Lesson · Craft · 9 min

Fix the cause, not the whole prompt

Review a failed generation by identity, action, camera, rhythm, sound, and policy—then change one layer at a time.

Name the failure precisely

“It looks wrong” is not actionable. Decide whether the failure is identity drift, unclear action, weak composition, pacing, audio, asset access, or content review.

Change one variable per pass

Keep the parts that worked. Rewrite the smallest failing layer and compare the next result. If an input asset is rejected or inaccessible, replace the asset instead of endlessly rewriting the scene.

Before you shoot

✓The failure is assigned to one layer
✓Working constraints stay unchanged
✓The next pass has one measurable target

Practice brief

Write a repair note

Describe one bad result in a sentence, identify the failing layer, and write the smallest prompt or asset change that could fix it.

Preserve the successful story and visual choices. Repair only the named failure layer, with one concrete change and one measurable target.

Practice in Prompt Lab ↗