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01 / 03Completed · 2026
Nisha stands beside a secluded pool beneath a tall waterfall surrounded by dark mountain cliffs.
Realism test short2:25 · 16:9

A personal film · a film by Anish

ALONE

A realism test. A short film made to push natural skin texture, water, light and landscape as far as AI video can go, following one trekker to a hidden waterfall pool.

Client
Personal
Year
2026
Runtime
2:25
Format
Realism test short · 16:9
Role
Writing · Direction · AI Production · Edit · Sound Design · Color Grading
Tools
MiniMax H3 · ComfyUI · DaVinci Resolve · YuE2

The brief

A test of realism.

ALONE is a realism test. I made it to see how natural AI video can look, mainly skin texture, water and light. Realism was the whole aim. The story comes second.

I kept the story simple on purpose, so every shot gets one question. Does it feel real? Nisha follows a stream through an empty valley and discovers a waterfall pool. A glimpse along the trail, a pause at the water, the first touch of cold, a float beneath an open sky, and a rustle from the bank that turns out to be a monkey.

I kept the performances restrained and moved between close faces and wide views, because close faces are where AI usually gives itself away. Skin, wet hair, water on skin and the texture of rock and grass were the things I was testing.

Role
Writing · Direction · AI Production · Edit · Sound Design · Color Grading
Client
Personal work
Completed
2026

Outcome

  • 2:25realism test film, edited and graded
  • 5instrumental cues, over an editable layered soundscape
The film| Final cut2:25 · 2026
Nisha stands beside a secluded pool beneath a tall waterfall surrounded by dark mountain cliffs.

A film by Anish

ALONE

A realism test: natural skin, water, light and texture, from an empty valley trail to a waterfall pool.

Sound onWatch on YouTube ↗

Credits

Writing and direction
Anish Chacko
AI production, editing, sound design and color grading
Anish Chacko
Visual development
AI-generated character, location and storyboard imagery
Video generation
MiniMax H3 through ComfyUI Desktop
Editing and audio post
DaVinci Resolve / Fairlight
Music
YuE2-generated instrumental score, directed and selected by Anish Chacko
Sound sources
Field recordings and Foley from Freesound contributors, recorded as CC0: deadrobotmusic, Kinoton, LXX.70, cobratronik, JuandreSound, yosarrian, bxyorna, Filipe Chagas, FloydP and BlueSiren
Cast
Nisha and the monkey are generated screen characters
Script|02 scenes

Discovery, unease, relief.

Length
1 5/8 pages
Runtime
2:25
Written by
Anish

An edit adaptation of the original screenplay, reflecting the revised valley location, navy swimsuit, and closing aerial.

ALONE
EXT. MOUNTAIN VALLEY / TRAIL — DAY
Mountain ridges stretch into the distance.
The title ALONE appears across the second aerial view.
The view travels over the landscape, then descends toward a narrow trail beside a stream.
NISHA, a young Indian trekker, walks upstream. Water runs the other way, beside her on her right.
She looks around, enjoying the empty valley.
She walks past a rocky shoulder that blocks the view. As she rounds the bend, a distant waterfall appears.
She slows. Stops.
Her face brightens.
She continues along the same path toward it.
EXT. WATERFALL POOL — CONTINUOUS
Nisha reaches the edge of a secluded pool.
A close view from behind opens into a wider reveal: a tall waterfall, the broad water, the surrounding cliffs.
She takes it in. Smiles.
She looks around the bank. Nobody else is there.
A private, playful smile.
She settles beside her belongings.
Brief, closer shots carry the preparation: her T-shirt comes off; she bends to lower her shorts. A navy one-piece swimsuit is underneath.
Her shoes are already off. She drops her socks onto them.
Ready now, she moves toward the pool.
A bare foot touches the water. She pulls it back.
A small, amused reaction to the cold.
She tries again and wades in. The water rises around her. She pauses to adjust, then pushes forward into a swim.
Below the surface, she moves through the water. She rises back into the open air.
Her hair is wet, the braid intact.
She smiles, looks around, then eases into a back float.
From above, she is a solitary figure in the water.
A RUSTLE from the bank.
Her expression changes. She watches the foliage.
The edit moves between her face and the concealed bank.
A second RUSTLE.
She keeps watching.
A MONKEY emerges from behind the dense bushes.
A beat of recognition.
Nisha releases a small breath of relief. Her face softens into a smile.
She settles back into the water and glides away, returning to a relaxed float.
The view rises above her, above the pool and waterfall, until cloud begins to veil the landscape.
END.
Storyboard|12 panels

From the trail to the open sky.

Selected development frames showing the film’s main emotional beats. The shot design continued to evolve during production. These are development storyboards, rather than frames from the finished edit.

Panels
12
Runtime
2:25
Frame
16:9
  1. 01The landscape
    Panel 01, The landscape: Elevated wide view across mountain ridges and the valley beneath an overcast sky.
    ALONE01/12

    Elevated wide view across mountain ridges and the valley beneath an overcast sky.

  2. 02Following the stream
    Panel 02, Following the stream: Rear view of Nisha on the narrow valley trail, with the stream beside her on the right.
    ALONE02/12

    Rear view of Nisha on the narrow valley trail, with the stream beside her on the right.

  3. 03The reveal
    Panel 03, The reveal: Wide rear view: Nisha becomes a small figure beside the pool as the waterfall fills the landscape.
    ALONE03/12

    Wide rear view: Nisha becomes a small figure beside the pool as the waterfall fills the landscape.

  4. 04A private thought
    Panel 04, A private thought: Tight portrait in trekking clothes. She checks to the side with a small, playful smile.
    ALONE04/12

    Tight portrait in trekking clothes. She checks to the side with a small, playful smile.

  5. 05Ready for the water
    Panel 05, Ready for the water: Medium view of Nisha in her navy one-piece at the pool’s edge, looking away across the location.
    ALONE05/12

    Medium view of Nisha in her navy one-piece at the pool’s edge, looking away across the location.

  6. 06The first touch
    Panel 06, The first touch: Close insert of her bare feet on the rocks, with one foot touching the rippling pool.
    ALONE06/12

    Close insert of her bare feet on the rocks, with one foot touching the rippling pool.

  7. 07Below the surface
    Panel 07, Below the surface: Side view of Nisha swimming underwater, arms extended and bubbles above her.
    ALONE07/12

    Side view of Nisha swimming underwater, arms extended and bubbles above her.

  8. 08Floating
    Panel 08, Floating: Elevated wide view of Nisha lying face-up in the pool, with the waterfall entering the top of frame.
    ALONE08/12

    Elevated wide view of Nisha lying face-up in the pool, with the waterfall entering the top of frame.

  9. 09Listening
    Panel 09, Listening: Water-level portrait. Her expression turns watchful as she looks toward the bank.
    ALONE09/12

    Water-level portrait. Her expression turns watchful as she looks toward the bank.

  10. 10The visitor
    Panel 10, The visitor: A grey, black-faced monkey stands on the bank, with water in the foreground.
    ALONE10/12

    A grey, black-faced monkey stands on the bank, with water in the foreground.

  11. 11Relief
    Panel 11, Relief: Close reaction in the water: Nisha smiles and looks down as the tension passes.
    ALONE11/12

    Close reaction in the water: Nisha smiles and looks down as the tension passes.

  12. 12Returning to scale
    Panel 12, Returning to scale: Aerial wide view of the waterfall and pool, with Nisha reduced to a small figure in the water.
    ALONE12/12

    Aerial wide view of the waterfall and pool, with Nisha reduced to a small figure in the water.

Swipe the board01 / 12
Production notes08 notes

Directing the details.

One character, one place, many small decisions.

  1. Note 01

    Keeping the place believable

    The challenge

    The valley layout worked early: a trail beside a stream, leading to a waterfall pool. The rocks and surfaces did not.

    What I did

    I kept the geography and rebuilt the location references with more convincing geological detail, water contact, and natural texture.

  2. Note 02

    Continuity is part of the performance

    The character needed to remain the same across changing angles and states: a subdued rust T-shirt on the trail, a navy one-piece at the pool, and a wet braid after immersion. Stream position and flow also had to agree across cuts. These details shaped the retakes as much as facial expression or camera movement.

  3. Note 03

    A simpler action can make a stronger cut

    The challenge

    Some clothing and swimming movements became awkward when asked to do too much in one shot.

    What I did

    I tightened the preparation coverage, used inserts and reactions, and divided longer movements into manageable parts. The edit could suggest a complete action while keeping its most believable moments.

  4. Note 04

    Making the bank feel uncertain

    The challenge

    The monkey needed somewhere to hide. A thin bush gave the reveal away.

    What I did

    I changed the bank to denser foliage and built a brief exchange between Nisha’s reaction and her view of the bushes. Two rustles raise the tension; the reveal arrives without another sound accent.

  5. Note 05

    Making separate clips feel like one place

    The challenge

    The soundscape originally reset at some picture cuts.

    What I did

    I rebuilt the stream and pool ambience as continuous beds, overlapped waterfall perspectives, and softened the music handoffs. The sound now follows her movement through the location rather than starting again with each shot.

  6. Note 06

    Letting discovery happen at the right moment

    The challenge

    An open view of the waterfall made her sudden stop feel unmotivated: she could have seen it much earlier.

    What I did

    I placed a rocky shoulder in her walking POV, letting forward movement reveal the waterfall around a bend. I also replaced the trail performance so her attention moves naturally between the stream, her footing and the hillside.

  7. Note 07

    Finishing the film as one visual world

    I matched the shots before adding a restrained teal-and-orange grade, keeping skin and grasses warm while cooling the water and shadows. A widely spaced ALONE title sits over the second aerial. The handwritten Anish Chacko watermark and website remain in the corner throughout the film.

  8. Note 08

    Relief without a forced laugh

    The reaction after the monkey reveal worked better as an exhale and a smile. I removed the added laughter and kept a brief, quiet relief breath against the continuous pool ambience and returning music.

Next film02 / 03
A boy in checked nightwear laughs as bubbles float between him and a baby dragon in a glowing fantasy forest.

Little Moments. Big Joy.

A boy meets a bubble-blowing dragon in a world of dreams. A 30-second nightwear film for BigLilPeople.

Watch next
BigLilPeopleBrand film · 4:520260:30Completed
Work with meBangalore, India

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← All work© 2026 Anish