MiniMax H3 Max API in Python: reference-to-video with three images

To run reference-to-video on MiniMax H3 Max through Sume, POST model: "minimax-h3-max" to /v1/videos with your photos in input_references, a duration of 5 to 15 seconds and a resolution of 480p, 768p or 1080p. Ten seconds at 768p costs $1.00.

Any input_references entry puts the job in reference-to-video mode; nothing declares the mode explicitly.

The script

It needs pip install requests and SUME_API_KEY. The three image URLs must be publicly reachable, or the job fails with a download error.

import os, time, requests

H = {"Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['SUME_API_KEY']}"}
BASE = "https://api.sume.com/v1/videos"
refs = [f"https://example.com/shoe-{i}.jpg" for i in (1, 2, 3)]
body = {
    "model": "minimax-h3-max",
    "prompt": "The three sneakers from the photos rotate on a pastel studio set",
    "duration": 10,
    "resolution": "768p",
    "aspect_ratio": "16:9",
    "input_references": [{"type": "image_url", "image_url": {"url": u}} for u in refs],
}
job = requests.post(BASE, headers={**H, "Idempotency-Key": "h3max-shoes-1"}, json=body, timeout=60).json()
while True:
    s = requests.get(job["polling_url"], headers=H, timeout=60).json()
    if s["status"] in ("completed", "failed", "cancelled"):
        break
    time.sleep(10)
print(s["status"], s.get("usage"), s.get("error"))

Reference limits

The catalog constraints for the row, as written in the Video Router, are below. Check them before you build a request; a value outside a row's advertised limits returns a 400.

Cost notes

Reference-to-video on H3 Max sells at the same per-second rate as text-to-video. The repo notes that the provider's reference-token overage is not part of the reserve, so a heavy reference job can capture slightly more than the reserve; the standard H3 row also adds a $0.08 provider-list charge per reference image after the fifth.

There is no generate_audio field to send. The model always makes stereo audio, and 1080p is a latent refinement from a native 768p render. 720p is not an option.

• 480p: $0.0625 per second; 768p: $0.10; 1080p: $0.20.
• Ratios include 21:9, 16:9, 4:3, 1:1, 3:4 and 9:16.
• No seed; rerun for another take.