Prompt guide
Hailuo 2.3 prompt guide: camera commands, motion and 10 prompts
Hailuo 2.3 is MiniMax's silent physics model: no audio track, 6 or 10-second clips (6 seconds only at 1080p), and one of the cheapest ways to animate a photo: 3 credits for 6 seconds at 720p (about $0.90). It reads MiniMax's bracket camera commands such as [Push in] and [Static shot], so the best prompts name one subject, one physical action and one bracketed move. In our data it finished 34 of 34 jobs with no content refusals, including all 22 jobs that started from a photo. The sample is small.
Updated November 7, 2026. Viralance is an independent platform that runs these models; it is not affiliated with their makers.
Versions this guide covers
| Version | Length | Resolution | Sound | Start + end frame | Credits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hailuo 2.3 | 6 / 10s (1080p: 6s only) | 720p / 1080p | No | No | 3–7 |
The prompt structure
Subject + physical action + setting + [camera command] + look
- Subject
- One clear subject with a material: "a glass bottle of amber oil", "a wet black labrador". Materials tell Hailuo how things should bend, splash or fall.
- Physical action
- Describe the force, not the mood: "drips slowly down the label", "shakes water off its fur in a spray". This is where Hailuo is strongest.
- Setting
- A short place and light: "on a marble counter, morning window light". Keep it to one line.
- Camera command
- One or two of the 15 brackets, for example [Push in] or [Truck left]. Add the same move in words, because the prompt optimizer may rewrite your text.
- Look
- "Photoreal, shallow depth of field" or "2D anime cel shading". Hailuo handles both, so say which one you want.
A wet black labrador stands on a wooden dock and shakes water off its fur, droplets spraying outward in the low sun, lake behind it. [Static shot] The camera stays still at dog height. Photoreal, slow motion feel, warm evening light.
The 15 bracket commands, and why to repeat them in words
MiniMax documents fifteen camera commands for Hailuo 2.3, Hailuo 02 and the older Director model: [Truck left], [Truck right], [Pan left], [Pan right], [Push in], [Pull out], [Pedestal up], [Pedestal down], [Tilt up], [Tilt down], [Zoom in], [Zoom out], [Shake], [Tracking shot] and [Static shot]. Put the bracket where the move should happen in the sentence.
Viralance leaves MiniMax's prompt optimizer at its default, which is on. The optimizer can rewrite and expand what you typed, so a lone bracket sometimes gets lost. Write the move twice: "[Push in] The camera moves slowly toward the bottle." The [Camera] button in the studio adds a sentence like "Camera: slow, subtle dolly in toward the subject." which does the same job.
Combine at most two commands. [Push in] plus [Pedestal up] reads as a rising push; three or more usually turn into a wobble.
Physics first: describe forces and materials
Hailuo 2.3 earns its "physics" badge on liquids, cloth, hair, fur, smoke and falling objects. Prompts that say what the material is and what pushes it get better motion than prompts full of adjectives.
- Liquids: give viscosity and direction. "Thick honey folds over itself" beats "beautiful honey".
- Cloth: give the force. "A gust lifts the silk scarf from left to right."
- Impacts: name the before and after. "The ice cube drops into the glass and the soda fizzes up to the rim."
- People: one gesture per clip. "She turns her head toward the window and smiles" works; a dance routine does not.
Silent clips, 6 or 10 seconds
Hailuo 2.3 has no audio track at all, so leave sound out of the prompt; words like "music" or "says" waste characters and can push the optimizer toward a talking scene with no voice. Add sound later with a voiceover or the Audio Suite score.
Lengths are 6 or 10 seconds at 720p (4 or 7 credits from text) and 6 seconds only at 1080p (7 credits from text, 5 from a photo), because 1080p runs on MiniMax's Pro endpoint. A 10-second take drifts more than a 6-second one: plan one action per 6 seconds.
The studio accepts up to 2,000 characters, which matches MiniMax's own limit. Most good Hailuo prompts are 200 to 400 characters.
Photos: the forgiving image-to-video model
Hailuo 2.3 finished all 22 photo jobs in our records, where some models refuse photographic inputs (see why image-to-video fails). That makes it a good first try for listing photos, product shots and old family photos. At 3 credits for 6 seconds (4 for 10) you can afford a test before a 1080p run.
With a photo, describe only what moves and what must stay: "The steam rises from the cup. The cup, saucer and table stay exactly as shown." The model already sees the scene, so describing it again invites changes.
Camera words Hailuo 2.3 follows
| Write | Use it for |
|---|---|
| [Push in] | The default for product and real estate photos: moves toward something already in frame, so little is invented. |
| [Pull out] | Reveals; expect invented edges, so use it on text prompts more than on listing photos. |
| [Static shot] | Physics close-ups (pours, splashes) where you want the motion in the subject, not the camera. |
| [Truck left] / [Truck right] | A sideways slide along shelves, counters or a row of products. |
| [Pan left] / [Pan right] | Turning the view from a fixed point, such as a landscape; slower than trucking in practice. |
| [Pedestal up] / [Pedestal down] | Rising past a tall subject, like a bottle or a staircase, without tilting. |
| [Tilt up] / [Tilt down] | Showing height from one spot: tower, waterfall, a person from shoes to face. |
| [Zoom in] / [Zoom out] | A lens zoom; flatter than [Push in]. Good for anime and comic looks. |
| [Tracking shot] | Following a moving subject such as a runner or a car; describe the direction of travel. |
| [Shake] | Handheld energy for action or found-footage looks; avoid it on product shots. |
Start and end frames
Hailuo 2.3 has no end-frame input on the endpoint we use, so the "Start + end frame" option does not appear for it. Your uploaded photo is always the first frame and the model decides where the clip ends.
If the clip must land on a specific image, such as a before and after or a closed box that ends open, switch to a model marked Start + end frame. Same price as that model's image-to-video clip.
- MiniMax H3: same maker, from 3 credits for 5 seconds at 768p, with sound.
- VEO 3.1 Lite: 3 credits for 4 seconds at 720p.
- Kling 4.0: the only model that also takes keyframes between the first and last frame.
Refused or misread prompts, and the fix
The bracket command was ignored
The prompt optimizer rewrote it. Repeat the move in plain words next to the bracket, or set the move with the Camera button, and cut other camera words that contradict it.
Faces melt or hands multiply
Ask for one gesture, keep the person at medium distance, and use 6 seconds instead of 10. If the photo is a real person, make sure you have their permission.
Text on a label or sign turns to gibberish
Keep the label facing the camera and use [Static shot] or a slow [Push in]. Add exact text later in an editor; no video model reliably writes new text.
The prompt was refused
Hailuo had no refusals in our sample, but named public figures, minors, sexual content and other brands are still blocked by Viralance's screen before the job starts, at no cost. See why AI video prompts get rejected.
You expected sound and got a silent file
Hailuo 2.3 has no audio. Use MiniMax H3 or VEO 3.1 Lite for sound in the clip, or add a voiceover afterwards.
10 Hailuo 2.3 prompts to copy
Each one opens in the studio with the model, mode and prompt filled in. Photo prompts need your own image uploaded first.
- Hailuo 2.3 · text · 6s · 720p · 4 credits
1. Honey pour, static
Thick golden honey pours from a wooden dipper onto a stack of pancakes, folding over itself and running down the sides. [Static shot] The camera does not move. Warm kitchen light, shallow depth of field, photoreal.
Liquid physics with no camera move to fight it.
Use this prompt - Hailuo 2.3 · photo · 6s · 720p · 3 credits
2. Listing photo push-in
[Push in] The camera moves very slowly toward the kitchen island. Every wall, window, cabinet and light fixture stays exactly as shown. No people, no new objects, no change to the light.
Upload a room photo. Check window and door counts against the original.
Use this prompt - Hailuo 2.3 · text · 6s · 1080p · 7 credits
3. Product bottle, rising reveal
A frosted glass serum bottle stands on wet black stone, a single drop runs down its side. [Pedestal up] The camera rises slowly from the base to the cap. Studio lighting, soft reflections, photoreal.
1080p is 6 seconds only on Hailuo 2.3.
Use this prompt - Hailuo 2.3 · text · 6s · 720p · 4 credits
4. Dog shake, slow motion
A wet black labrador on a wooden dock shakes water off its fur, droplets spraying in a wide arc and catching the low sun. [Static shot] Camera at dog height. Photoreal, slow motion feel.
Fur and water together show the model's physics.
Use this prompt - Hailuo 2.3 · text · 6s · 720p · 4 credits
5. Anime rooftop
2D anime cel shading. A girl in a school blazer stands on a rooftop at dusk, her scarf and hair blown sideways by a strong wind, city lights below. [Zoom in] Slow lens zoom toward her face as she looks up.
Name the style first; Hailuo switches cleanly between photoreal and anime.
Use this prompt - Hailuo 2.3 · photo · 6s · 720p · 3 credits
6. Old photo, gentle life
The people in the photo blink and smile slightly, a light breeze moves the curtain behind them. The faces, clothes and room stay exactly as in the photo. [Static shot] No camera movement.
For family photos you have permission to use. Keep motion small.
Use this prompt - Hailuo 2.3 · text · 6s · 720p · 4 credits
7. Ice cube drop
An ice cube drops into a tall glass of cola, the soda fizzes up to the rim and settles, condensation beads on the glass. [Static shot] Macro, dark background, crisp studio light.
Unbranded glass: no logos you do not own.
Use this prompt - Hailuo 2.3 · text · 10s · 720p · 7 credits
8. Waterfall tilt
A tall waterfall in a green canyon, mist drifting across the pool at its base. [Tilt up] The camera tilts slowly from the pool to the top of the falls. Overcast soft light, photoreal.
10 seconds suits one slow move with no action to drift.
Use this prompt - Hailuo 2.3 · text · 6s · 720p · 4 credits
9. Runner tracking
A runner in a red jacket jogs along a beach path at sunrise, footsteps kicking up sand. [Tracking shot] The camera follows beside her at the same speed, left to right. Photoreal, golden light.
Give the direction of travel so the tracking stays consistent.
Use this prompt - Hailuo 2.3 · photo · 6s · 1080p · 5 credits
10. Sneaker on a shelf, truck
Animate this product photo: the sneaker stays exactly as shown while dust motes drift in a beam of light. [Truck right] The camera slides slowly to the right along the shelf. No new products, no text.
Product photo at 1080p for 5 credits.
Use this prompt
Running a Hailuo 2.3 prompt on Viralance
- 1
Choose text or a photo
Open the studio, pick Hailuo 2.3 and choose Text to video, or Image to video if you have a photo to animate.
- 2
Write subject, action and setting
One subject, one physical action with its material and direction, and a one-line setting. Leave sound out; the model is silent.
- 3
Add one camera command
Place a bracket such as [Push in] or [Static shot] and repeat the move in plain words, because the prompt optimizer may rewrite the text.
- 4
Test at 720p, then upscale the keeper
Run 6 seconds at 720p (4 credits from text, 3 from a photo). Re-run the best prompt at 1080p if you need it.
Hailuo 2.3 prompt questions
Does Hailuo 2.3 understand camera commands in brackets?
Yes. MiniMax documents 15 bracket commands for Hailuo 2.3, such as [Push in], [Pan left] and [Static shot]. Because the prompt optimizer is on, also describe the move in words.
Can Hailuo 2.3 make sound?
No. Hailuo 2.3 clips have no audio track. Use MiniMax H3 for sound from the same maker, or add a voiceover or music afterwards.
How long can a Hailuo 2.3 clip be?
6 or 10 seconds at 720p, and 6 seconds at 1080p.
Does Hailuo 2.3 support a start and end frame?
Not on the endpoint Viralance uses. For a clip that ends on a chosen image, use MiniMax H3, VEO 3.1, Kling or another model marked Start + end frame.
Is Hailuo 2.3 good for animating photos?
In our records it finished all 22 photo jobs with no refusals. The sample is small, but it is the model we suggest trying first for an ordinary photo.