---
title: "The four layers that actually make AI video work"
url: https://daily.dev/posts/the-four-layers-that-actually-make-ai-video-work-kavhayfnx
source_url: https://heatherbcooper.substack.com/p/the-four-layers-that-actually-make
type: article
source: "Visually AI"
published: 2026-04-03T13:14:59.354Z
updated: 2026-06-25T02:14:48.277Z
tags: ["ai-video-generation", "genai", "prompt-engineering", "sora"]
reading_time: 8
upvotes: 0
comments: 0
language: en
---

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# The four layers that actually make AI video work

**[Visually AI](https://daily.dev/sources/heatherbcooper)** · 8 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments

## Summary

A practical framework for writing effective AI video prompts, covering four layers beyond standard image prompts: opening frame, motion description, camera behavior, and pacing/duration. Includes example prompts, a roundup of current AI video tools (Kling 3.0, Veo 3.1, Seedance 2.0, Runway 4.5), and news about OpenAI shutting down Sora due to unsustainable costs — $1M/day to run with only $2.1M in lifetime revenue.

## Full article

daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: <https://heatherbcooper.substack.com/p/the-four-layers-that-actually-make>

---

Tags: [#ai-video-generation](https://daily.dev/tags/ai-video-generation), [#genai](https://daily.dev/tags/genai), [#prompt-engineering](https://daily.dev/tags/prompt-engineering), [#sora](https://daily.dev/tags/sora)

[View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/the-four-layers-that-actually-make-ai-video-work-kavhayfnx)