Add an explosion to any photo

Upload a photo, sketch the spot where you want the blast, and get a video where an explosion erupts exactly there: fireball, smoke, shockwave, and debris, with light spilling onto everything around it. The rest of the scene stays as photographed. You decide where it happens; the preset handles the pyrotechnics. No VFX plugins, no stock explosions, no masking.

Try Add Explosion

What is the Add Explosion preset?

Add Explosion is an AI video effect on Artlist that lets you place a cinematic explosion on a photo by drawing where it should happen. You upload an image, sketch a mark over the target area, and the preset generates a short clip with a blast at that point, with fire, smoke, shockwave, and reactive lighting, while the rest stays as shot.

How to add an explosion to a photo

Four steps from a still to a controlled detonation.

  • Upload your photo

    Choose a sharp image with a clear target: a car, a building, a prop, an empty patch of ground. Outdoor and wide scenes give the blast room to breathe.

  • Sketch the spot

    Draw over the area where the explosion should happen. A rough mark is enough; the preset uses it to place and scale the blast.

  • Generate the blast

    Run the preset. It detonates at your mark, adds fire, smoke, and debris, and lights the surrounding scene to match.

  • Add the sound

    Layer an explosion and a low rumble from the Artlist SFX library and a track from the music catalog. Export vertical for social or widescreen for film.

Ways to use the Add Explosion effect

A placed explosion is a storytelling tool. Here is where it fits.

  • Action shorts and previs

    Blow up a car, a doorway, or a building in a location still to previsualize a scene or finish a short.

  • Comedy and reaction edits

    Detonate the thing that annoyed you: the printer, the alarm clock, the parking ticket.

  • Game and product teasers

    Add an explosion behind a product or a logo for a launch beat with impact.

Frequently asked questions

A sharp image with a clear target and some space around it. Outdoor scenes, vehicles, and buildings give the strongest result. Very tight crops leave no room for the blast.

A rough mark over the target is enough. The preset uses your sketch to position and scale the explosion, so a larger mark gives a larger blast.

Use Explosion Walk Away, which animates a person striding toward the camera as the blast goes off behind them.

The preset generates a short clip of several seconds, sized for social feeds. If you need a longer scene, run the result through the Extend Video preset.

Artlist includes starter credits for trying AI tools, and some presets offer a free generation. Open the preset in the toolkit to see its current credit cost before generating.

Yes. Content generated with Artlist AI tools is covered by the Artlist license, including commercial use. Make sure you have permission to use any photo of another person.

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