With Gesture Control, your avatar can do more than just talk. From a simple thumbs-up to a smiling expression, or even a dog walking behind you, you can now bring expressive, timed movements into your videos. This guide walks you through how to film gesture-ready footage, how Gesture Control works in Studio, and how to add gestures to new or existing avatar looks.
🛎️ Note: Gesture control is only compatible with Hyper-Realistic Avatars created from uploaded video footage. The avatar must also have been created after June 15, 2025, when this feature officially launched.
👋 Prefer to watch instead of read? Check out our Gesture Control tutorial from HeyGen Academy: 101, a follow-along course teaching all of HeyGen's basics.
Why Use Gesture Control?
Sometimes, voice and script alone aren’t enough to convey the energy, personality, or nuance you’re aiming for. Gesture Control solves this by letting you:
Add natural expressions, hand gestures, or subtle body language
Sync movements precisely to words or moments in your script
Highlight emotional shifts, reactions, or visual emphasis
Include dynamic background elements like a pet walking by
Whether you’re creating an explainer, a personal intro, or a social-ready announcement, Gesture Control helps your avatar feel more lifelike, expressive, and engaging.
How to Record Gesture-Ready Footage
Gesture Control requires specific structure in your training footage. Here’s how to film it when creating a new Hyper-Realistic Avatar.
Time Range | What to Do |
First 30 seconds | Record neutral “base” footage, speaking with no gestures |
After the first 30s | Continue speaking and add one gesture every 2 seconds (e.g. thumbs-up, smile, point) |
Best Practices
Keep at least 2 seconds between gestures
Always return to a neutral pose after each gesture
Capture up to 10 gestures per video (subject to change)
Keep in mind that gestures aren't limited to hand movements and can also be facial expressions, body language, or notable background activity (like a dog walking behind you).
After you add or adjust a gesture, it may take 3–5 minutes to process.
If you make a timing change or add a new gesture, please wait before previewing to ensure the update is applied.
What to Avoid
The following types of gestures are not supported and will result in your avatar being rejected:
Rapid face movements, like vigorously shaking your head
Covering your face, such as hands over mouth in surprise
Obstructed or missing face, like turning fully around or spinning in place
These disrupt facial and body tracking and cannot be processed accurately.
Annotating Your Gestures
After uploading your new Hyper-Realistic Avatar footage, Gesture Control will automatically detect gestures and suggest placements. You can review, add, remove, or fine-tune each gesture directly in Studio.
To get started annotating, navigate to your Avatar Look. On the right-hand panel, you’ll see a list of detected gestures. You can adjust their timing to align perfectly with your script.
Want more control? You can also manually add gestures by selecting “Add Gestures.” From there, simply choose the moment in your video.
Whether you're using new gesture-ready footage or reusing older looks with gestures already present, annotation gives you full control over how and when each gesture appears.
Adding Gestures to Existing Avatars
Have an already created Hyper Realistic Avatar you want to add gestures to? No problem!
Simply navigate to your avatar from the 'Avatars' tab, click Add New . Then, Upload your new gesture-ready footage, and follow the same annotation steps above.
Adding Gestures in Studio
In our new AI Studio, you can trigger gestures to appear in sync with your script by clicking on a word and assigning a gesture to that moment.
How to trigger a Gesture
Highlight the target word or phrase in your script.
Click the Gesture button that appears.
Choose the gesture you want to assign.
Preview & Polish
Hit Play to preview your scene.
Watch how the gesture and audio sync up.
Tweak placement or timing as needed for the most natural delivery.
Align & Fine-Tune Timing
If the timing feels off:
Option A: Remove the gesture and re-add it to an earlier or later word.
Option B: Click Edit Gestures, then adjust the timestamp directly.
Remember the Scene Cut
All gestures require a scene cut a few seconds before they appear. This helps ensure a clean transition into the gesture, though it may not always feel perfectly seamless. That’s expected, and often preferred for pacing.
💡 Pro Tip: Frequent scene cuts (e.g. every 5–10 seconds) can feel jarring to viewers. Keep cuts closer to every 20–30 seconds for best results.
Tips for Best Results
Use natural gestures with clear start and end points
Add subtle expressions or movements to increase realism
Consider using Gesture Control for background actions to add depth and character
Think of Gesture Control as “offset control” — it’s about choosing when a visual moment plays'
We’re excited to see what you create with Gesture Control. Start experimenting and bring your avatars to life in new ways!