Terror

Fear that will not let go; the viewer feels the threat.

Use when: Horror, thriller, a stunt with real stakes.

Prompt instructions

Scene: [your subject] in [your setting]. Shot 1 (0:00 to 0:05): The brows lift and pull together, the eyes stay wide and unblinking, the mouth stretches open, the chin pulls back, the chest rises and falls fast and shallow. The eyebrows pull up and together, the eyes lock wide open without blinking, the mouth stretches open, the chin tucks back, and the chest rises and falls with fast, shallow breaths. Reference clip (Terror): https://directorchair.ai/media/emotion-direction/03-terror.mp4

Download reference

Seedance 2.5 reads labelled blocks with timecodes.

Reference clip by Emotion Direction, shown with permission.

SubjectSetting

Say it like this

The brows lift and pull together, the eyes stay wide and unblinking, the mouth stretches open, the chin pulls back, the chest rises and falls fast and shallow.

Watch out

Never ask for a smile or for an emotion by name; describe the muscles. Asked-for smiles come back generated and forced.measured: Director Chair field notes on video prompting (client feedback, Aug 2026)
Put the trigger first (the door slams, she reads the message), then the performance. Without a trigger the reaction has no timing.practitioner: Dan Kieft and Higgsfield's tested prompts via Director Chair field notes on video prompting

Notes

Three intensities

Subtle: the breath stops, the eyes fix on one point, the hands go still
Medium: the brows lift and pull together, the eyes stay wide and unblinking, the mouth stretches open, the chin pulls back, the chest rises and falls fast and shallow
Explosive: the body presses back against the wall, a scream with no sound, the hands claw at the surface behind, the eyes never leave the threat

The maker's card

The eyebrows pull up and together, the eyes lock wide open without blinking, the mouth stretches open, the chin tucks back, and the chest rises and falls with fast, shallow breaths.Explosive. Emotion Direction (seedance-emotion-direction.vercel.app)

Restless worry that will not settle.AnxietyPrompt

Sudden disbelief that stops time for a beat.ShockPrompt

Sources

Families, intensities and emotion names from Emotion Direction (names and structure only, read 13 Oct 2026); the directions are our own words in its grammar: body parts in the order they move, ending on what holds. Rules from Director Chair field notes on video prompting Checked 2026-10-13.

Emotion Direction: a clip of this emotion performed in Seedance 2.5 (link only)

For agents: this card as markdown, as JSON.

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