Guides · Video
How to write Seedance video prompts.
This GotoRamp guide shows how to write prompts for Seedance, ByteDance's video models: one shot per prompt, seven slots in a fixed order, camera words that work, and a way to draft cheaply before the final render.
Last updated
Early access. Seedance models open on GotoRamp with early access. Request early access to get an API key.
Prompt structure: seven slots
Write a Seedance prompt as a description of one shot, the way a director briefs a crew. Fill these slots in order and skip any that don't matter.
| Slot | What to write | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Subject | Who or what, with two or three visible details | An older street vendor in a faded blue apron |
| Action | One action, present tense, with its pace | slowly ladles broth into a bowl |
| Setting | Place, time of day, weather | at a Penang night-market stall, light rain |
| Camera | Shot size and one move, with its speed | Medium close-up, slow push-in |
| Light | Main source, direction, color | Warm bulb overhead, cool street light behind |
| Style | Medium and look | Naturalistic documentary look |
| Sound | What you hear, if audio is on | Bubbling broth, rain on canvas |
Medium close-up of an older street vendor in a faded blue apron slowly ladling broth into a bowl at a Penang night-market stall, light rain beyond the awning. Slow push-in. Warm bulb overhead, cool street light behind. Naturalistic documentary look. Sound: bubbling broth, rain on canvas.- Describe what the camera can see. "Her shoulders drop and she exhales" works; "she feels relieved" gives the model little to show.
- Say what is there, not what isn't. "An empty street at dawn," not "a street with no people."
- Keep lettering out. Generated text on signs is often garbled; add titles and logos in your editor. Aspect ratio, resolution, duration and audio are request fields, not prompt words.
One shot per prompt
Each request returns one continuous clip of 4 to 15 seconds. If a prompt describes two places or a cut, the model has to invent a transition, which usually looks like a morph. Write a sequence as one prompt per shot and join the clips in your editor. For continuity, reuse the subject wording word for word, the same reference images, and the same light and style slots.
Camera vocabulary
Name one move per shot, with a speed (slow, steady, quick) and a shot size (close-up, medium, wide). Two moves in one prompt tend to blur into each other.
| Term | What the camera does | Use it for |
|---|---|---|
| Static | Doesn't move | Product details, dialogue |
| Push-in | Moves toward the subject | Building attention, revealing detail |
| Pull-out | Moves away | Revealing the setting, endings |
| Pan | Turns left or right | Following movement, surveying a place |
| Tilt | Turns up or down | Revealing height |
| Dolly (tracking) | Travels alongside the subject | Walking shots, vehicles |
| Orbit | Circles the subject | Product turns, hero moments |
| Handheld | Small, natural shake | Street scenes, urgency |
| Low angle | Looks up from below eye level | Making a subject feel large |
| Overhead | Looks straight down | Food, flat lays, hands at work |
First and last frames
Image-to-video fixes how a clip starts: pass your picture in image (an HTTPS URL or base64 data URI). Add last_frame_image to fix where it ends; it only works together with image. Start from your own packshot to keep a product accurate, land on a designed end card, or reuse the final frame of one clip as the first frame of the next.
With a first frame, the prompt describes what changes ("the camera pulls back to reveal the whole market"), not what the picture already shows. Match the output ratio to the image, or set ratio to adaptive.
Reference images, video and audio
References steer a clip without fixing its first frame. On seedance-2.0 a job can carry up to 9 images, 3 video clips and 3 audio clips; the console lists other models' limits.
| Reference | Steers | Good input |
|---|---|---|
| Images | Character, product, wardrobe, set | One subject from several angles, plain background |
| Video | Motion and camera move | A short clip, one clear move, no cuts |
| Audio | Rhythm and timing | A clip with a clear beat |
Say what each reference is for: "keep the teapot from the reference images; copy the camera move from the reference clip." Use only material you own or have licensed.
Draft on mini, render on 2.0 or 2.5
Seedance is billed per second of video returned, per model and resolution, and failed jobs aren't billed. Do most attempts on the lowest-cost model and keep drafts short.
| Stage | Model | Settings | Decide |
|---|---|---|---|
| Explore | seedance-2.0-mini | 480p, short, audio off | Subject, action, composition |
| Refine | seedance-2.0-fast | 480p, final length | Camera move, timing |
| Final | seedance-2.0 or seedance-2.5 | 720p, audio as needed | The deliverable |
Choose seedance-2.0 for full multimodal references and native audio, and seedance-2.5, the newest, for final renders. Keep the seed fixed while you edit a prompt, so you can see what each change did, and review the final render itself.
PROMPT = "Overhead shot of a cook's hands tossing basil and chilies in a blackened wok"
draft = {"model": "seedance-2.0-mini", "prompt": PROMPT, "duration": 5, "seed": 7,
"metadata": {"resolution": "480p", "generate_audio": False}}
final = {**draft, "model": "seedance-2.0", "duration": 8,
"metadata": {"resolution": "720p", "ratio": "9:16", "generate_audio": True}}Problem → fix
| Problem | Fix |
|---|---|
| Subject changes mid-clip | Add reference images, repeat the same description, or shorten the clip. |
| Unwanted camera motion | Name one move and its speed, or write "static camera." |
| Nothing much happens | Give the subject a verb; add steam, wind or traffic. |
| Scene morphs elsewhere | One location per prompt; cut "then…" clauses. |
| Garbled signs or labels | Leave text out; add it in the edit or use a designed last frame. |
| Hands or faces distort | Use a closer shot, fewer people, a simpler action. |
| Product doesn't match | Use your photo as the first frame plus reference images. |
Example prompts
Street kitchen, Bangkok
"Overhead shot of a cook's hands tossing holy basil and chilies in a blackened wok over a high flame, Bangkok street kitchen at night. Static camera. Hard light from one bare bulb, flames flaring. Gritty documentary look. Sound: roaring burner, sizzling oil."
seedance-2.0 · 9:16 · 720p · 6 s
Tea hills, Malaysian highlands
"Wide shot of tea bushes in rows across a hillside just after sunrise, mist in the valley, one picker in a wide-brimmed hat between the rows. Slow crane up revealing the next ridge. Soft golden side light. Cinematic, muted greens. Sound: wind, distant birdsong."
seedance-2.5 · 21:9 · 720p · 12 s
Outrigger boat, Palawan
"A fisherman drags a small wooden outrigger boat onto a white-sand beach at golden hour, turquoise water behind. Steady tracking shot at waist height. Low warm sun, long shadows. Travel documentary style. Sound: small waves, wood on sand."
seedance-2.0 · 16:9 · 720p · 8 s
Product clip from a packshot
First frame: your photo of a handwoven rattan basket on plain linen. "The camera orbits slowly around the basket at table height as soft morning light moves across the weave. Nothing else moves. Clean studio look."
seedance-2.0 · ratio adaptive · 720p · 8 s
Related
Start with a small balance. Scale when it works.
We're onboarding early-access accounts in small batches. Tell us what you're building; we reply within one business day.