Exploring the Boundless Potential of Runway's Gen-2 "Text to Video" Tool

The long-awaited moment has arrived! Runway has finally unveiled Gen-2 to the public, following an extensive period of closed beta testing. And let me tell you, it was well worth the wait. The newly introduced "Text to Video" tool is a game-changer, enabling users to generate 4-second video clips based on their text prompts. Not only that, but users can also provide a reference photo for the program to draw inspiration from, in addition to the text prompt. Currently, the generated content resembles the look of animated GIFs without sound.¹ 

Drawing from the positive experiences shared by previous users of Gen-2, I decided to put the tool to the test by requesting it to create a robot-themed commercial, as it excels in that area. I entrusted ChatGPT to handle the script and text prompts, and here is the initial prompt I provided:

Please create a simple 7-shot script with 7 simple text prompts to feed to a text-to-video generation tool for a commercial targeted towards robots in a world where robots rule the world. The commercial is for EnerOil, a robot food source. Please don't use "EnerOil" in the text prompts, instead use “a dark oil.”

With this prompt, ChatGPT generated the following outline:

Shot 1: Script prompt: "In a world where robots rule..."

Shot 1: Text prompt: "Futuristic cityscape dominated by towering robots."

Shot 2: Script prompt: "EnerOil: Fuel for the mechanical soul."

Shot 2: Text prompt: "Robot hand pouring dark oil into a metallic bowl."

Shot 3: Script prompt: "Robots need sustenance too."

Shot 3: Text prompt: "Close-up of determined robot's glowing eyes."

Shot 4: Script prompt: "Introducing EnerOil: The ultimate food source for robots."

Shot 4: Text prompt: "Robots drinking dark oil out of a metallic bowl, energy levels rising."

Shot 5: Script prompt: "Power up your metal workforce with EnerOil."

Shot 5: Text prompt: "Robot core pulsating and glowing with renewed vigor."

Shot 6: Script prompt: "Unleash the potential of your mechanical army."

Shot 6: Text prompt: "Robot moving with increased efficiency and power."

Shot 7: Script prompt: "EnerOil: The choice of the robot overlords."

Shot 7: Text prompt: "Robot leaders raising bowls of dark oil in a toast.”

Following this outline, I proceeded to Runway's Gen-2 "Text to Video" interface and began generating the text prompts. 

Upon clicking "Generate," the system took approximately 35 seconds to generate my video. I have included a GIF below showcasing the outcome of this prompt's generation.

I followed the same procedure to generate the subsequent six shots, effortlessly downloading them all from the same page. Among them, you will find my personal favorite generation stemming from the prompt "Robot leaders raising bowls of dark oil in a toast."

To complete the commercial, I utilized LOGO's AI logo generation tool to create a logo for EnerOil, employed SOUNDRAW's AI Music Generator to generate fitting music, utilized ElevenLabs' Prime Voice AI for narration, and seamlessly edited everything together using DaVinci Resolve. The end result is a 30-second commercial for EnerOil, which I have provided below.

All in all, I must say that Runway's Gen-2 capabilities have left a lasting impression on me. Although this commercial was merely a test for me, I can confidently state that this tool is a winner, especially considering its recent release. While the generator overlooked certain aspects of the prompts, such as the mention of a "cityscape dominated by towering robots" in the first shot, providing more specific instructions might have prevented such errors. I am eagerly anticipating the opportunity to create more videos using this tool, as the possibilities appear to be limitless. The future of filmmaking is undergoing a transformative shift right before our eyes.

Sources:

¹ https://www.tomshardware.com/news/runway-gen-2-text-to-video-available-to-all