These Ghibli AI prompts repaint a photo you upload as a warm, hand-painted anime picture: a sunny kitchen, a rainy bus stop, a countryside train, a sleeping cat, a couple sharing an umbrella. Each Ghibli AI photo prompt is written for Smart Editor in Toybox AI, which repaints a photo you add, and you can also paste them into ChatGPT or Gemini with the same photo attached, where the results will differ by model. Each one lists what to keep from your photo. Toybox has no connection to Studio Ghibli, and the wording describes the look only.
How a good Ghibli AI prompt is built
A Ghibli art style prompt needs six parts, and every prompt here uses all six:
- The restyle request. "Redraw my photo as a hand-drawn anime scene" or "Paint this photo in a Ghibli-inspired style".
- What to keep. Faces, hairstyles, glasses, pose, clothing colors, or a pet's markings. Name two or three of them.
- An everyday setting. A real place with one or two small objects in it: a kettle, a bus shelter, a bicycle, a watering can.
- Weather and light. Time of day, rain or sun, and what the light falls on.
- Painting words. Watercolor sky, soft cel shading, thin outlines, muted greens.
- What to leave out. "No text", "blank signs" or "no other people".
Each Ghibli-style AI prompt below fills in this template. Paste it and replace the brackets to write your own:
Redraw my photo as a hand-drawn anime scene of [who is in the photo] in [an everyday place with one or two objects]. Keep [the features that must stay]. [Time of day and weather], with [what the light falls on]. Watercolor sky, soft cel shading, thin outlines, muted colors. No text or logos.For numbered steps in ChatGPT, Gemini and Smart Editor, see how to apply a Ghibli filter to a photo. For other looks people put on their own photos, the roundup of viral AI photo trends has prompts too.
Cozy indoor Ghibli prompts
These three put the person in a small, warm room. They work even when your photo was taken somewhere plain, because the whole scene gets repainted.
Cozy kitchen on a slow morning
A breakfast scene for a photo taken at home.
Redraw my photo as a hand-drawn anime scene of the person cooking breakfast in a small, cluttered kitchen on a sunny morning. Steam curls up from a pot, herbs grow in glass jars on the windowsill, and light falls across a wooden table set with bread and a teapot. Keep their face, hairstyle, apron color and pose. Watercolor light, soft cel shading, no text.Change: the food and the view, such as snow outside the window and a pot of soup.
Rainy-day reading nook
A reading scene for a close-up portrait.
Paint this photo as a Ghibli-inspired scene of the person tucked into a window seat with a paperback and a mug of tea while rain streaks the glass and green hills blur behind it. Keep their face, glasses and sweater color. Warm lamp light inside, cool gray-blue light outside, soft painted textures and a quiet mood.Change: the drink and the weather, like a snowy evening with cocoa.
Night desk in an attic bedroom
A late-night study scene with a starry window.
Redraw this photo as a watercolor anime illustration of the person studying at a wooden desk in an attic bedroom late at night. A desk lamp glows, a small telescope stands by the round window, and stars shine over the rooftops outside. Keep their face, hairstyle and hoodie color. Deep blue night, warm yellow lamp light, painted piles of books and plants.Change: the hobby on the desk, such as a sketchbook or a model train.
Outdoor and travel Ghibli prompts
Travel scenes carry the look through big skies and small details. Pick the weather first: rain, snow and bright sun each call for a different palette in the rest of the prompt.
Rainy afternoon at a town bus stop
A wet-weather scene for a photo of someone standing outdoors, with a blank timetable so no letters get garbled.
Turn this photo into a hand-painted anime scene of the person waiting under the tin roof of a small-town bus stop on a rainy afternoon, holding a paper bag of oranges. A glowing vending machine stands beside the bench, and puddles on the road reflect the gray sky and the shop fronts. Keep their face, hair and jacket color. Fine rain streaks, muted greens, a patient mood. Leave the timetable blank.Change: what they carry home, such as a bunch of sunflowers wrapped in newspaper.
Window seat on a countryside train
A seated portrait that turns a car or bus photo into a train ride.
Paint this photo in a Ghibli-inspired style, with the person sitting by the open window of an old countryside train, looking out at green fields, a winding river and tall clouds. Sunlight slides across the worn wooden seats and their face. Keep their face, hairstyle and outfit colors. A luggage rack overhead, soft painted light, no text or signs.Change: the view, such as the sea or snowy mountains.
Bicycle through a seaside town
A bright, moving scene for a full-body photo.
Redraw this photo as a hand-drawn anime illustration of the person riding a bicycle down a steep lane in a small seaside town, past white houses with laundry on the balconies and the ocean glittering below. Keep their face, hair and clothing colors. Bright summer morning, a few gulls, painted cumulus clouds, a breeze lifting their hair.Change: the ride, such as walking down the lane with a basket of groceries.
Windy hilltop with one big tree
Open space and fast clouds. It suits a standing photo taken outdoors.
Turn this photo into a Ghibli-style painting of the person standing on a grassy hilltop on a windy day, grass and wildflowers bending around them, one huge tree behind them and white clouds racing across a deep blue sky. Keep their face, hairstyle and the color of their dress. Bright afternoon light, soft cel shading, a feeling of open space.Change: the sky, such as a pink evening with the moon already up.
Ghibli prompts for couples, families and pets
Group and pet photos need a longer keep list. Say who stands where, and describe each pet's markings in detail. Ask everyone in a group photo before you upload it; Toybox's privacy policy covers how uploads are handled. For animal portraits in other styles, see the pet portrait prompts.
Couple under one umbrella
A couple portrait for an anniversary card or a phone background.
Paint the two of us in this photo as Ghibli-inspired anime characters sharing one umbrella on a quiet stone street at dusk, streetlamps just turning on and rain shining on the cobbles. Keep both faces, hairstyles, their height difference and outfit colors. Warm window light from a small cafe behind them, a gentle romantic mood, blank signs.Change: the setting, such as a pier at sunset or a snowy park.
Family picnic by a stream
For a group photo where everyone is facing the camera.
Turn this family photo into a hand-painted anime scene of everyone on a checked picnic blanket under a big tree beside a shallow stream, with a basket, rice balls and a thermos. Keep every person's face, hair and clothing colors, and keep them in the same order as the photo. Dappled summer light through the leaves, painted grass, a relaxed afternoon.Change: the food and the place, such as a beach with slices of watermelon.
Dog racing through a flower field
A pet portrait with motion. A photo where the dog faces you works best.
Redraw this photo of my dog as a Ghibli-style illustration of her running through tall grass and yellow wildflowers toward the viewer, ears flying. Keep her coat colors, the white blaze on her chest and her blue collar. Late afternoon light, a wide sky with soft clouds, fur painted in a few simple strokes.Change: the markings and the collar color to match your dog.
Cat asleep on a windowsill
A quiet pet portrait for a cat that won't pose.
Paint this photo of my cat as a hand-drawn anime scene, curled up asleep on a windowsill in the sun beside potted basil, a lace curtain lifting slightly and rooftops and green hills outside. Keep his ginger tabby coat, white socks and the nick in his left ear. Warm morning light, soft shadows, a sleepy mood.Change: the perch, such as a bookshelf or the top of a piano.
Grandparent in the evening garden
A warm portrait of an older relative, for a birthday or a frame.
Turn this photo into a Ghibli-inspired garden scene: the older man watering tomato plants in a small backyard garden in the evening, wearing a straw hat. Keep his face, glasses, mustache and shirt color. Orange sunset light, dragonflies over the plants, a wooden fence and a paper lantern by the back door.Change: the plants and the task, such as picking cucumbers into a basket.
Seasonal Ghibli prompts
Two scenes for the colder months. Swap the season words to reuse them in spring or summer.
Autumn path under maple trees
Redraw this photo in a watercolor anime style, with the person walking along a village path under maple trees in autumn, red and orange leaves drifting down and a small stone bridge ahead. Keep their face, hairstyle, scarf and coat colors. Low golden light, long soft shadows, crisp air.Change: the trees, such as pale pink blossoms in April.
Snowy evening at the front door
Paint this photo in a Ghibli-inspired style, with the person stepping out of a wooden house into fresh snow at dusk, breath visible in the cold air and warm light spilling from the doorway behind them. Keep their face, hair, hat and coat colors. Blue evening snow, a few flakes falling, a lit window across the street.Change: what they carry, such as a sled or a stack of firewood.
Tips for better Ghibli AI prompt results
Name the visuals, not a person. OpenAI wrote in March 2025 that its image model turns down requests to copy a living artist's look, so a ChatGPT Ghibli art prompt that names a director or an animator may stall. Words for what you can see (painted clouds, soft cel shading, muted greens) carry the style with no name attached.
Start with an action word and the style. Gemini's help center suggests opening a prompt with a word like draw, generate or create and then naming the style. For a photo edit, "Turn this photo into" or "Paint this photo as" does the same job.
Recheck the face after a spot fix. ChatGPT's Select tool lets you highlight one area, such as a sleeve, and describe a change there. OpenAI says an edit may reach a little beyond the highlighted spot, so check the face and hands again afterward.
Match the shape to where it's going. Smart Editor offers Original, Square 1:1, Story 9:16, Wide 16:9 and Social 4:5, and ChatGPT offers an aspect ratio picker. Pick Story 9:16 if the picture will start a vertical video.
Leave text out of the scene. Timetables, shop signs and book covers are where letters come back garbled. "Blank signs" keeps them clean, and you can add real words later in any photo editor.
Give every scene one small, ordinary object. A kettle on the stove, a bicycle against a fence or laundry on a line gives the painting something to hold besides the face. Name it with its color ("a dented blue kettle") so it doesn't turn into clutter.
Fixes for common Ghibli prompt problems
| Problem | Add this to your prompt |
|---|---|
| The face doesn't look like the person | "Keep the same face shape, eyes, nose and smile as the photo; only the painting style changes." |
| It looks like a 3D render | "Flat hand-painted 2D animation style, no 3D shading, no glossy highlights." |
| The background still looks like a photo | "Repaint the whole background by hand as well, including the sky." |
| Colors are too bright | "Muted, slightly faded colors, like an old painted animation cel." |
| Signs show gibberish letters | "Leave every sign, label and book cover blank." |
| Extra people appear | "Only the people from my photo, and no one else in the scene." |
| The pet's markings changed | "Keep the exact coat pattern: a white chest, a black left ear and brown paws." |
| The scene feels dark and gloomy | "Bright, gentle daylight with soft shadows and a clear sky." |
Run these prompts in Smart Editor
Every "Try this prompt" link opens Smart Editor with the text filled in: add your photo under "Your image", swap in your own keep list, and tap "Apply edit". It's a Pro plan tool, and an edit currently costs 85 credits in HD or 110 in 4K. For a scene with no photo, drop "this photo" from a prompt, describe the people instead, and run it in Image Generator on the Free plan. When a still comes out right, the Ghibli-style video prompts animate it with rain, steam and drifting clouds.