Science & Tech
Built around an Eastern mythical world and the Monkey King's struggle, cold, dark ancient temples, golden statues and battle scenes carry the mood of “destiny.”
01 / Background
“Destiny” is a song singer Xiao Shaoyan wrote inspired by “Black Myth: Wukong,” and Liandan AI Studio made this AI music video for it as a fan-made work. Most of the visuals are AI-generated, with original game CG cut in at the opening, a few points in the middle and the ending. With more than 100 lyric lines, the images had to keep pace the whole way through. We built an Eastern mythical world from temples, divine statues, demon kings, the Monkey King and weapons, grounding “destiny” and the characters' struggle in scenes and figures you can see.
The challenge was the sheer number of shots, with characters and settings constantly changing; however finely each image is drawn, strung together they may not tell a coherent story. The film arranges neighboring shots according to the lyrics, with unified color tone, depth of field and composition, and uses short lines in large type to state the characters' attitude. This way, the first part sets up the world, the middle tells of the scripture-seeking pilgrims, and the final part turns to battle, with the emotion always moving in one direction.
02 / Creative Highlights
Temples, misty mountains and rivers, and divine statues first show how vast this world is; then monks seen from behind, close-ups of palms pressed together and the relationships between characters bring the eye back to the characters. Wide shots establish the environment and close-ups show the characters' state, so however grand the imagery, viewers always have specific people to follow.
Buddha statues, armor, weapons and firelight repeatedly carry golden highlights, contrasting with the gray-green, cold and dark surroundings. That touch of gold follows different characters through different places, and viewers' attention shifts with it from the atmosphere of the world to the characters' power and battles.
Short lines in large type alternate with character close-ups, group shots and confrontations. The text states the attitude, the images show the characters' state and conflict, and at the end the Monkey King and his glowing weapon bring the emotion built up through the whole song to rest on one clear image.
Small figures stand before towering halls, golden divine statues and a giant palm; one large, one small, the imbalance of power is obvious at a glance. In the later part, characters, weapons and intense firelight take center frame, and the focus shifts from the oppression of space to the characters' resistance.
03 / Scene Breakdown
The first few seconds use original game CG to establish the mountains and the Monkey King; then AI images flash quickly through the Dragon Palace, the Underworld, the elixir furnace and the battle in the Heavenly Palace, on to the demon-execution platform, Laojun and blazing fire, covering the old events before and after the Monkey King's capture. The spears, blades and sky shots from 0:13–0:21 are also original game CG.
A dragon rises from the roof of a palace in the waves, followed by the gate of the Underworld in red light and a fire-spewing elixir furnace; each of the three old scenes lasts just over a second.
Heavenly soldiers and generals surge forward through a sea of clouds, with only one small figure standing before them; the next shot is a long stairway flanked by stone statues, its cold gray tones pressing the mood down.
Laojun in white walks with his back to the camera toward a hall in golden light, followed by a stone egg on the ground and a cut back to the heavenly troops' siege, as the image shifts from warm gold back to cold gray.
A giant figure formed of flame spreads its arms with a tiny person standing below; then a Buddha statue sits before a burning sun disc, and red and yellow push the opening to its hottest point.
This section moves from the Buddha's face and the giant palm to rumors in the mortal world, then to the Celestial Court granting the Monkey King an official post and fitting him with the golden headband. The images cut back and forth between the golden heavens and the crowded mortal world, ending with the Monkey King on his knees, clutching his head. The ink-wash images at 1:01–1:04 are original game CG.
A golden Buddha face, a giant golden palm reaching to the sky, then papers whirling through the streets and crowds packed together: the account in heaven becomes rumor among mortals.
People look up at Buddha's light in the clouds, an immortal stands in the clouds with arms spread, and then golden scraps of paper fall on the street like rain.
The Monkey King stands before a mountain in a red cloak, and in the next shot closes in with red, staring eyes; then the Jade Emperor sits in the light, and the camera cuts to stables with a row of horses.
A red palace stands in firelight with people lined up in two rows; the Monkey King walks through the palace gate, seen from behind, and then an official holds up a document, grinning at the camera.
The Monkey King bites a golden headband, his eyes glowing; in the next shot he kneels on the ground clutching his head, the headband hovering above him, and the image then turns to the Five Elements Mountain in the mist.
The camera moves from the Five Elements Mountain pinning down the Monkey King to Chang'an, then tells of generation after generation of pilgrim monks. This section relies mostly on wide shots and figures seen from behind, using the same mountain and the same gray-green tones throughout, so several lyric lines play like one continuous scene.
A crack of light splits the middle of the mountain, then a top-down view of a Chang'an avenue with a monk standing at the city gate; back in the crack in the rock, only the Monkey King's face and one hand are visible.
A monk walks into a golden ring of light, two young monks sit facing each other in a temple, a line of monks heads toward a temple in the mist, and a Buddha statue sits in the clouds.
A monk sits before a mountain, then presses his palms together with a white horse standing behind him; then the monk rides the horse as the Monkey King stands beside him with a staff over his shoulder.
A general kneels on one knee, then a monk in a yellow robe walks into gray fog full of the shadows of giant beasts; as the fog clears, a golden Buddha appears on the mountaintop.
The color suddenly turns to blue moonlight: the Queen Mother of the West, Tianpeng, a wild boar under the moon. Then back to the golden Celestial Court, where a glass lamp, a palm and divine mounts tell the fates of heavenly figures.
The Queen Mother of the West stands at the edge of a sea of clouds gazing at the moon, a man and woman embrace before the moon, then a general in white stands under the moon holding a spear, and with a turn of the camera he becomes a black wild boar.
The wild boar sits with its back to the camera between two pillars, gazing at the moon; the next shot is a burning golden Buddha hall, with people standing on both sides and only a small dark shadow on the ground.
A figure stands in a pillar of golden light with arms spread, then throws back his head and cries out as fragments fly around him, cutting to a glowing glass lamp above a sea of clouds.
Master and disciples cross a ridge in the sunset glow, the Buddha realm in the clouds and the Heavenly Palace flash past, and finally a golden palm holds up a tiny person.
A golden lion roars between palaces, an immortal in red passes beside it, and then a horned demon king in golden armor stands in the clouds.
This section tells of the demons along the pilgrims' road and the suffering of ordinary people: scorched earth, white bones, a fierce tiger, an old ox, cracked land. The cold greens and earthy yellows keep the images low and heavy, brightening only for the lion and the giant hand.
Scorched earth covers the ground after battle, several factions face off in the clouds, and a giant beast in the forest pounces on a tiny figure.
A troop of horned demon soldiers in the forest, then an immortal standing before a golden full moon, half of a Buddha statue's face appearing in the sunset glow, and finally Guanyin on a lotus.
Under lightning, white bones pile up into a mountain; then a golden lion pounces down from the clouds, and a palm holds up a ball of golden fire.
The Monkey King faces a fierce tiger with his staff, then a ghostly figure in white drifts through blowing sand, and an armored old ox walks out of the fog.
A commoner sits on cracked ground looking toward a distant city, followed by an ancient tree with red leaves standing in a thunderstorm.
Monks stand in front of a temple, then a giant hand burning with fire reaches down from the sky, and the people on the ground scatter and flee.
3:00–3:07 and the ending after 3:32 use original game CG: stone statues in the snow and flying rubble, closing with large animated text. In between, the revolt section is made of AI images: the Monkey King's furious glare, a ring of fire, heavenly troops, an azure dragon and a city in flames.
The Monkey King grits his teeth and glares at the camera; in the next shot he stands before a hall with his back to a burning ring of fire.
The Monkey King stands on a mountain peak above a dense mass of heavenly soldiers; then he charges into the crowd swinging his staff, and grapples with an azure dragon and a white beast.
The Monkey King walks with his back to the camera toward a golden palace gate, a troop of monkeys crouches in the fire, and then the whole city collapses in smoke and flames.
A golden staff crackling with lightning plunges into the center of the great hall, the Monkey King swings his flaming staff, and finally he stands among several dragon heads.
04 / Storyboards & Final Frames
The film divides the lyrics into 15 groups and more than 100 shots, with one final still per line, each then turned into video. Here, 58 shots are selected in the order of the final film. The original game CG used at the opening and ending is not included.
Shot 1.1
A dragon coils on the roof of a palace in the waves, as firelight and spray surge up together in front of the hall.
Shot 1.2
The gate of the Underworld in red light, with a sliver of white light through the gap and a figure holding a staff on the left.
Shot 1.3
Golden fire bursts out in front of a hall, with a black-and-white taiji symbol hovering above the flames.
Shot 1.4
Heavenly soldiers and giant beasts surge forward through a sea of clouds, with only one small figure in the lower right corner.
Shot 1.5
A long stairway flanked by giant stone statues on both sides, the whole frame in cold gray.
Shot 1.6
A burst of golden light splits the dark clouds, with a small falling figure inside it.
Shot 1.7
Laojun in white, his back to the camera, walks toward a glowing hall among the mountains.
Shot 1.8
A black hall stands between a sea of fire and the water, with sparks filling the sky.
Shot 1.9
A giant figure formed of flame spreads its arms, with a tiny person standing below.
Shot 1.10
A Buddha statue sits before a burning sun disc, flanked by upturned eaves and lightning.
Shot 2.1
A giant golden palm reaching to the sky stands in the firelight, with a tiny person at its base.
Shot 2.2
Papers fly all over the street as a crowd pushes in to read them.
Shot 2.3
People with their backs to the camera look up at the Buddha statue in golden light among the clouds.
Shot 2.4
Golden scraps of paper fall from the sky as people in the street look up.
Shot 2.5
The Jade Emperor sits in the light, flanked by silhouettes of celestial officials.
Shot 2.6
A row of horses in colorful trappings beneath carved beams, with light coming in from the door.
Shot 2.7
The Monkey King stands with his back to the camera under a peach tree, a gold medallion on the back of his armor, peaches scattered on the ground.
Shot 2.8
A palace in firelight, with two rows of people standing by the road and a path down the middle to the palace gate.
Shot 2.9
An official holds up a yellowed document, grinning at the camera.
Shot 2.10
The Monkey King's eyes glow, a golden headband clenched in his teeth.
Shot 2.11
The Monkey King kneels on the ground clutching his head, a golden headband hovering above it.
Shot 3.1
A crack of light splits the middle of the mountain, surrounded by mist and rubble.
Shot 3.2
A top-down view of a Chang'an avenue, with a monk standing in the shadow of a gateway.
Shot 3.3
The Monkey King is pinned under rock, only his face and one hand showing.
Shot 3.4
A monk in red walks into a ring of golden light, flanked by ancient pagodas.
Shot 3.5
A line of monks follows a mountain path toward a temple in the mist.
Shot 3.6
A monk kneels on the grass, palms pressed together, with a white horse standing behind him.
Shot 3.7
The monk rides a white horse as the Monkey King stands beside him with a staff over his shoulder.
Shot 3.8
The monk rides through a bustling market street, looking back at passersby.
Shot 4.1
The Queen Mother of the West stands on a rock at the edge of a sea of clouds, looking up at a full moon.
Shot 4.2
A man and woman embrace before the full moon, with points of light drifting around them.
Shot 4.3
A general in white stands under the moon holding a spear, with palaces on the clouds in the distance.
Shot 4.4
A wild boar sits with its back to the camera between two pillars, gazing at the moon.
Shot 4.5
A golden Buddha sits in the firelight, people standing on both sides and a small dark shadow on the ground.
Shot 4.6
A figure throws back his head and cries out as golden fragments fly around him.
Shot 4.7
In the sunset glow, a glass lamp stands glowing on the water.
Shot 4.8
A golden palm holds up a tiny person.
Shot 4.9
A golden lion roars between palaces.
Shot 4.10
A horned demon king in golden armor stands between dark clouds and mountain peaks.
Shot 5.1
Scorched earth covers the ground after battle, with houses in the distance still smoking.
Shot 5.2
An immortal stands before a golden full moon, with pavilions on the clouds below.
Shot 5.3
Guanyin sits on a lotus holding a vase of pure water, a halo of light behind her.
Shot 5.4
Under lightning, white bones pile up into a mountain.
Shot 5.5
A golden lion pounces down from the clouds, its mane like fire.
Shot 5.6
The Monkey King faces a fierce tiger with his staff as rubble flies all around.
Shot 5.7
A ghostly figure in white drifts through gray, blowing sand.
Shot 5.8
An armored old ox stands on a barren plain, dark clouds behind it.
Shot 5.9
A commoner sits on cracked ground, gazing at a distant city.
Shot 5.10
A giant hand burning with fire reaches toward the ground as the crowd scatters.
Shot 6.1
The Monkey King grits his teeth and glares at the camera, his eyes red.
Shot 6.2
The Monkey King stands before a hall with his back to a burning ring of fire.
Shot 6.3
The Monkey King stands on a mountain peak as a beam of light strikes down from the sky, heavenly troops below.
Shot 6.4
The Monkey King swings his staff, grappling with an azure dragon and a white beast.
Shot 6.5
A troop of monkeys crouches in the burning city.
Shot 6.6
The whole city collapses in smoke and flames, with a palace gate in the middle.
Shot 6.7
A golden staff crackling with lightning plunges into the center of the great hall.
Shot 6.8
The Monkey King swings his flaming staff, behind him eaves split open by lightning.
Shot 6.9
The Monkey King stands among several dragon heads, white smoke billowing around him.
05 / Results
The final film runs 3 minutes 41 seconds in 16:9 landscape at 3840×2160 and was completed in September 2024. Released by the singer on Douyin on October 5, it has more than 200K likes and over 3M views.
Case Study
“Destiny” is a song singer Xiao Shaoyan wrote inspired by “Black Myth: Wukong,” retelling the story of Sun Wukong from a different angle.
The song is long: more than 100 lyric lines, each with its own meaning.
We made a 3-minute-41-second AI music video for it: one image for each lyric line, with each image then turned into a moving shot.
In October 2024, the singer posted the film on Douyin, where it has drawn more than 200K likes and over 3M views.
01
“Black Myth: Wukong” has exceptionally polished CG of its own. On the same subject, if the AI images just set the characters out flatly, viewers would see the gap the moment they compared.
So on day one we set the direction: go for lavish, epic scenes, with more medium and wide shots and fewer frontal close-ups.
The lyrics don't always mean exactly what they say, either. The singer recorded a voice memo explaining what each line was meant to say. We transcribed it and pasted the notes under each lyric line, so whoever made the images read the explanation first.
These opening lines flash by in just over a second each, but every image was drawn as a full scene: the Dragon Palace has waves, the Underworld has its gate, the elixir furnace has fire.
02
This film was made by a team of more than a dozen people. The most likely problem: everyone's images are good on their own, but strung together they look like a collage.
We set one rule: claim lines in blocks of at least 8 consecutive lines. Within a block, shots next to each other had to match in color tone and atmosphere, or at the very least transition smoothly.
For connected plot points, the background and the size of the figures stay as constant as possible. For example, in the lines with the Tang monk and the Monkey King, the backgrounds are all a near-identical Five Elements Mountain; in the lines where the Jade Emperor and the Monkey King face off, figure size, depth of field and composition stay consistent.
All work in progress went into one working document, and finished shots were moved into a separate final document. Who's done, which images still need changes, which can go to video: it's all visible at a glance in the documents.
03
The Monkey King's look came from an existing Wukong LoRA. Early on there was a problem: when the Monkey King shared the frame with other characters, they got drawn as monkeys too. Lowering the LoRA strength from the default 1.2 to around 0.8 helped somewhat; for shots with many characters in frame, we switched to a different image-generation method altogether.
The bigger problem was too many monkeys. The lyrics talk about the Bull Demon King, Tianpeng, Guanyin and ordinary people, yet the images were all Monkey King, which got tiresome after a while.
So we changed it to: use the LoRA only for shots that need the Monkey King, and generate other scenes and characters with tools better suited to epic scenes. That's how we got the golden lion, the horned demon king, the wild boar under the moon and the commoner on cracked land.
A golden lion roars between palaces, then a horned demon king in golden armor stands in the clouds. The Monkey King doesn't appear in these lines at all.
Some shots took many versions to settle. The shot of the Monkey King from behind under a peach tree went through 12 versions: a palace gate lined with heavenly troops, a mountain gate covered in peach blossoms, two generals seen from behind, and finally we chose the one with the warmest light and the strongest sense of story.
04
Video conversion began only after every image was finalized. We used Runway first, and switched to Kling AI when the results weren't good.
We wrote our image-to-video experience up as four steps and put them at the very front of the final document:
Step 1: no prompt; just upload the image and convert it to 5 seconds. About half the shots work within 4 tries. Step 2: if that fails, add camera-control terms such as push in, pull out, pan or orbit. About 80% are done at this step. Step 3: put the camera-control terms first, then pull the sentences describing motion from the image prompt. Step 4: what's left is almost all fights, crowds and two-person interaction, so at that point just generate a new image that converts more easily.
The Monkey King stands on a mountain peak, then charges into the heavenly troops swinging his staff and grapples with the azure dragon and the white beast. Fights and multi-character shots are the hardest kind to convert to video.
The lyric subtitles were made in CapCut as large animated text, with key words enlarged and recolored, popping up one by one to the beat.
05
The end of the song is where the emotion peaks. A single character close-up couldn't carry such a long climax.
We tried cutting a few passages of original “Black Myth: Wukong” game CG into the opening and ending, and found they fit the lyrics closely. In the end, original CG was used at the opening, a few points in the middle and about 10 seconds at the end; the other 100-plus shots are all AI images.
A golden staff crackling with lightning plunges into the center of the great hall, and the Monkey King swings his flaming staff. Right after this come the original game CG and the closing large text.
The AI images tell the story in the lyrics, and the CG delivers the impact of that final moment; each does its own job.
06
From kickoff to final version took about three weeks. Every one of the 100-plus lyric lines has a matching final still.
After the singer released it, the film drew more than 200K likes and over 3M views on Douyin.
For us, the project leaves a method for making long-form MVs: explain the lyrics clearly first, divide the work into blocks, unify color tone by block, prioritize epic scenes, convert to video step by step, and boldly swap in other material where the images can't carry the moment.
FAQ
This project took about three weeks: work started August 21, 2024, all images were finished September 3, and the final cut was delivered September 12.
Lyrics are claimed in blocks of 8 lines, with color tone and atmosphere kept consistent within each block; connected plot points use similar backgrounds and figure sizes, and after finalizing, each block is color-graded together.
The singer recorded a voice memo explaining the lyrics line by line. We transcribed it and pasted the notes under each line, checked against them before generating images, and gathered anything unclear into questions to confirm with the singer in one go.
Yes. The final cut of “Destiny” is 3840×2160 in 16:9 landscape, running 3 minutes 41 seconds.
Approach
The storyboard arranges scenes and characters by continuous passages of lyrics, rather than generating an unrelated image for each line. Neighboring shots need harmonious color tones and atmosphere, with wide, medium and close shots and left and right compositions alternating so the images flow and look good; for connected plot points like the pilgrimage, backgrounds and figure sizes are kept similar wherever possible.
Before finalizing images, we first checked against the meaning of the lyrics whether each scene was right, then adjusted composition, depth of field and details of the figures before converting to video. For image-to-video, camera movement and action were written separately for each shot, so the motion follows the original composition and the characters' state, instead of adding the same effect to every image.
The film combines AI scenes with existing CG clips, with some character battles and the closing climax using CG footage. A single character close-up at the end couldn't carry such long music and such a big climax, so we used footage with more action and scene changes, closing with animated text.
More Work
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