Writing effective text prompts for Generate video (beta)

Learn how to write effective text prompts to generate video clips that align with your vision.

With Generate video (beta), you can turn basic text and image prompts into visually compelling videos that express creative intent, fill gaps in your timeline, or add elements to an existing shot. Here are some suggestions to get the most from Generate video (beta) available on the Adobe Firefly website. 

Be clear and descriptive

When writing your text prompt in Generate video (beta), use as many words as possible to be specific about lighting, cinematography, color grade, mood, and aesthetic style. A well-structured, concise prompt helps Firefly understand what kind of video you want to create.

Whether you’re describing a scene, action, or setting, avoid ambiguity and ensure your language is simple enough for Firefly to understand your intent. The structure of your text prompt should follow – Shot Type Description + Character + Action + Location + Aesthetic.

• Shot Type Description: What is the camera perspective? How is it moving? For example - "a close-up shot with a slow zoom-in."
  
• Character Description: Who is the character? What do they look like? What are they wearing? What’s their emotion? For example - "a large polar bear with bright white fur looking pensive."
• Action: What is the character doing in the scene? For example - "the polar bear is walking softly but confidently toward a hole it has previously opened in the ice to hunt beneath the surface of the ice."
• Location: Where is the character? What’s the weather? What’s the terrain? For example - "the location is barren and snowy; gray clouds are moving slowly in the distance."
  
• Aesthetic: What type of shot is it? What’s the ambience? What’s the depth of field? For example - "cinematic, 35mm film, highly detailed, shallow depth of field, bokeh."
  

Specify the visual style 

It’s important to be specific on the visual tone and style of the video, such as the type of look you want to generate. For example, do you want a realistic, cinematic, animated, or surreal? The more specific you can be about the aesthetic, the closer Firefly can get to your desired result. 

An example prompt– "Create an animated, high-contrast video of a snow mobile racing through mountains at dusk."

Some visual style ideas you can try: 

• Cinematic: Think dramatic lighting, lens flares, high contrast.
• Realistic: Aim for natural lighting, clear details, and lifelike characters.
• Animated: Use terms like cartoonish, 3D animation, or 2D animated.
• Artistic: Use adjectives like impressionistic, minimalist, or abstract to guide the art direction.

Define actions clearly 

If you want your video to involve movement or action with one or more of your characters, describe these actions with specific verbs and adverbs. This helps Firefly understand the pacing, rhythm, and flow of the action you want. It's recommended you use dynamic verbs such as running, flying, swimming or dancing, and include pacing such as slowly, quickly, or gradually. 

An example prompt– "A dog sprints gleefully across the beach and catches a ball in the air."

Use descriptive adjectives 

Getting the correct atmosphere of the video is crucial when writing an effective prompt. Be specific about what you want the overall atmosphere to be. For example, do you want the video to feel calming, mysterious, or energetic? If you use very descriptive adjectives that evoke the feeling you want your video to convey, Firefly can generate the most accurate output. 

An example prompt– "A peaceful, misty morning on the beach, with soft sunlight filtering through a beach chair."

Provide context or background story 

For more complex video projects, you may want Firefly to incorporate specific plot elements or characters. Providing background or context helps Firefly generate a coherent and engaging sequence. For example, you can pick still frames from clips you are using in Premiere Pro and use those stills to direct new action from existing characters or actors. Using uploaded still frames or images can create character continuity between generations to help you tell a longer, more detailed narrative. 

Use camera angles and movements 

Firefly can often simulate real-world camera work, so help it out by being specific to what angles or movements you want the camera to make for a very personal touch.  

Here are some common camera directions: 

Include temporal elements (Time of day, weather) 

Lighting conditions change, as well as weather throughout the day. To affect the mood of your video, be specific about these temporal elements if they are important to your story. Foggy, cloudy, thunderstorms or bright sunny days are good examples. 

Use iterative prompting 

Firefly works best through trial and error. Start with a basic prompt and refine it with more details in each iteration.  

For example, try the following prompts:

Prompt - "Full scene, eye level, wide shot, a giant mech in the street, high quality, high details."

Prompt - "Full scene, eye level, wide shot, a giant mech, yellow and orange armor, in desolate streets, wires, LEDs, cybernetic parts, high quality, high details."

Prompt - "Full scene, eye level, wide shot, a giant black and yellow mech, accents of orange neon LEDs, marching, firing lasers, scanning, in the street of a destroyed city, rubble, fires, decayed buildings, desolate, ominous, high quality, great details."

Prompt - "Cinematic action scene, a group of giant mechs is invading the city, they are menacing, giant black and yellow mechs, yellow and orange matte armor, a dystopian future, in the street of a destroyed city, rubble, fires, decayed buildings, desolate, ominous, high quality, high details, volumetric lighting."

Add elements to existing videos 

Firefly can also generate several interesting editorial use cases that can help enhance your creativity when editing. 

Here are some of the examples:

• Create transition masks that can be used in Premiere Pro to transition between two different clips. These masks control which parts of the screen show the outgoing clip and which show the incoming one. This can lead to unique and creative effects beyond the standard transitions like cross-dissolves or wipes. 
  

• Create elements, such as animations, graphics, effects, or objects, on green or black backgrounds to composite in Premiere Pro or After Effects. 
  

• Create overlays, like light flares, particle effects, or fire, on a black background that can be blended into footage in Premiere Pro. 
  

Additional prompt considerations

Prompt length 

There aren't hard limits on how long or short a prompt should be, but Firefly has a maximum word limit of 175 words. Long prompts don't always yield better results. 

Language style 

Vivid details and concrete language produce more predictable results. Using poetic or abstract wording can produce surprising results so it’s often a good idea to mix and match depending on your objectives. As you become more experienced, you can play with the structure, length, and style of your video prompts.

Additional descriptors  

Consider adding additional descriptors to your prompts for even greater control over generated video content:

• Cinematography terms such as shallow depth of field, shot on film, and cinematic.
• Composition terms such as wide, close up, shot from above, and shot from below.
• Lighting terms such as backlight, soft light, and hard light.
• Color grading terms such as saturated colors, high contrast, and warm or cool tones.
• Mood or tone terms such as somber, tense, euphoric, and mysterious.
• Camera movement terms such as pan right or left, tilt up or down, and dolly in or out.

More like this

• Generate videos with text prompts and images
• Generate video (beta) FAQ
• Generative credits FAQ
  
• Adobe Firefly website