Seattle’s Yutao Han, aka Tao Prompts, has just released a great resource called The Cheat Code to Cinematic AI Videos on a Budget.
He ranks ten factors that influence the realism of generated video. In order from least to most important, here they are:
- Resolution
- AI Video Model
- AI Image
- Sound Design
- AI Prompts
- Camera Shot
- Colour Grade
- Lighting
- Reference Materials
- Idea
Some takeaways:
- Image to Video is the standard workflow. Create lots of cheaper images and then choose the right model to animate them. 1080p seems to be the sweet spot between speed, resolution and cost.
- Start with a great image as an expensive video model won’t necessarily fix a poor one. To this end, using an LLM to reverse-engineer reference material can help.
- Expect to recreate sound in your edit.
My take: What’s fascinating about this list is that the top five factors plus sound design are traditional filmmaking concepts. In Yutao’s mind, the technical aspects of AI generated cinematic videos are less important than starting with a great idea and wrapping it in the elements that will express it best. In other words, begin with a story worth telling.