On this page
Getting Started with Runway Gen-4
This guide covers the Gen-4 and Gen-4 Turbo video models. Both require a starting image plus a text prompt; this is not a text-only workflow. Output durations are 5 or 10 seconds. Official creation guide.
- Select Gen-4 or Gen-4 Turbo in video generation.
- Upload your starting image and describe the desired motion.
- Check the duration and credit cost, then generate.
Motion Prompts
Begin with a short, concrete action. Focus on subject or camera motion instead of repeatedly describing details already present in the image. Describe what should happen using positive phrasing; split complex scene changes into separate clips. Official prompting guide.
These examples are starting points to try with your own image, not comparative test results or guarantees:
- Product: “The camera moves gently toward the bottle as a soft reflection travels across the glass.”
- Portrait: “The subject looks toward the window and smiles briefly.”
- Landscape: “Low clouds drift past the mountain while the camera stays still.”
Change the action in one attempt and the camera direction in the next. Compare the outputs against your intended shot. You can add text, logos, and sound during editing.
Duration and Credits
Gen-4 uses 12 credits per second: 60 for 5 seconds or 120 for 10 seconds. Gen-4 Turbo uses 5 credits per second: 25 for 5 seconds or 50 for 10 seconds. Official model credit table. These are web-app generation costs; API credits are separate. Credit explanation.
The Free plan's 125 credits are one time, not a monthly allowance. Included models can change; check the model selector in your account. Free plan details. See Runway pricing for current subscription options.
Commercial Use
Runway says it does not impose non-commercial restrictions on generated content; this statement is not limited to paid plans. Separately assess rights relating to your input images, people, brands, and music. Runway's commercial-use explanation.