Fix a Sprite Cutout: Missing Parts and Extra Background

A clean sprite cutout is the difference between a rant layout that looks finished and one that looks pasted together. Most cutout problems fall into three groups: a part of the sprite is missing, some background is left behind, or the edge looks rough. The Maker’s Sprite tools fix each one, and a good source picture prevents most of them. This guide goes through choosing the picture, selecting the sprite, repairing the mask and finishing the edge.

Pick a picture that cuts out cleanly

The cutout starts with the picture you choose, and some pictures are much easier than others.

• Drawings and original characters with clear outlines are the easiest. The line between the sprite and the background is obvious, so the first selection is usually close.
• Screenshots from games often have busy scenery behind the character. Crop close to the character first, and expect to erase small bits of scenery.
• Photos of a pet or an object work well when the subject stands out from the background in colour. A white cat on a white sofa will need the most repair.
• Group pictures need Focus on one, described below, so the tool knows which subject you mean.
• Pictures with a plain white or black background may not need the cutout tool at all. When you upload them as a decoration, a one-colour background touching the edges is cleared automatically.

Whatever you pick, use a picture you drew, an original character, a photo you took, or art whose creator allows it. Your sprite is the face of your account, and the community expects credit for borrowed art.

Start with one person or anime sprite

Open Sprite in the Maker and load a PNG, JPG or WebP image. Wait for the selection model to finish loading. Tap inside the sprite, or draw a short stroke over their body. A stroke tells the tool which subject you mean; it is not a precise outline brush.

For a group photo or a busy illustration, use Focus on one and draw a box around the whole sprite before selecting them. Include their hair, hands and any accessory you want to keep. Leave nearby people outside the box where possible. A box that cuts through a hand can also limit the resulting selection.

Use a clear source with enough separation between the subject and background. The tool can still need repair on pale hair, overlapping bodies, intricate accessories or a drawing whose background has similar colors. Check the result rather than assuming every selected edge is correct.

Match the repair tool to the problem

On mobile, use Select & refine for the initial selection and Repair for brush corrections. The desktop workspace exposes the corresponding selection and brush controls beside the image.

A hand, hair tip or accessory is missing

Try Add missing part on the missing region. For a small edge, switch to Keep and paint over the pixels that should remain. Reduce the brush width for fingers and thin strands. Keep restores pixels from the original photo; it does not invent material that was absent from the source.

Another person or some background is selected

Use Subtract selection on an unwanted selected region. If it touches the sprite you want, use a smaller Erase brush for precise corrections. Work in short strokes and use Undo if a stroke removes too much.

There is a hole or a detached leftover

Fill gap helps with an enclosed transparent hole. Remove island removes a detached piece. A background patch connected to the sprite is not an island: use Erase instead. Recheck intentional gaps between an arm and the body before filling them.

Inspect the cutout before adding it

1. Switch between the mask and cutout previews to distinguish selected pixels from the original background.
2. Zoom in on hair, shoulders, hands and any overlap with a second person. Use Move image to reposition the view while inspecting.
3. Check at normal size as well. A very soft edge may hide small errors when enlarged but look blurry in the final layout.
4. Open Finish on mobile, review the edge treatment, and choose the action that adds the sprite to the layout.
5. Move and resize the new layer on the Maker canvas. Wait for Saved in this browser, or download a JSON backup to preserve the editable project.

Adding the sprite creates a transparent image layer. It does not replace the other decorations. You can then export a transparent PNG of the complete layout for a video overlay.

Finish the sprite with an edge or glow

Once the sprite is on the canvas it starts with a white sticker edge, the most common finish on rant layouts. The edge separates the character from a busy band and from the moving video behind it, and it hides a thin halo left from the old background.

In the sprite’s panel you can switch between an edge, a glow or both, or turn it off. Change the colour when white disappears against a pale frame; a darker shade of your main colour usually works. Keep the thickness modest: a very thick edge makes small details such as fingers and hair tips look blobby. If you want the frame to follow your character’s colours, press “Match the layout to your sprite”; the colour guide explains the options.

If the tool stalls or the result is still wrong

If model loading fails, use Retry loading. The first load needs a network connection to fetch the selection tools. Image selection and mask repair then run in your browser; this local cutout workflow does not upload the source photo for recognition.

If detailed selection is taking too long, Cancel keeps the earlier cutout. Try the quick result and use Keep or Erase for the remaining edges. You can also start from a smaller, clearer source; uploaded source files must be under 12 MB.

When overlapping people cannot be separated cleanly, isolate one subject with Focus on one and repair the shared boundary manually. The tool cannot recover hidden body parts behind another person. For a difficult anime illustration, a deliberate brush repair is often more reliable than repeatedly selecting the same ambiguous area.

For a picture that still will not separate, such as fine hair against a busy background, the optional AI cutout is another route. It runs on our service rather than in your browser and uses credits, which the pricing page lists. Check its result with the same mask and cutout previews before adding it.

Frequently asked questions