Like their traditional counterparts, AI-generated videos now have the ability to captivate and inspire viewers. With advanced tools like Motion, you can now harness the power of artificial intelligence to produce powerful and visually impactful content – whether you are a novice or experienced creator.
This guide will help you master the art of AI-generated video production using Leonardo.Ai. We’ll start with the basics of creating Motion clips, so you’ll be able to generate your first animations straight away. Afterwards we’ll break down the planning and conceptualisation stages, as well as how to add powerful visual narratives and leverage additional hacks in your AI videos. Finally we will dive into advanced strategies for consistency and high emotional impact, so that you can create videos that engage and resonate.
So, let’s get started!
How to Create AI-generated Video Clips with Motion: A Quick Guide
Motion allows you to create powerful AI-generated video clips by adding dynamic 4-second visuals to your images. If you’re eager to get started creating AI video straight away, here is a fast guide on how to do it:
If you have previous generations
Step #1: Sign into Leonardo.Ai via the web platform to access the full suite of creative tools. Once in, navigate to Motion on the left toolbar to animate your images.
If you are on a paid account, current options include uploading a personal image, choosing from previous generations, or selecting from the public community feed.
Step #2: For the purpose of this quick guide, choose an image from ‘Your Generations’. After that, filter your previously created images by toggling between ‘All’ and ‘Upscaled’ or utilise prompt keywords if they are harder to find.
Step #3: Set the motion intensity on a scale from 1 to 10 – higher values infuse more dynamic movements and lower settings result in subtle shifts, like panning.
Experiment to find the sweet spot for the specific generation created. (More detail on this below!)
Once the motion is applied, the result is a four-second video. These video clips can then be assembled using additional free online video editing tools, incorporating music to create a comprehensive and engaging AI-generated video that fully embodies your desired thematic and aesthetic qualities.
Alternatively, if starting totally from scratch:
Step #1: Proceed to Image Generation and select a preset from our vast range, incorporating specific aspects into the text prompt to guide the artistic direction of the image.
Generate the image and – if on a premium subscription – use Alchemy Refiner to upscale and enhance the image quality.
Once done, move to the Motion section of the toolbar to select the image.
The above quick guide allows you to jump right into creating dynamic AI video clips through our intuitive Motion tool. Read on for more in-depth info on how other elements – including preparation and vision boards – can take your AI video generation to the next level!
AI video: The Planning Stage
Generating Engaging AI Videos: Beyond Prompting
Good prompting is crucial to generating engaging AI-video content that resonates with your audience. However, there are other aspects that can also help elevate the final result. These include researching the theme of what you want to create, combining the right visual clips for larger effect and even adding music to complement your overall theme.
The great news is that the learning curve for AI video creation is less steep than traditional cinematography, allowing individuals with varying levels of expertise to produce professional-quality videos. By understanding the basics around AI video generating, you can easily blend creativity with AI capabilities, ensuring each video reflects your intended message, tone and style.
AI video: Conceptualisation and Research Stage
A great extra first step in creating a mesmerising AI-generated video with tools like Motion is conceptualisation. This involves a deep-dive into the subject matter—whether an artist, a historical theme, or a fictional narrative. Once you have done this, you can build-out a comprehensive list of prominent keywords. For example, if the focus is on the Victorian era, some keywords might include: Victorian architecture, 19th-century clothing, gaslamp, and carriage. Similarly, for a project centred around Ancient Egypt, the list could feature pyramids, Sphinx, Pharaoh, hieroglyphics, and Nile River.
These keywords can later form part of the creative prompt, guiding the AI model to produce powerful and accurate images, which can later have motion added to them to become mesmerising AI video clips.
AI Video: Vision Board Stage
Before creating AI video, constructing a vision board is another great extra preliminary step. A vision board serves as a visual planning tool that consolidates images and text to define the aesthetic and thematic direction of any project. You can do this either electronically on a computer using Leonardo.Ai’s Canvas editor (or other software), or offline on an actual board or wall space.
Effectively, a vision board forms a structured approach to visual storytelling, enabling you to fully outline and refine your project’s visual narrative before the AI video production begins. This step is extremely useful for ensuring that the resulting AI video maintains the exact cohesive visual and emotional appeal that you were aiming for.
Making Dynamic AI videos: Music Addition and Syncing Stage
Once you have prompted your powerful Motion clips and combined them together to create a full AI video, you should consider the powerful addition of music and sound effects to enhance the overall impact. For instance, if you generated an AI video of a cyberpunk scene featuring flying cars and modern buildings; adding synthwave style music can layer a whole new dimension to the video to help it resonate more with viewers.
In addition, the timing of the sound itself can have an incredible effect. This synchronisation is especially effective in videos where the pacing and mood shifts according to musical cues, such as a Motion clip of a stormy ocean coinciding with the crescendo of a symphony, hugely enhancing the dramatic effect.
Adding music to AI video clips can be done easily with free online video editing software.
Extra Tips: The Importance of a Visual Narrative
Creating mesmerising AI-generated videos often hinges on a strong visual narrative, which takes the viewer on a journey. For instance, in a video showcasing the evolution of technology, your Motion clips could transition from past technologies to modern innovations, with visual cues such as ageing textures to sleek, modern designs helping to illustrate the passage of time.
As another example, a promotional video for a travel agency might have the visual narrative take the viewer on a journey through various exotic destinations, with visuals flowing smoothly from busy city scenes to tranquil beachside sunsets. This progression not only entertains but also evokes emotional responses that align with the feelings of excitement and relaxation associated with travel.
Don’t forget to arrange your motion-enhanced clips in a logical order that supports the narrative or message of your video. Whether you’re telling a story, explaining a concept, or showcasing a product, the flow should guide the viewer smoothly from beginning to end.
By establishing strong narratives, you ensure that the video conveys a clear message to your audience, both visually and emotionally. By crafting scenes that logically connect and build upon each other, the narrative forms a coherent thread that makes the video more compelling and memorable.
Extra Tips: Consistency and Emotional Impact
The key to leveraging Motion lies in the selection of the right images and the thoughtful application of motion intensity:
Visual Consistency:
Ensure that all your selected images share a cohesive style to maintain consistency throughout the video – unless the aim is specifically for contrasting effects. You can help direct consistency through the prompting process itself, so always ensure you write for everything you want to see, including angles, lighting and colours.
Uniformity and style-consistency is key for creating professional-looking visuals that resonates with viewers. If you struggle with this, you can use the Style Reference, an Image Guidance tool, which allows you to copy visual elements of previously created images over to new generations, and is exceptional for maintaining consistent styles and tones in images.
Emotional Impact:
Use movement to evoke emotions in viewers. For instance, a slowly rising motion can create a sense of calm and awe, suitable for scenes depicting natural landscapes or serene environments. Conversely, rapid movements can generate excitement or tension, ideal for action scenes or promotional content.
Extra Tips: Types of AI-Generated Videos
The flexibility of Motion through adding kinetic visuals to images means that you can leverage a wide range of visuals that can serve a variety of Ai video needs. Here are just some of the many video types you can create with Motion:
Animated Visual Novels / Comics:
These are storyboard-like sequences that combine illustrations with text (which can be added to the video easily via free online platforms) to narrate a story, typically enhanced by minimal animation. They are particularly suited for projects that demand a strong narrative structure supported by punchy visual elements.
Educational Videos:
These videos use clear, engaging visuals to simplify complex concepts or processes. They are perfect for educational or training settings where clarity and viewer engagement are crucial.
Promotional Videos:
AI-generated videos can also take the form of short films or music videos, utilising Motion to craft narrative elements and add engaging visuals. These films often experiment with plot, character development, and visual effects to explore innovative storytelling methods. (Storyboards / Vision boards are key for these types of projects).
Music Videos:
These videos are naturally compelling as they act as supporting visuals to music. They can have a storyline or be abstract, but it is crucial that they line up with the various beats and melodies of the music for maximum effect.
Now you know how to plan for creating mesmerising AI-videos with Motion and how to tweak them once created, read on to see how to actually prompt them!
How to Craft Unique Visuals with Leonardo.Ai’s Motion Tool
Creating unique visuals with Motion allows you to infuse dynamic elements into static images, transforming them into captivating video clips. This innovative feature is streamlined yet powerful, enabling both novices and experienced creators alike to produce visually striking content. Here’s how to do it step-by-step:
- Select Your Image: Begin by choosing an image that you have either created, or selected from your gallery on Leonardo.Ai. This image should ideally be rich in elements that can benefit from motion, such as rippling water, swaying trees, or bustling cityscapes. Use the above tips to ensure your base images are as good as they can be.
- Apply Motion: Once you’ve selected your image, use Motion to apply movement. The tool offers a simple slider that adjusts the intensity of the motion on a scale from 1 to 10. This scale allows you to control how subtle or pronounced the motion effects will be.
- Fine-Tune Motion Intensity:
- Lower Intensity (1- 4): Ideal for subtle effects like the gentle movement of leaves or a slow-drifting cloud. This setting enhances the image without overwhelming the scene.
- Medium Intensity (5-7): Suitable for more noticeable movements, such as flowing water or passing vehicles. It strikes a balance, bringing vitality without distorting the original imagery.
- Higher Intensity (8-10): Best used for dramatic effects, like swirling storms or fast-moving scenes. This level maximises the dynamic impact, suitable for creating a strong visual statement.
- Lower Intensity (1- 4): Ideal for subtle effects like the gentle movement of leaves or a slow-drifting cloud. This setting enhances the image without overwhelming the scene.
- View and Adjust: After applying the desired level of motion and waiting for the generated visual to finish, view it on the generated images feed to ensure that the movement aligns with your creative vision. If the movements do not match the intended effect, you can play with the Motion intensity or create a different image more suited to dynamic effects.
- Combine Clips: To create a comprehensive video, you can use free video editing tools (easily discoverable online) to stitch together multiple Motion clips, and create mesmerising AI videos. This assembly process allows for the creation of larger narrative or thematic sequences, enhancing the storytelling aspect of your video.
Conclusion:
Leonardo.Ai’s Motion is a powerful tool to help you produce mesmerising and dynamic AI videos. By carefully creating and curating images that lend themselves to engaging movements and adjusting the motion intensity appropriately, you can transform static visuals into engaging video clips that can then be built-out into powerful, versatile AI videos.
In addition, by adding in the extra elements detailed in this guide – like researching, creating a keyword list and adding in visual narratives, you can be confident that your resulting videos will be powerful and stunning, ensuring they aren’t just viewed but vividly experienced by audiences, whatever their purpose.