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AI Anime Art Generator: Design Original Characters and Scenes With Eight Models

Image Lab is where a SpicyHub AI character starts. Describe someone who doesn’t exist yet, name the drawing style, and a finished illustration comes back, usually within seconds. Attach a sketch or an earlier render and the same prompt box edits it instead. Cel-shaded anime, soft painted key art, bare line art for colouring and empty background plates all come from the same eight models.

The first good picture of an original character (OC) is the easy part. The fortieth is harder: the same eyes, the same parting in the hair, the same jacket from every side. References solve that. Keep a small set of images for each character, attach it to every prompt and change one thing per run. Once the design is settled, Multi-Shot gives you more angles of it, the Video Lab animates it and Character Swap makes it dance.

How to design an anime character in Image Lab

  1. Lead with the style

    Open the prompt with the look, then describe the character: “cel-shaded anime illustration, clean black line art, flat colours, soft rim light. A tall woman in her late twenties with a silver bob, a red wool scarf and a courier bag, waiting on a rainy station platform.” Style words placed first don’t get lost behind the details.

  2. Pick the model for the job

    Nano Banana 2.1 is the default and the one to keep a character consistent. Switch to GPT Image 2.5 when the picture needs lettering, or to Spicy Imagine Pro when you’re editing an image and want its colours and light kept. Then set the shape: 2:3 or 3:4 for a full-body figure, 9:16 for a phone wallpaper, 16:9 or 21:9 for a scene.

  3. Build a reference set

    When one render looks right, keep it as the character’s anchor. Attach it, plus a face close-up and an outfit shot if you have them, to each new prompt and describe only what’s new: the pose, the place, the expression. The Nano Banana models take up to 14 references, GPT Image 2.5 up to 16 and Spicy Imagine Pro up to 10.

  4. Change one thing per pass

    Ask for one edit at a time (“same character, now sitting on the station bench, looking up at the departures board”) and keep the rest of the prompt word for word. Changing hair, outfit and setting in one go is how a design drifts. The credit price shows beside Generate before anything is spent.

Which model to use for anime art

  • Nano Banana 2.1

    The default, and the first pick for keeping an OC on-model: up to 14 references, fine line detail and fast results. 12 credits at 2K, 18 at 4K. It refuses adult prompts: what Nano Banana blocks.

  • Nano Banana 2

    The same 14-reference limit at a lower price, which makes it the one for rough design passes before you commit: 10 credits at 2K, 14 at 4K.

  • Nano Banana Pro

    Built for dense detail and small text. 12 credits at 2K, 16 at 4K. Multi-Shot renders every angle of a character on this model.

  • GPT Image 2.5

    For covers, title cards, comic panels and speech bubbles where the words must be spelled right. Flare is the quick mode and Sunburst the careful one. Five quality steps from 4 credits (1K, low) to 350 (4K, max), plus 1 per reference image. Adult prompts are refused: GPT Image and adult content.

  • GPT Image 2

    OpenAI’s earlier model, still tidy with lettering, at 1K or 2K from 5 credits.

  • Spicy Imagine Pro

    Seedream 5.0 for edits led by your references: recolour an outfit, relight a scene or combine up to 10 pictures while faces, light and palette hold. 8 credits at 2K, 15 at 4K.

  • Wan 2.7 Image and Spicy UNCENSORED (18+)

    Two models for adult anime art, open after a one-time 18+ confirmation. Wan 2.7 Image, at 6 credits, suits drafts and edits that keep the layout; Spicy UNCENSORED (Seedream 5.0 Pro) costs 8 at 1K or 12 at 2K and takes up to 10 references. Every character must be a fictional adult.

The AI Models page lines up speed, price and limits for every model.

Anime styles you can ask for

Describe the look in your own words rather than naming a living artist or studio. It gives you a style that belongs to your project, and it avoids leaning on someone else’s signature.

  • Cel-shaded: “flat colours, hard-edged shadows, clean black line art”. The classic TV look, and the easiest style to repeat across a series.
  • Painted key art: “soft painted shading, glowing backlight, detailed background”. Suits posters, banners and scene art.
  • Line art only: “black-and-white line art, no shading, white background”. A clean base to colour by hand.
  • Retro anime: “muted cel colours, light film grain, hand-drawn texture”. The look of older broadcast anime.
  • Semi-realistic: “anime proportions with realistic skin and fabric shading”. Halfway between illustration and render.

Character sheets, backgrounds and covers

A character sheet starts with one clean full-body render on a plain background: neutral standing pose, arms a little away from the body, the whole outfit visible. Keep it as the anchor, then ask for expressions one at a time (“same character, head and shoulders, laughing”) or for outfit variants. For more angles of the same design, Multi-Shot makes 2 to 10 from that single image.

Backgrounds work best as their own images. Describe the place with nobody in it (“empty rooftop at dusk, painted anime background, wide shot”), pick 16:9 or 21:9, and use the result as a backdrop or as the first frame of a clip.

For covers, thumbnails and comic panels, use GPT Image 2.5 and put the exact words in quotes, as in: title “MIDNIGHT COURIER” in bold brush lettering across the top. Raise the quality step when the text is small, and proofread before you publish.

Guides

Related tools

Image Lab FAQ

Which model is best for anime art?

Start on Nano Banana 2.1, the default, which holds a design across up to 14 references. Move to GPT Image 2.5 when the image carries text, and to Spicy Imagine Pro when you’re editing an existing picture and want its colours and lighting kept. Running the same prompt on two models before you settle costs only the extra render.

How do I keep the same face and outfit across images?

Choose one render as the anchor and attach it every time, together with a face close-up. Paste the character description into each prompt word for word, change only the pose or the scene, and keep the style words identical. If one feature keeps drifting, name it outright: “same character, left eye gold, right eye blue”.

Can I use booru tags in my prompt?

You can, but these models read prompts as language. Google’s prompting guide for Gemini 2.5 Flash Image, the first Nano Banana, says to describe the scene rather than list keywords (checked November 2026). A short sentence about who, what and where tends to beat a string of tags; From booru tags to sentence prompts shows how to convert one.

What can I make with the 50 free credits?

During the beta a new account starts with 50 free credits. That covers 4 Nano Banana 2.1 images at 2K, 6 Spicy Imagine Pro images at 2K, or 12 quick GPT Image 2.5 drafts at 1K on the low quality step without references. On the 18+ models it buys 8 Wan 2.7 Image drafts. Plans and credit packs are listed on Pricing.

Can I sell or post the characters I make?

The Terms make you the owner of your generations, within the licences of the underlying models. Ownership covers your own designs, not someone else’s: a franchise character stays its rights holder’s, so commercial work should use original characters. Each site you post on has its own rules for AI art, so label the result as AI-made wherever you post it.

How large can an image be?

Spicy Imagine Pro, GPT Image 2.5 and all three Nano Banana models go up to 4K. For prints and posters, Image Upscale takes a finished image to 8K for 12 credits.

Can it draw backgrounds without characters?

Yes. Describe the place with nobody in it, choose a wide shape such as 16:9 or 21:9 and add “no people” if figures keep appearing. A background made this way can be the backdrop for your character art or the opening frame of a clip in the Video Lab.

Can I make 18+ anime art here?

Yes, if you’re an adult: Wan 2.7 Image and Spicy UNCENSORED unlock once you confirm you’re 18 or older, which your account remembers. Every character must be a fictional adult who looks and is described as one. School settings, uniforms, childlike bodies, franchise characters and real people without documented consent are all off-limits.