We figured we can share how we came to introducing Ai imagery to our production. Here’s a breakdown!!!
We fed the models our scribbles — Boom, his boat, and the occasional suspiciously expressive gull — then whispered very particular demands: “golden-hour glint on the hull, dost thou hear the creak?” The prompts got oddly theatrical, specifying time of day, atmosphere, and mood like stage directions for a seafaring comedian. Sometimes we asked for a fogged harbor at dawn; sometimes for a grin lit from beneath as though Boom had borrowed moonlight from a mischievous lighthouse. The AI listened, misbehaved, then listened again, producing images that winked at our originals while strutting into photorealism.
It took a laboratory’s worth of trial and error — and more rubber-duck debugging than we’ll admit — to tune that sweet spot where texture sings and intent remains intact. The results felt like Boom had unzipped the page and stepped onto a damp, salt-sparkled shoreline, water beading on his boots in suspiciously narrative ways. Each render kept the soul of our sketches: playful proportions, jaunty angles, and that slightly ridiculous optimism that only a cartoon mariner could wear while negotiating tides and punchlines.
We’re not pitching AI as a replacement for BTX storytelling; think of it as a very eccentric prop-maker who sometimes nails the gag. We like showcasing how new tools can be wrangled into service of our vision — more like stretching creative hands into new pockets than swapping out hearts. Our parent studio, Soda Monkey Ent, is rolling out AI-infused services, and we’re stepping into that new frontier with cautious curiosity, a sketchbook in one hand and a rubber duck in the other.