01
Subject
Name the main person, animal, object, or imagined form. Add appearance details only when they affect the shot.
MiniMax H3 resourcesBuild better video promptsOpen generator
MiniMax H3 prompt guideText to video · Image to video · Camera direction
Write prompts like compact shot briefs.
A useful video prompt is more than a mood board. Give one shot a clear subject, a readable setting, a controlled movement, a camera path, and a visual atmosphere—then remove any direction that competes with the main action.
Precise prompt formula
Subject + scene + movement + camera + aesthetic atmosphere
Write these decisions in playback order. One dominant movement and one clear camera path usually communicate more than a stack of conflicting instructions.
- Subject
- Who or what matters
- Scene
- Where the shot happens
- Movement
- What changes over time
- Camera + mood
- How the shot is seen
- Basic formula
- Subject + scene + motion
- Precise formula
- + camera + atmosphere
- Camera vocabulary
- 15 official commands
- Prompt limit
- 2,000 characters
Prompt foundation
Start with three decisions. Add detail only when it earns control.
MiniMax’s basic formula is designed for open exploration. The precise formula adds professional shot direction when the framing and visual finish matter.
02
Scene space
Place the subject in a concrete environment: a library, night street, studio, mountain valley, or stylized invented world.
03
Movement or change
Describe the action and how the scene evolves. Video needs a change over time, not a list of static visual tags.
04
Camera movement
Choose the framing and path: fixed, tracking, push, pull, pan, tilt, rise, fall, zoom, or a restrained combination.
05
Aesthetic atmosphere
Set lighting, palette, texture, realism, weather, lens feeling, and emotional tone without overwhelming the action.
06
Final beat
State where the shot should settle: a close expression, a wide reveal, a completed turn, or a still product frame.
The two formulas
Basic: subject + scene + movement/change. Precise: subject + scene + movement/change + camera movement + aesthetic atmosphere.
Reusable templates
Choose the input mode before writing the first line.
Text-to-video must establish the whole visual world. Image-to-video can spend more of the prompt on motion because the first frame already defines subject and style.
Scene-building template
Use when the model must invent the subject, environment, and opening composition from text.
T2V template
[Subject and defining appearance] in [specific scene and time]. [Primary action or change]. [Camera command or natural-language camera path]. [Lighting, color, visual style, and atmosphere]. The shot ends on [final composition or emotional beat].Motion-first template
Use when the uploaded first frame already establishes identity, composition, and the initial aesthetic.
I2V template
The [main subject visible in the image] [performs one clear action]. [Environment or secondary elements change]. [Camera path] while preserving the subject’s defining appearance and the original visual style. End with [final pose or framing].Transition template
Describe how the first controlled image evolves into the last rather than re-describing both frames in isolation.
FL2V template
Beginning from the first frame, [subject action and environmental transition]. [Camera movement and timing]. Preserve [identity, object, or style constraints] as the composition evolves naturally into the supplied final frame.Performance template
Keep appearance references separate from the action, camera, and environment that should change.
S2V template
The referenced character appears in [scene] wearing [relevant wardrobe]. They [single readable action] with [controlled expression]. [Camera path] reveals [important detail]. Keep facial identity consistent and finish on [final framing].Camera vocabulary
All 15 documented English camera commands.
Use the bracketed form for supported models when camera accuracy matters. Natural-language direction also works, but explicit commands provide a clearer control signal.
Truck
[Truck left][Truck right]Move the camera laterally while preserving its viewing direction.
Pan
[Pan left][Pan right]Rotate the camera left or right from a relatively fixed position.
Push and pull
[Push in][Pull out]Physically move toward or away from the subject to change spatial emphasis.
Pedestal
[Pedestal up][Pedestal down]Raise or lower the camera without tilting its viewing direction.
Tilt
[Tilt up][Tilt down]Rotate the view upward or downward from a relatively fixed position.
Zoom
[Zoom in][Zoom out]Change apparent focal length rather than physically traveling through the scene.
Shake
[Shake]Introduce deliberate camera instability; use sparingly so subject motion remains readable.
Follow
[Tracking shot]Move with the subject to preserve their position while the environment changes.
Static
[Static shot]Hold the camera steady and let performance or environmental motion carry the clip.
Control rules
Sequence the camera instead of stacking contradictions.
Commands are most useful when they clarify the shot’s order and priority.
Combined movement
Keep one bracket group below three commands
Commands inside one bracket group act together, for example [Pan left,Pedestal up]. More than three is not recommended.
Sequential movement
Place commands where they happen
Write the action in order: the subject enters [Tracking shot], pauses, then the camera reveals the face [Push in].
Short shot
Keep complex choreography within 5–6 seconds
MiniMax’s prompt guide recommends a compact movement window to reduce failures from overly complex camera direction.
Prompt optimizer
Choose interpretation or exact wording
The API defaults prompt_optimizer to true. Disable it when the precise command sequence should be preserved.
Example prompts
Four shot briefs you can reshape.
These examples are newly written from the documented formula. Replace the subject and setting while preserving the hierarchy of direction.
Rain-lit cyclist
One subject action, one camera path, and a final emotional beat.
6-second cinematic shot
A courier in a reflective jacket cycles through a rain-lit city intersection at night. Water sprays from the tires as neon reflections stretch across the road [Tracking shot]. The camera moves beside the bicycle, then gently closes on the courier’s focused expression [Push in]. Natural wet-surface reflections, cool blue light with restrained magenta accents, cinematic realism.Watch reveal
Let the first frame own the product design while the prompt directs light and camera motion.
Controlled image animation
The watch remains centered as a narrow band of warm light travels across the brushed metal case. Fine mist moves slowly behind the product [Truck right]. Preserve the watch geometry and dark marble surface. End on a clean three-quarter product angle with the dial fully readable.Quiet performance
Use a fixed camera when expression is more important than spectacle.
Character close shot
A stage actor sits alone at a dressing-room mirror after a performance. Their shoulders relax and a restrained smile appears as distant applause fades [Static shot]. Warm practical bulbs frame the reflection, soft film grain, natural skin texture, intimate and contemplative atmosphere.Forest reveal
Put each camera command beside the moment it should control.
Two-part camera path
A red fox steps through a misty cedar forest at dawn [Tracking shot]. It stops beside a shallow stream and looks upward as sunbeams break through the canopy. The camera slowly rises to reveal the scale of the forest [Pedestal up]. Natural color, cool mist, soft golden light, calm documentary realism.Common failure patterns
Remove ambiguity before adding adjectives.
Most weak prompts do not need more words. They need a clearer subject, action, or camera priority.
Keyword cloud
Static style tags with no change over time
Replace “cinematic, beautiful, 4K, dramatic” with a subject performing one visible action inside a defined scene.
Competing directions
Several camera moves at the same priority
Choose one dominant movement. If a second is necessary, place it later in the prompt as a clear sequence.
Overloaded story
Too many beats for one short clip
Give the shot one job. Build a longer sequence from several generated clips rather than compressing a full scene into six seconds.
Image repetition
Re-describing everything already visible
In image-to-video, spend prompt space on movement, change, camera behavior, and the features that must stay consistent.
Unclear ending
The shot has no final composition
Name the last beat so the action resolves: a close expression, a wide reveal, a still pose, or a completed transition.
Optimizer mismatch
Expecting exact commands after automatic rewriting
When precise bracket order matters, test prompt_optimizer false and compare the result against the default optimized request.
Before generation
A six-question prompt check.
Read the prompt once as a director and once as a timeline.
Subject
Is one subject clearly dominant?
A viewer should know what to watch before the camera starts moving.
Scene
Is the environment concrete?
Name place, time, weather, or production context when it changes the visual result.
Movement
Does something visibly change?
Describe an action, transformation, expression, or environmental event across time.
Camera
Is there one primary camera path?
Use a documented command or a concise natural-language path, not both repeatedly.
Atmosphere
Do light and style support the action?
Keep the look coherent and avoid mixing several unrelated aesthetics.
Ending
Can you picture the final frame?
A clear last beat helps the model resolve motion instead of drifting into a random continuation.
Prompt questions
Direct the important part first.
Should I write a long prompt?
Length is not the goal. Use enough detail to identify the subject, setting, movement, camera path, and atmosphere, then remove instructions that compete with the primary action.
Can I combine camera commands?
Yes. Commands inside one bracket group act together, such as [Pan left,Pedestal up]. MiniMax recommends no more than three commands in one combined group.
How do I sequence two camera movements?
Place each command beside the relevant action in playback order—for example, follow the subject [Tracking shot], then reveal an expression [Push in].
Should prompt_optimizer be enabled?
It defaults to true and can improve broad creative prompts. Set it to false when you want the API to preserve exact wording or a deliberate camera-command sequence.
How is image-to-video prompting different?
The first frame already establishes subject, composition, and style. Focus the prompt on motion, camera behavior, environmental change, and the features that must remain consistent.
Write one clear shot. Then test the direction.
Start with the basic formula, add one useful camera decision, and compare the result before increasing complexity.