
About US$200 in credits, covered by OpenArt
About US$200 in credits, covered by OpenArt
Stills and clips
Stills and clips
2,000+ stills and 200+ video clips generated. 98 shots in the final cut.
2,000+ stills and 200+ video clips generated. 98 shots in the final cut.
Revision rounds
Revision rounds
3 to 4
3 to 4
Models
Models
Seedream 4.0 and Nano Banana for images. Kling 2.5 Turbo for most shots, Seedance 1.0 Pro for the rest.
Seedream 4.0 and Nano Banana for images. Kling 2.5 Turbo for most shots, Seedance 1.0 Pro for the rest.
Finishing
Finishing
Topaz to upscale, Premiere Pro to edit, After Effects for effects and polish, Photoshop for composites
Topaz to upscale, Premiere Pro to edit, After Effects for effects and polish, Photoshop for composites
02 · The brief
02 · The brief
One absurd detail
One absurd detail
One absurd detail
OpenArt ran a music video contest with a song by Stellar. The rules were simple: use the track as is, make the whole video with AI, and don't use Stellar's face or voice. Stellar would pick his own winner.
OpenArt ran a music video contest with a song by Stellar. The rules were simple: use the track as is, make the whole video with AI, and don’t use Stellar’s face or voice. Stellar would pick his own winner.
I played the song on repeat until something showed up. My first idea was a video game loop, a guy who keeps dying on dates with a woman who turns into a different villain every time. Clever, but it didn't grab me.
I played the song on repeat until something showed up. My first idea was a video game loop, a guy who keeps dying on dates with a woman who turns into a different villain every time. Clever, but it didn’t grab me.
The second idea came from Stellar's blonde tipped curls. What if that hair ended up on a pony? From there it came together fast. Cruella de Vil collecting coats, Pinocchio turning boys into donkeys, and modern dating. Jenna dates men, turns them into ponies, and each pony keeps the guy's hairstyle. That one detail is the whole video. It's how you know who's who after they change.
The second idea came from Stellar’s blonde tipped curls. What if that hair ended up on a pony? From there it came together fast. Cruella de Vil collecting coats, Pinocchio turning boys into donkeys, and modern dating. Jenna dates men, turns them into ponies, and each pony keeps the guy’s hairstyle. That one detail is the whole video. It’s how you know who’s who after they change.
The four ponies. Each one keeps its guy's hairstyle.
03 · How I made it
03 · How I made it
Five steps, a crew of one
Five steps, a crew of one
Five steps, a crew of one
I generated everything myself on OpenArt. Claude helped me write and tighten the shot prompts, and later the submission copy.
I generated everything myself on OpenArt. Claude helped me write and tighten the shot prompts, and later the submission copy.
1
1
Cast and wardrobe first
Cast and wardrobe first
I locked Jenna's look before anything else: black bob, burgundy lips, gothic fashion. Then four guys, each with a hairstyle that would still read on a pony. A black and white streak, blonde curls, light brown waves, a short afro. Every date got an outfit, and the four ponies' coats had to work together as one fur coat at the end. Seedream held consistency best, so it did most of the character work.
I locked Jenna’s look before anything else: black bob, burgundy lips, gothic fashion. Then four guys, each with a hairstyle that would still read on a pony. A black and white streak, blonde curls, light brown waves, a short afro. Every date got an outfit, and the four ponies’ coats had to work together as one fur coat at the end. Seedream held consistency best, so it did most of the character work.
Jenna · five looks
Coffee date
Restaurant
City walk
The stable
The coat
The four dates
Date 1 · short afro
Date 2 · light brown waves
Date 3 · black and white streak
Date 4 · blonde curls
Every hairstyle was picked so it would still read on a pony.
2
2
Sets that feel real
Sets that feel real
AI does big CGI scenes easily, so I went the other way: intimate and high fashion. Every location came from real references. A study where she plans, a lab where she makes the potion, a coffee shop, a restaurant with a lobster tank, a penthouse, a cathedral nightclub, a gothic stable, a cemetery. The lobster tank is a hint at what happens to the guys. I built each set empty first, so every shot in a location matched.
AI does big CGI scenes easily, so I went the other way: intimate and high fashion. Every location came from real references. A study where she plans, a lab where she makes the potion, a coffee shop, a restaurant with a lobster tank, a penthouse, a cathedral nightclub, a gothic stable, a cemetery. The lobster tank is a hint at what happens to the guys. I built each set empty first, so every shot in a location matched.
Coffee shop
Restaurant
Penthouse
The study
Sewing room
Jenna's bedroom
The lab
The stable
Cemetery
The sets, built empty first so every shot in a location matched.
3
3
Stills first, then motion
Stills first, then motion
About four days on stills, often 10 to 30 tries per shot. Nano Banana gave better lighting and proportions. Seedream gave consistency and 4K, so I could reframe before making video. Once a still was right, motion took a day. Kling 2.5 Turbo did most shots, and anything Kling flagged went to Seedance.
About four days on stills, often 10 to 30 tries per shot. Nano Banana gave better lighting and proportions. Seedream gave consistency and 4K, so I could reframe before making video. Once a still was right, motion took a day. Kling 2.5 Turbo did most shots, and anything Kling flagged went to Seedance.
The stable. Approved as a still before it moved.
One page of my OpenArt library. 2,000+ stills and 200+ clips by the end.
4
4
Fix the frame, don't re-roll
Fix the frame, don’t re-roll
Some shots I finished in Photoshop instead of generating again, like the cemetery and the fur coat reveal. When Stellar's management asked me to take his likeness out, I swapped that date for a new character and re-cut it in about a day. Each date was its own block in the edit, so the change stayed contained.
Some shots I finished in Photoshop instead of generating again, like the cemetery and the fur coat reveal. When Stellar’s management asked me to take his likeness out, I swapped that date for a new character and re-cut it in about a day. Each date was its own block in the edit, so the change stayed contained.
5
5
Edit and finish
Edit and finish
Cut to the song in Premiere, effects and polish in After Effects, a grade, then an upscale in Topaz.
Cut to the song in Premiere, effects and polish in After Effects, a grade, then an upscale in Topaz.
04 · Looking back
04 · Looking back
What worked, and what I'd change
What worked, and what I’d change
What worked, and what I’d change
What worked
What worked
The hair. Putting each guy's hairstyle on his pony meant I never had to explain anything. You see the curls and you know who that was. It also made the coat land, because you can spot every one of them in it.
The hair. Putting each guy’s hairstyle on his pony meant I never had to explain anything. You see the curls and you know who that was. It also made the coat land, because you can spot every one of them in it.
What I'd change
What I’d change
More time on character design up front. Once the look is set, every other shot references it. I'd make more variations, live with them for a day or two, and only then start. I'd also check the likeness rules before casting anyone who looks like the artist.
More time on character design up front. Once the look is set, every other shot references it. I’d make more variations, live with them for a day or two, and only then start. I’d also check the likeness rules before casting anyone who looks like the artist.
Making the coat
Spotted fur
Cream fur, measured
Brown fur, cut
Stitched together
The reveal. All four of them, in one coat.
Frames from the final film.
Credits
Credits
A normal production, minus the crew.
A normal production, minus the crew.
A normal production, minus the crew.
Coming from traditional production, this felt familiar, just without a team. I missed the high fives after a hard shot. But I could have an idea at the last minute and actually go and make it.
Coming from traditional production, this felt familiar, just without a team. I missed the high fives after a hard shot. But I could have an idea at the last minute and actually go and make it.
Music: "Jenna Ortega" by Stellar, for the OpenArt Music Video Awards. Concept, direction and edit: Phyo Thu. Images with Seedream 4.0 and Nano Banana, video with Kling 2.5 Turbo and Seedance 1.0 Pro, made on OpenArt. Upscaling: Topaz. Edit and finishing: Premiere Pro, After Effects, Photoshop. Prompt and copy help: Claude.
Music: “Jenna Ortega” by Stellar, for the OpenArt Music Video Awards. Concept, direction and edit: Phyo Thu. Images with Seedream 4.0 and Nano Banana, video with Kling 2.5 Turbo and Seedance 1.0 Pro, made on OpenArt. Upscaling: Topaz. Edit and finishing: Premiere Pro, After Effects, Photoshop. Prompt and copy help: Claude.
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© 2026 Phyo Thu · @phyofox
Wellington, NZ
© 2026 Phyo Thu · @phyofox
Wellington, NZ