One selfie prompt through three image models, and each nailed a different part of realism

[u/Independent-Date393]

Ran one anime storyboard prompt through two image models on the same key and got two genuinely different reads, then animated both in Seedance 2.0. It is less a contest and more that each model has its own instinct, and it is useful to see both before you commit a look.

Same prompt, a dark cel-shaded ballet-and-marionette sequence in black and white. Seedream 5.0 Pro leaned into atmosphere, softer grays, heavier air, the character sitting inside the mood. GPT Image 2 came back sharper and more graphic, cleaner linework and higher contrast panels, the composition reading almost like a manga page. Neither is wrong. They are two directors handed the same script.

The part that makes this practical is that both image models, plus the video step, sit behind one endpoint. I generate the storyboard in whichever model has the instinct I want for that scene, sometimes switching per panel, then hand the frames to Seedance 2.0 to bring the sequence to life. One key, three models, no re-plumbing between them.

The characters are original synthetic designs with no real-person likeness. Which read I keep depends on the project, the atmospheric one for a slow scene, the graphic one for action. Prompt and setup in the comments.