How to Make the Skull Cap Trend AI Video From One Photo

Awkward in a bright room, a black skull cap pulled down over your head, then a hard cut to the dark: hood up, glasses off, cold stare. Here's how to make your own skull cap trend video from one photo, with no skull cap, no hoodie, no lighting setup and no editing.

What you're making

The template on our homepage follows the skull cap take @antoniopieterss posted on 18 October 2026, one of the biggest posts of the trend. You take his place. New to the meme? Read what the skull cap trend is first.

It's one selfie shot with one hard cut, and you get the whole 10 seconds:

The motion comes from a depth map of the take: shapes, the cut and camera movement only, no face and no clothes. So the cut lands where it does in the meme, and the person you see is the one in your photo. Your face and hair come from the photo, and so do your clothes before the cut. After the cut you wear a plain black hoodie and a plain black skull cap, with no logos.

The homepage is for people only. For a dog, cat or other pet, use the pet version.

These are the same three steps as on the homepage.

Step 1: Upload one photo of yourself

One clear, well-lit photo, face sharp and toward the camera, head and shoulders or chest up. One person per photo. JPG, PNG or WebP, up to 20 MB.

The stare after the cut is a close-up, so the face matters most. A selfie-style photo matches the clip's framing. Glasses are welcome: you keep them on before the cut, and they come off for the stare, just like in the trend.

Use your own photo, or one of an adult who agreed. Photos of celebrities and of children don't pass review.

Step 2: Pick the model and quality

Choose Budget, Balanced or Premium, and 480p or 720p. Premium also offers 1080p. There's only one length: the whole 10-second clip.

The price is shown before you generate. Credits per video:

Not sure about your photo yet? Try Budget at 480p for 4 credits, then make a sharper version once you like the result. For the close-up stare, Premium is the model we'd pick.

Step 3: Generate, download and post

Your photo is reviewed first, then the render usually takes a few minutes. You get a vertical 9:16 MP4 with no watermark and the trend sound already in it, lined up so the beat drops on the cut at about 4.75 s. Download it and post it as it is.

Want TikTok's own sound instead? Posting with it links your video to the trend's sound page. Switch the song off on the finished video before downloading, then:

1. Upload the silent MP4 on TikTok.
2. Tap Add sound and search "original sound SoulReligion", or open the sound on TikTok and tap Use this sound.
3. Line it up so the beat drops on the cut at about 4.75 s, add your caption, and switch on the AI-generated label.

The sound is Bryson Tiller's verse from DJ Khaled's "Wild Thoughts" (featuring Rihanna and Bryson Tiller). It belongs to its owners.

Make your skull cap video →

What it costs

The video isn't free, but there's no subscription. Two ways to pay:

• One video, no account. Pay once at checkout and we email you the link when it's ready: $4.99 (Balanced, 480p), $6.99 (Balanced, 720p) or $8.99 (Premium, 480p). All three are the whole 10-second clip.
• One-time credit packs. From $9.90 for 20 credits. Credits never expire. With credits you can pick any model and quality in the table above.

If your photo is rejected or the render fails, your payment or credits come back automatically. See pricing for every pack.

Caption ideas: "How I act 0.01 seconds after putting on a skull cap", "Masc potential unlocked", "Same guy, different lighting". Hashtags: #skullcap #skullcaptrend.

Troubleshooting

My photo was rejected. The review turns down photos with more than one person, no clear face, a celebrity or a child. Your money or credits come back. Try a different photo of yourself.

The face doesn't look like me after the cut. Use a sharper photo with your face toward the camera and no sunglasses, mask or heavy filter. Bright, even light helps the face survive the switch to the dark half. Premium is the model we'd try next.

My hair looks different. Before the cut the video copies the hair in your photo. A photo with your hair clearly visible, not under a hat, helps. After the cut it's mostly under the cap and hood.

The sound doesn't line up. The sound in our file is already lined up. If you switched it off and added TikTok's sound, drag it in TikTok's editor until the beat drop hits the cut at about 4.75 s.

The render failed. It's refunded automatically. Try again, or try another photo.

Your photos stay private

We never publish your photos or videos, show them to other users, or use them in our examples. Uploads are deleted 30 days after the video is made.

The pet version

On the pet version, one photo of your dog, cat or other pet is enough: a young man made up by the AI holds it up to the camera, and after the cut both wear black skull caps and stare into the lens. It follows @noahnellys's puppy take. Same steps, same prices.

FAQ

Do I need a skull cap or a hoodie? No. You upload one photo and the video dresses you for the after shot.

How long is the video? 10 seconds, the whole clip, in 9:16, with the hard cut at 4.75 s.

Is there a watermark? No.

Do I have to write a prompt? No. The beats and the cut are built in.

Is the sound included? Yes, the trend sound comes in the video, lined up with the cut. You can switch it off before downloading and add TikTok's own sound when you post, which links your post to the trend's sound page. Both are fine.

Make your skull cap video →

Skull Cap AI is an independent tool, not affiliated with TikTok, the creators of the trend's videos, the sound's uploader, Bryson Tiller, DJ Khaled, Rihanna or their labels.