RunwayML, a leader in AI-powered creative tools, has launched the Gen-3 Alpha, a groundbreaking text-to-video tool that takes video generation to new heights. This advanced model allows users to create stunning videos by specifying prompts related to various cinematic aspects, including camera styles, lighting styles, movement speeds, movement types, style and aesthetic, and text styles. In this article, we delve into the features of RunwayML Gen-3 Alpha and provide detailed explanations for each aspect along with ten prompt examples to help you get started.

1. Camera Styles

Aerial: A shot taken from a high vantage point, often from a drone or helicopter, providing a bird’s-eye view of the scene below.

Close-up: A shot that tightly frames a subject, such as a person’s face, to capture detail and emotion.

Wide shot: A shot that captures a wide view of a scene, providing context and showing the subject in its entirety along with its surroundings.

Over-the-shoulder: A shot taken from behind a character, looking over their shoulder towards the subject or scene.

First-person: A shot that mimics the viewpoint of a character, making the audience see the action through the character's eyes.

2. Lighting Styles

Soft lighting: A lighting style that produces gentle shadows and diffused light, creating a flattering and natural look.

Dramatic lighting: High contrast lighting that creates stark shadows and highlights, often used to convey tension or drama.

Natural lighting: Use of sunlight or other natural light sources, providing a realistic and organic feel.

High-key lighting: Bright, even lighting with minimal shadows, often used in comedies and musicals to create an upbeat mood.

Low-key lighting: Dim, shadowy lighting with strong contrasts, typically used in horror and thriller genres to evoke suspense.

3. Movement Speeds

Slow motion: The action appears slowed down, allowing viewers to see details that would be missed at normal speed.

Real-time: The action is shown at normal speed, providing a natural and authentic view of the events.

Fast motion: The action appears sped up, often used to show the passage of time quickly.

Time-lapse: A sequence where frames are captured at intervals, making time appear to move faster when played back.

4. Movement Types

Pan: The camera moves horizontally from one side to another, often used to follow a subject or reveal a scene.

Tilt: The camera moves vertically up or down, used to show height or reveal different elements of a scene.

Zoom: The camera lens changes focal length to make the subject appear closer or further away without moving the camera itself.

Dolly: The camera moves towards or away from the subject on a track, providing a smooth, continuous motion.

Crane shot: The camera moves up or down through space, often using a crane, providing a sweeping, dynamic view of the scene.

5. Style and Aesthetic

Cinematic: High-quality visuals with dramatic lighting, framing, and movement, often reminiscent of feature films.

Cartoonish: Bright colors, exaggerated features, and playful elements, mimicking the look of animated cartoons.

Vintage: A nostalgic look with sepia tones, film grain, and other elements that evoke a bygone era.

Futuristic: Sleek, modern visuals with high-tech elements and often a metallic or neon color palette.

Minimalistic: Simple, clean visuals with few elements, often using a lot of white space and focusing on essential details.

6. Text Styles

Bold: Thick, strong text that stands out prominently on screen.

Italic: Slanted text that adds emphasis and a touch of style.

Handwritten: Text that mimics the look of handwriting, adding a personal and casual feel.

Kinetic typography: Animated text that moves and changes dynamically, often used to emphasize certain words or phrases.

Neon: Bright, glowing text that mimics neon lights, often used to create a retro or nightlife aesthetic.

Some Prompt Examples for RunwayML Gen-3 Alpha

Here are some example prompts that showcase the capabilities of RunwayML Gen-3 Alpha:

Prompt structure has to be like this:

[camera movement]: [establishing scene]. [additional details].
Dynamic motion. olympic games opening fire torch from olympic rings. High angle.

Hyperspeed shot: large amount of lavas turning water while flushing from volcano. Camera movement: fast zoom.

Dynamic motion between world to moon

Camera Movement: Slow zoom in on the dinner table. Scene Description: The camera starts with a slow zoom in on a lavishly set dinner table. The table is covered with fine china plates, silver forks, spoons, and elegant glassware. The lighting is warm and inviting, highlighting the details of the table setting. Additional Details: Use soft, diffused lighting to create a luxurious and inviting atmosphere. The camera captures the intricate details of the tableware.


Camera Movement: Aerial shot descending into a forest clearing, transitioning to tracking shot through the forest, low angle to high angle shot revealing a waterfall, 360-degree rotating shot, and zoom out with a reveal. Scene Description: Start with an aerial view of a lush forest, revealing a woman in a red dress. Track her as she walks through the forest, transitioning from her feet over rocks to a stunning waterfall. Circle around her as she interacts with nature, ending with a zoom out 

Aerial drone footage of a mountain range

Cinematic view of [a woman with red dress subject with detailed descriptions of their appearance] walking through a blurry crowd. [Describe their action]. Moody colors, cinematic feel, dynamic motion, depth of field. 30x speed, hyperspeed, fast motion.

Low angle static shot: The camera is angled up at a pink lion as she stands in a tropical rainforest with colorful flora. The dramatic sky is overcast and gray.

RunwayML Gen-3 Alpha offers a robust set of features for creating visually compelling videos from simple text prompts. By experimenting with different camera styles, lighting conditions, movement types, and aesthetic styles, users can produce a wide variety of video content that meets their creative needs. Whether you're a filmmaker, marketer, or content creator, RunwayML Gen-3 Alpha empowers you to bring your visions to life with unprecedented ease and flexibility.