Music & AudioBeginnerPreview
AI Video Creation with Runway
A hands-on course that turns Runway from a novelty into a dependable short-form video tool. You leave with a shot-prompt formula, a credit budget you can plan against, a Motion Brush and camera-control workflow, and a repeatable image-to-video pipeline that keeps a whole reel on-brand.
For content creators, marketers, founders, and social media managers who want to make short AI video clips with Runway without an editing or coding background.
Course content
Workbook & downloads
Put the course into practice — a printable workbook plus editable templates you can fill in and reuse.
Preview the workbook
This workbook turns the course into reps. Each section matches a course module and gives you exercises to run inside Runway, worksheets to capture your decisions, and checklists to keep your spending and quality in line. Work through it with Runway open in another tab — the goal is a finished, on-brand short-form reel and a reusable prompt library you keep for every future project.
Getting Started with Runway
Set up your account, learn the credit math, and complete your first full generation loop.
Exercise: Run and Compare Two First Generations
In Gen-3 Alpha Turbo, generate the course starter prompt twice at 5 seconds. Watch each clip three times before judging. Note how the two non-identical results differ — this proves why you must budget for multiple takes.
- Generate: A golden retriever runs across a sunny beach toward the camera, sand kicking up behind its paws, slow motion, warm afternoon light, shallow depth of field
- Which of your two takes is better, and write one sentence on exactly why it won (motion, adherence, ending, or camera)?
- How many credits did each 5-second Turbo generation cost, and what is your remaining balance?
Worksheet: Project Credit Budget
Fill this in before you start any real project so you never stall mid-build with an empty balance. Use roughly 50 credits per 5-second Gen-3 Alpha clip and half that for Turbo.
- Project name and target length (e.g. 60-second vertical reel)
- Number of final shots planned (8 to 12 for a 60-second reel)
- Expected takes per usable shot (assume 3 to 5)
- Draft model and cost per take (Turbo, approx 25 credits per 5s)
- Final model and cost per keeper (Gen-3 Alpha, approx 50 credits per 5s)
- Total estimated credits for the project
- Hard credit cap for this project (stop and review when reached)
Checklist: Account and Cost Readiness
- Created a Runway account and confirmed the current plan credit allowance on the pricing page
- Located the model selector and switched to Gen-3 Alpha Turbo for drafting
- Found the remaining-credit display in the top-right of the dashboard
- Completed one full text-to-video generation end to end
- Saved both starter clips into a named project folder for later reuse
Writing Prompts That Control the Shot
Adopt the four-part prompt formula and build a reusable prompt and camera library.
Exercise: Rewrite a Weak Prompt With the Formula
Take a deliberately vague prompt and rebuild it using all four slots: subject and scene, subject motion, camera motion, and lighting and style. Generate both in Turbo and compare side by side.
- Weak version to start from: fisherman on a dock
- Rewrite it filling all four slots explicitly, then paste your final concatenated prompt here
- What changed in the output between the vague and structured versions (camera, motion, mood)?
Worksheet: Four-Part Shot Prompt Builder
Use this template to construct any shot prompt. Fill each slot, then read the slots together as one flowing sentence to paste into Runway.
- Subject and scene (who or what, and where)
- Subject motion (what the subject does)
- Camera motion (dolly, pan, tilt, track, static, etc.)
- Lighting and style (light direction, color grade, lens, film look)
- Final concatenated prompt (the four slots read as one sentence)
Checklist: Prompt Quality Gate
- Every prompt fills all four slots — no empty subject motion or camera motion
- Used a real camera term (dolly in, pan, tracking, static) instead of vague words
- Added a lens or depth cue where a polished look is needed (shallow depth of field, 50mm)
- Changed only one element between iterations so improvements are attributable
- Logged each take's change and outcome in a running take log
Image-to-Video, Motion Brush, and Camera Control
Move from random text output to deliberate direction with stills, region painting, and slider control.
Exercise: Three Motions From One Still
Upload a single product or portrait image as the first frame. Generate three different motions from it via image-to-video: a slow push-in, a gentle orbit, and a subtle parallax. You now have multi-angle coverage of one subject.
- What still did you use, and where did it come from (photo, render, generated image)?
- Write the motion prompt you paired with the image for the orbit shot
- Which of the three motions best fits your brand and why?
Exercise: Living Photo With Motion Brush
Start an image-to-video generation and use Motion Brush to animate only one region while leaving the rest still. Paint just the hair, steam, water, or a flag, set gentle ambient and directional values, and keep faces or products unpainted.
- Which region did you brush, and what motion values did you assign (horizontal, vertical, proximity, ambient)?
- Did anything you left unpainted still move? If so, how will you tighten the brush next time?
- Did multiple separate strokes with different settings improve the shot?
Worksheet: Camera Control Shot Plan
Plan one precise camera move per shot using the slider controls rather than prompt words. Keep intensities low to moderate for believable motion.
- Shot description and approved starting image
- Primary camera axis (horizontal, vertical, zoom, pan, tilt, or roll)
- Intensity setting (subtle, moderate — avoid maximum)
- Motion Brush region(s), if any, and their values
- Intended feeling (intimate push-in, energetic track, clean product orbit)
Checklist: Deliberate Direction Check
- Used image-to-video for any shot where composition or brand mattered
- Set a last-frame keyframe whenever the shot needed to land on a specific image
- Painted only the region that should move with Motion Brush; protected faces and products
- Chose one dominant camera axis per shot and kept its intensity restrained
- Combined still, brushed motion, and slider move on at least one hero shot
Editing, Cleanup, and Assembling a Finished Reel
Clean up generations and sequence them into a consistent, platform-ready short-form video.
Exercise: Clean and Recomposite One Clip
Take an earlier generation into the editor. Remove its background, place the cut-out subject over a solid brand color or new backdrop, and apply frame interpolation for a smooth slow motion. Compare to the raw original.
- What did background removal let you fix or change about the shot?
- Did frame interpolation smooth a jitter or create a slow-motion effect — describe the result
- How much more finished does the cleaned clip look versus the raw generation?
Worksheet: Reel Shot List and Consistency Plan
Plan the whole reel before generating. Lock the shared visual language up front so the finished cut reads as one author's work.
- Reel concept and target length (30 to 60 seconds, 9:16 vertical)
- Locked color palette and grade (e.g. teal and orange)
- Locked lighting style (e.g. golden hour)
- Recurring subject or character description for continuity
- Hook shot for the first second (strongest or pattern-interrupt)
- Ordered list of 8 to 12 shots forming a beginning, middle, and end
- Music bed and caption style
Checklist: Finished Reel Quality Gate
- Drafted each shot in Turbo, then rendered only keepers in the full model
- Trimmed the warped final second off any clip that drifted
- Repeated the locked palette, lighting, and subject cues across every shot
- Led with a strong hook in the first second and kept cuts to every 1 to 3 seconds
- Exported vertically at 9:16 with captions and a consistent music bed
- Produced one complete reel end to end as a portfolio piece
Your Action Plan
- Create your Runway account and confirm the current plan's credit allowance before planning any project
- Run the starter prompt twice in Turbo to internalize that identical prompts produce different takes
- Fill in the Project Credit Budget worksheet and set a hard credit cap for your first real reel
- Adopt the four-part prompt formula and keep an eight-move camera cheat sheet beside you
- Switch your default to image-to-video for any shot where composition or brand matters
- Practice Motion Brush by animating one region while keeping the rest of the frame still
- Plan one restrained camera move per shot with the slider controls instead of prompt words
- Clean every keeper in the editor — background removal, interpolation, and trimming the ending
- Lock a palette, lighting style, and recurring subject before generating any multi-shot reel
- Assemble 8 to 12 cleaned clips into one vertical 9:16 reel with a first-second hook and finish it
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