---
title: "How to Write AI Video Prompts: Text-to-Video Generator Guide | Luma"
description: "Learn how to write text prompts for Luma's AI video generator. See examples of strong vs. weak prompts and how Ray3.2 interprets camera, motion, and style."
canonical: "https://lumalabs.ai/create/ai-video-generator-from-text"
source: "https://lumalabs.ai/create/ai-video-generator-from-text.md"
---

# Free AI Video Generator from Text — Prompt to Video

Turn text prompts into video with Luma Ray. The quality of your output depends heavily on how you write your prompt — this page covers what to include, what to avoid, and how Luma Ray interprets scene, motion, and style descriptions.

[Try it Now](https://app.lumalabs.ai/)

[Swirl](https://static.cdn-luma.com/files/25b8182464b85037/i2v_07.mp4)

## What goes into a strong prompt?

### Subject and action

Describe what's in the frame and what it's doing (not just "a person" but "a woman in a red coat walking briskly")

[man with banana head at an office desk](https://static.cdn-luma.com/files/sanity/5410ec56-2ad8-4ef5-9786-28d61440ec13.mp4)

### Camera and Framing

Define the type of action you expect wide shot, close-up, drone view, tracking shot — Ray responds to explicit camera language.

[wide angle astronaut on moon](https://static.cdn-luma.com/files/sanity/577538e6-65d7-43fd-a0d1-295df6640c1a.mp4)

### Motion and mood

Do you envision a slow drift or rapid cut? Describe the effect of the video — cinematic, photorealistic, animated.

### Setting and Context

Provide the environmental details that ground the scene – where and when, time of day, lighting conditions.

[yellow warm tone indoors doge dog](https://static.cdn-luma.com/files/sanity/169220ec-d43b-404a-aa13-f6f62aee1422.mp4)

## Examples of weak versus strong prompts

## Realistic Action

**1. Character/Action (Photorealism)**

**Weak:** "A man running"

**Strong:** "A man in a gray hoodie sprints down a rain-slicked alley at dusk, camera tracking alongside him at shoulder height, streetlights blurring in the background, shallow depth of field, photorealistic"

_Why it works:_ Specifies subject (gray hoodie), action with intensity (sprints, not just runs), setting (rain-slicked alley, dusk), camera behavior (tracking, shoulder height), and a clear style anchor (photorealistic, shallow depth of field) — leaving little for the model to guess.

## Animated Style 

**Weak:** "A dragon flying"

**Strong:** "A small green dragon with oversized wings flaps awkwardly through a candy-colored sky, 2D animated style with bold outlines and flat colors, camera following from below as it dips and wobbles between fluffy clouds"

_Why it works:_ "Animated" alone is too broad — there's 2D, 3D, stop-motion, anime, and more. This prompt names the specific style (2D, bold outlines, flat colors), gives the dragon personality through motion (flaps awkwardly, dips and wobbles) rather than generic flight, and specifies a camera position that adds dynamism.

## Product Shots

**Weak:** "A coffee cup on a table"

**Strong:** "A ceramic coffee cup sits on a wooden café table near a window, steam rising slowly, morning sunlight streaming in at a low angle and catching the steam, camera slowly pushing in toward the cup, soft cinematic color grade"

_Why it works:_ Adds material detail (ceramic, wooden), motion that's subtle but present (steam rising, camera pushing in — important for video vs. a static image prompt), lighting specificity (morning sun, low angle), and a style/grade descriptor that signals mood.

_How to generate a video_

## Convert your text into videos in 3 simple steps:

### Write Your Prompt

Describe subject, action, camera, and style. Specific beats vague.

[A subway car arriving on an empty platform](https://static.cdn-luma.com/files/site/ray2/A%20subway%20car%20arriving%20on%20an%20empty%20platform.mp4)

[Generate with Luma AI](https://app.lumalabs.ai/)

### Generate with Luma Ray

Ray interprets your prompt and generates video with consistent motion and visual style.

[a closeup of a paintbrush on a canvas](https://static.cdn-luma.com/files/site/ray2/Artistic%20Brushwork.mp4)

[Generate with Luma AI](https://app.lumalabs.ai/)

### Refine and iterate

Adjust your prompt based on the result — add camera direction, change pacing, or specify style more precisely — and regenerate.

[Kick flip](https://static.cdn-luma.com/files/25b8182464b85037/i2v_10.mp4)

[Generate with Luma AI](https://app.lumalabs.ai/)

## Why Choose Luma's AI Text-to-Video Generator?

Luma's AI Video Generator turns text descriptions, images, and prompts into cinematic, production-quality video in minutes. Powered by Ray, a reasoning-driven model that resolves composition, motion, and scene logic before generating a single frame, you can produce output that matches creative intent from the first generation — with native 1080p video and HDR output. Try Luma now for free.

[Generate Video ](https://lumalabs.ai/app)