# Characters

> Characters are the people in your videos, real team members or invented audience personas. Add them in the Characters tab, give them a photo and generate an avatar (1 credit) so they keep the same face.

Source: https://getreelcom.com/help/company-story/characters/  ·  Last verified: 2026-09-15

## What are characters in GetReelCom?

Characters are the people who appear in your videos: real people from your team, or invented personas that represent your target audience or a typical customer.

## Which people can I add as characters?

Two kinds. A "Team member" is a real person, usually from your company. An "Audience persona" is an invented representative of your target customer. Both use the same fields.

## Can I add team members?

Yes.

1. Open the project and click Characters in the left sidebar.
2. Click "New character" (or "Add a character" if the list is empty).
3. Set "Who is this?" to "Team member".
4. Fill in Name, Role, Description, Photo URL (optional), Pain points, Goals, Always and Never.

Saving these details is free. Generating the character's avatar costs 1 credit.

## Can I add the owner or founder?

Yes, as a Team member with "Founder" or "Owner" in the Role field.

## Can I add customers or case-study participants?

Yes. Add a real customer as a Team member with their real details and, with their consent, a real Photo URL. If you want a representative rather than one named person, add an Audience persona instead.

## What permission do I need to use a real person in a video?

That person's demonstrable consent, before you add their photo or likeness. This is a requirement of the [Terms of Service](/terms/), not just advice: you must not upload photos, likenesses or voices of any real person without their demonstrable consent, and you are responsible for being able to show it. Get it in writing.

## How do I create an avatar for a character?

An avatar is one AI-generated portrait, drawn from the character's Name, Role, Description and Photo URL. It becomes the consistent face used to draw that character in every video.

1. Open Characters in the left sidebar.
2. Click "Generate avatar" on the character (it is also listed among the things to do on the Overview), or open Edit and click "Regenerate" next to the current portrait.

Generating or regenerating an avatar costs 1 credit each time. Regenerate replaces the current avatar; there is no gallery of alternatives. During a website import, GetReelCom draws avatars automatically for up to three team members it found with a photo.

## How do I add an image URL for a character?

Paste a direct link to a real photo of the person into Photo URL when adding or editing the character.

1. Find the photo online, right-click it and choose "Copy image address" (Chrome) or "Copy Image Link" (Safari).
2. Paste it into Photo URL. It must point to the image file, not to a web page.

Adding the link is free; generating the avatar from it costs 1 credit.

## What happens if I do not have an image URL for a character?

Leave Photo URL empty and GetReelCom invents a face from the description when you generate the avatar. Without any avatar at all, the character has no fixed face, and the Overview warns that the AI draws them differently in every video.

Generating an avatar is the one step that renders an image, which is why it costs a credit. Without one, only the character's text fields are used, and that is free.

## How do I keep a character recognizable and consistent?

Generate their avatar once, then leave it. Keep Name, Role, Description, Always and Never stable, and do not regenerate the avatar once you are happy with it.

## Can I choose which characters appear in each video?

Yes. The New video screen has a "Who is in it?" picker; click the characters for that video. One or two works best.