Keep a Shorts series consistent with Omni Flash video references

Pass the previous episode's clip, or a still from it, as an input_references entry on the next Gemini Omni Flash 1.1 request. Sume's catalog lists that model at 3 to 10 seconds, 360p to 4K, 16:9 or 9:16, with image and video references and no audio references.

A reference is guidance, not an exact frame, so expect the look and wardrobe to carry over and the pose to change. Use it to hold a series together, not to freeze a shot.

What the model takes

The docs describe gemini-omni-flash-1.1 as accepting image and video input_references and generating native synced audio. input_references is the reference-to-video mode: the model uses the images as visual guidance. If you also send frame_images, those control the mode and the request is processed as image-to-video.

So the choice is between two continuity tools. Reference mode keeps the cast and set. First-frame mode keeps the exact opening shot. A series usually wants reference mode for every episode and first-frame mode only for a deliberate match cut.

A practical loop

Keep a small reference sheet per recurring character, and add the last good clip of the previous episode on top. Ten seconds at 720p is $1.25, so a six-beat, one-minute episode is $7.50 before re-rolls.

Each request is still its own job. Nothing in the catalog promises that two requests return the same face, and the no-seed post explains why you cannot pin one.

• Name the character the same way in every prompt.
• Reuse the same two or three reference images across a season.
• Re-roll one 10-second beat instead of the whole episode.

Related checks

If the shot is right and one detail is wrong, the edit route may be cheaper than a re-roll; see edit or re-roll. Confirm the numbers on the Videos page first.

Cost of a continuity pass

A reference does not change the price: Omni Flash 1.1 bills per output second, at $0.0375 for 360p, $0.125 for 720p, $0.1875 for 1080p and $0.375 for 4K in Sume prices. A 10-second beat at 360p is $0.375, so a draft pass of six beats costs $2.25 before you spend on the finals.

That makes a two-pass routine cheap. Draft the whole episode at 360p with your references, read it for continuity, then re-run only the beats that held together at 720p.