How to Write AI Video Prompts That Actually Work (with Examples)

Most disappointing AI videos come from vague prompts. The good news: a simple structure fixes most of them. Here's the formula we use every day in Dola AI.

The 5-part prompt formula

1. Subject — who or what is on screen. "A young woman with silver braided hair"
2. Action — what happens, in one or two beats. "turns toward the camera and smiles"
3. Setting & light — where and when. "on a neon-lit Tokyo street at night, rain reflections"
4. Camera — how the shot moves. "slow push-in, shallow depth of field"
5. Style — the overall look. "cinematic color grading, film grain"

Put together:

A young woman with silver braided hair turns toward the camera and smiles on a neon-lit Tokyo street at night, rain reflections, slow push-in, shallow depth of field, cinematic color grading.

Camera words the models understand

• Drone shot / aerial flyover — big landscapes and travel.
• Orbit / circles around — products and characters.
• Slow push-in / dolly in — emotion and reveals.
• Handheld / phone camera — authentic UGC ads.
• Crane shot rising — epic establishing shots.
• Tracking shot follows — action and movement.

Text to video vs image to video prompts

For text to video, describe everything — the model invents the whole scene.

For image to video, the photo already defines the scene, so describe only the motion and the camera. Repeating what's in the picture can make the model change it. Good: "the sneaker rotates slowly on a turntable, light sweeps across it".

Examples you can copy

UGC skincare ad (9:16)

Vertical UGC-style ad: a friendly young woman in a bright bathroom holds up a minimalist glass serum bottle, talks to the phone camera with excited expressions, applies a drop to her cheek, close-up of glowing skin, natural handheld camera.

Product commercial (16:9)

Luxury perfume commercial: a crystal bottle on black glass, a slow-motion splash of golden liquid wraps around it, camera slowly orbits, premium high-contrast lighting.

Cinematic travel (16:9)

Aerial flyover of white Santorini houses with blue domes at sunrise, the camera glides toward the shimmering sea, soft pastel sky, travel film look.

You'll find many more in the Dola AI prompt library — click Use prompt to load one straight into the studio.

Five quick fixes

• Too static? Add a camera move and a clear action verb.
• Too chaotic? Limit it to one subject and one or two actions.
• Face drifting in image to video? Ask for small, natural motion.
• Wrong framing? Pick the aspect ratio first, then write for it.
• Wasting credits? Iterate at 480p with Seedance 2.0 Fast, upscale the winner.

Try your prompt in Dola AI →