A corgi stands on its hind legs in a red leather jacket, stretches both paws forward and zombie-walks along a wet stone path. A skeleton kitten dances on its left, a ghost kitten under a white sheet behind it on the right. Here is what happens in those 15 seconds, which photo to pick, and how to put your own pet, or yourself, in the middle.
Why the Thriller dance comes back every October
Arms out, fingers curled into claws, shoulders jerking as you shuffle sideways: the Thriller routine is the best-known zombie dance there is. Every October schools, offices and street flash mobs dance it again, searches for it multiply, and after Halloween it goes quiet until next year.
This year the short version is the one people share: a sway, zombie arms, a sideways walk, claws up, then a deep bow and a jump back up. The kitten version, a ginger kitten in a red jacket leading two costumed kittens, made everyone ask the same thing: what would my pet look like in the middle?
What happens in the 15 seconds
The scene never changes: a foggy graveyard at night under a full moon, crooked tombstones, bare trees, jack-o'-lanterns along a wet stone path. Your dancer is in the middle, the skeleton kitten on the left, the ghost kitten behind on the right. One continuous vertical shot.
- 0–4 s: all three sway together and open their arms.
- Around 5 s: they turn sideways, both arms straight out in front, and zombie-walk a few steps.
- Around 8 s: they turn the other way and raise their claws overhead.
- Around 12 s: the big moment, a deep bow with the face almost on the ground.
- 13–15 s: all three spring back up and finish with their claws out.
Which photos work best
- A clear face in good light. The lead's face comes from your photo; a blurry photo gives a blurry dancer.
- The whole body if you can. The camera shows the dancer head to toe, so fur colour, markings, four legs and the tail all come through better from a full-body shot.
- One subject per photo. With two pets, or a pet and a person, in one photo the template cannot tell who should dance. Give each dancer its own photo instead.
- Any outfit. Every lead wears the same red leather jacket and red trousers, and the background of your photo is replaced by the graveyard.
Person mode: you become a big-headed mini dancer
Want to dance yourself? Switch from Pet to Person and upload a photo of yourself. You keep your face, hairstyle and expression and put on the same red jacket.
One thing you may not expect: you don't stand at full human height between the kittens. You shrink to about their size while your head stays the same, a chibi version of you dancing in the graveyard. It is often the funniest version of the template.
How to make your Thriller dance video
- Open the Thriller dance generator.
- Keep Pet for a cat, dog or other furry friend; choose Person for a photo of a human.
- Upload one photo for the lead, and up to two more for the backup dancers if you like. Confirm you may use them and press the generate button. Each video is 15 seconds, 9:16, at the same price.
- Wait a few minutes; the finished video appears on the page and in My videos.
What to expect from the result
- In the bow you only see the top of the head. The bow is deep: a corgi becomes a pair of ears, long hair falls to the ground.
- The backup dancers can be yours too. By default the skeleton kitten and the ghost kitten dance alongside; add up to two more photos and your other pets take their costumes.
- Tails show up on their own. A big fluffy tail often hangs out of the red trousers when the dancer turns.
- Pets vary more than people between runs. If the face is not quite right or a step looks sloppy, generate again or use a sharper photo.
Got a cat and a dog? Put one in the lead and the other in the skeleton costume, or make one video each and let your friends vote on the better zombie walk. Or make a chibi Person version of yourself to post next to your pet's.