Introduction

This exercise introduces you to synthetic video generation with generative AI. The selection and quality of video generators is changing quickly, but in this exercise you'll be using the free tool MiniMax from Hailuo AI.

Your goal is to create as consistent and engaging a cinematic narrative as possible. These video-prompting guidelines will be helpful in crafting the best possible clips.

Requirements

• A video player such as VLC, QuickTime, or Windows Media Player.
• A simple video editor such as iMovie (MacOS), Clipchamp or Windows Movie Maker (Windows), or Adobe Premiere, DaVinci Resolve, or Final Cut.

Generate the initial shot

1. As a team, imagine a sequence of 3-5 cinematic shots that together represent an excerpt from a longer narrative. Feel free to write down or sketch these shots.
2. Each member of a team visits MiniMax (Hailou AI), and signs up (eg, via a Google account).
3. In the input field for Text-to-Video, type a prompt for the first shot following the guidelines mentioned above, eg.  camera motion  subject  scene  subject motion .

   Example:

   📌 The camera looks down from a high vantage point on a lighthouse perched on a rocky Maine coast. Surrounding this rocky outcropping is a blue sea with sunlight glinting off the waves. The camera slowly descends along the coast to reveal a sailboat off the coast. As the camera pans down closer to the sailboat, you can see its crew jumping off into the water.
4. Each team member generates one 6-second clip based on the same or similar prompts.

Generate followup shots

4. The team chooses the best of the videos generated in the first round and downloads it to the creator's laptop. The creator then opens it in her video player, increases it to full size, and screenshots the last frame (Option-Command-S in VLC).
5. Back in MiniMax, select Image-to-Video and click on the image upload icon to make the last frame of your previous clip the first frame of your next clip.
6. Using the same guidelines, each team member adds a prompt describing the next 6 seconds of the movie and generates a new clip.
7. Repeat the last three steps until you have at least 3 contiguous shots or have run out of credits.

Save your masterpiece!

8. As a team, screenshot an image and post it to the #x-ai-video channel. Be sure to tag each team member with @mary @jose etc.
9. As individuals, vote on your classmates' videos by adding a 👍 emoji to at most three scenes, not including your own.