How to Make an AI Video in Manus, Step by Step

· 6 min read

Manus plans, shoots and edits the video for you. Give it a brief instead of a prompt: what to deliver, one shot, the sound, and a storyboard check.

Most video tools take a prompt and return a clip. Manus works differently: it is an agent. Describe a video and it researches the idea, writes a storyboard, generates the shots, adds voiceover and music, and edits the cut. That is great for a finished explainer, and surprising when all you wanted was one 8-second product shot.

What Manus does with your words

  • Plans the video as a storyboard of one or more shots
  • Generates each shot with a video model: Seedance 2.5 by default, with others such as Veo 3.1 available
  • Adds voiceover, music and sound effects, each on its own track
  • Edits it together, and lets you refine it in the chat or in the desktop Video Editor

Write a brief, not a prompt

Because Manus makes decisions for you, state the ones that matter up front. Everything you leave open, it fills in, including a voiceover you may not want.

  1. What to deliver: "Make one 8-second 9:16 video clip"
  2. How many shots: "a single continuous shot, with no transitions or cuts"
  3. The shot: subject, action, place, camera move, lens and light
  4. The sound: the exact spoken line in quotes, or "nothing is spoken"
  5. Leave out: morphing, warped hands, captions and on-screen text
  6. A check: "Show me the storyboard frame before you generate the video"
Manus is a director, not a camera. Tell it what to deliver, and it handles the rest.
Make one 6-second 9:16 video clip from this shot brief. Keep it to a single continuous shot, with no transitions or cuts.

A close-up orbit shot of a white ceramic coffee mug with a matte glaze against a seamless studio backdrop. The mug turns slowly as a thin wisp of steam rises. Lighting: a large soft studio key light with gentle fill. Format: 9:16, 6s, subject centered for vertical.

Sound: minimal modern beat with quiet room tone underneath. Nothing is spoken.

Leave out: cuts, morphing, distorted faces, captions, titles, logos or any on-screen text.

Show me the storyboard frame before you generate the video.

Step by step on manus.im

  1. Open manus.im and start a new task.
  2. Paste the whole brief into the chat. For image to video, attach your photo to the same message.
  3. Manus plans the shot first. Check the framing, then reply "go ahead", or say what to change.
  4. Refine in the chat ("slower push-in", "warmer light"), or open the clip in the desktop Video Editor to trim it and adjust the sound.
  5. Download the finished video, or keep it in the project to build a longer cut from more shots.

Credits and plans

Video generation is part of the paid Manus plans and uses credits for every second of video, so approving the storyboard first is the cheapest way to avoid a wrong framing. Plans and rates change, so check the Manus pricing page for current numbers.

Tip: Need a longer video? Make it one shot at a time with the same subject wording, then ask Manus to cut the shots together with music.

Build your prompt in the prompt studio · Check a prompt with the Prompt doctor