
MiniMax H3 Fast Reference-to-Video API by MiniMax
MiniMax H3 Fast reference-to-video: generate a video that keeps the subject from a reference image, driven by a text prompt. Supports 480P, 5-15s.
MiniMax H3 Fast Reference-to-Video is developed by MiniMax. Atlas Cloud (operated by Atlas Cloud AI LLC) provides access to it and does not own it. All trademarks belong to their respective owners.
MiniMax H3 Fast Reference-to-Video
MiniMax H3 Fast Reference-to-Video keeps the subjects from your reference materials consistent throughout a clip, at the lowest cost and quickest turnaround in the H3 family. Instead of animating a fixed frame, it uses the references as identity anchors — ideal for placing a character, product, or style into new scenes and motions. References can be any mix of images, videos, and an audio track (e.g. a music beat) to sync the motion to. Output is a complete 24fps 480P clip with audio.
Why Choose This?
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Fastest, most economical tier Speed-optimized 480P generation — the quickest and cheapest way to keep subjects consistent with H3 quality.
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Subject consistency Preserve one or several people, characters, or objects' identities across the whole clip.
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Mix reference types Combine reference images, reference videos, and reference audio in a single request.
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Audio sync (optional) Provide a reference audio track and sync the action to the beat.
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Prompt-driven scenes Put the reference subjects into any scene or action you describe.
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Selectable duration Produce 5–15s clips.
Parameters
| Parameter | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| prompt | Yes | Text description of the scene and action for the subjects |
| refers | Yes | Array of reference materials, each { "url": "...", "type": "image|video|audio" }. type is optional (inferred from the URL). At least one image OR video is required; audio alone is not allowed. |
| resolution | Yes | Video resolution. Only 480P is available for the Fast model |
| duration | Yes | Duration of the generated video in seconds. Available options: 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15. Default 8 |
| ratio | No | Aspect ratio of the generated video. Available options: 21:9, 16:9, 4:3, 1:1, 3:4, 9:16. Default 16:9 |
| prompt_expansion | No | Enable AI prompt expansion via H3 Context-IR. When true, your prompt is first expanded into a rich, structured description (shot, soundscape, music) before generation, and an additional per-token Context-IR fee applies. Default false: the prompt is used as-is with no extra charge. |
| callback_url | No | HTTPS URL notified whenever the task status changes, so you can react to completion without polling. Requires a one-time verification handshake — see Task Status Callbacks below. |
Task Status Callbacks (callback_url)
When you supply a callback_url, the MiniMax server notifies it on every task status change, so you don't have to poll for the result.
- Verification handshake — right after the task is created, the server first sends a verification request to your URL containing a
challengefield. Your endpoint must return thechallengevalue unchanged, within 3 seconds, to complete verification. - Status pushes — once verification succeeds, the server sends a
POSTto your URL every time the task status changes. The push body has the same structure as the Query Task (task status) response.
Callback status values: queued, running, succeeded, failed, cancelled.
The callback_url must be a publicly reachable HTTPS endpoint.
refers example
"refers": [ { "url": "https://.../subject1.png", "type": "image" }, { "url": "https://.../subject2.png" }, { "url": "https://.../clip.mp4", "type": "video" }, { "url": "https://.../beat.mp3", "type": "audio" } ]
How to Use
- Add your references — any mix of images and/or videos (at least one), optionally plus an audio track.
- Write your prompt — describe the scene, action, and camera movement for the subjects.
- Set duration — pick any length from 5s to 15s.
- Choose an aspect ratio — match your target platform.
- Run — submit and download your video.
Best Use Cases
- Character Consistency — Keep the same character across multiple shots.
- Product Placement — Feature a specific product in generated scenes.
- Branded Content — Maintain a consistent mascot or spokesperson.
- Rapid Iteration — Explore reference-driven scenes quickly and cheaply.
Pro Tips
- Use clean, well-lit reference images with each subject clearly visible.
- Give one image per subject when combining several subjects in one video.
- Describe the new scene and action, not the reference materials themselves.
- Supply a reference audio track to drive the timing/beat of the motion.
- Combine with different ratios and durations to repurpose the same subjects across platforms.
Notes
promptand at least one reference image or video are required; a request with only audio is rejected.- Reference-to-video and image-to-video are mutually exclusive: this model uses reference materials, not first/last frames — do not mix the two.
- Ensure all reference URLs (image / video / audio) are publicly accessible.
- Supported durations between 5s and 15s, at 24fps with audio.
- Resolution is limited to
480P— 768P and 2K are not available on the Fast model. - Generation is asynchronous — submit, then poll for the finished video.
Related Models
- MiniMax H3 Fast Text-to-Video — Generate video directly from a text prompt at the same speed.
- MiniMax H3 Fast Image-to-Video — Animate a first-frame image (optionally with a last frame).
- MiniMax H3 Reference-to-Video — The standard H3 model, with 2K output.


















