# Writing a good prompt

The director plans a film around one question and one thing that changes. A prompt that names both gets the clearest film.

## Ask one question

A question the film can answer in its length: "Why does popcorn pop?" rather than "All about corn". The director writes one question, one metaphor and at most four steps, so a wide prompt gets narrowed for you.

## Name what changes

Films that work show a thing changing: a drop of nectar drying into honey, a kernel bursting into popcorn. If you know the change you want shown, say it.

## Say who it is for, if it matters

"For a 10 year old" or "for nurses in training" changes the words and the steps the director picks.

## Examples

| Prompt | Why it works |
| --- | --- |
| How do bees make honey? | One question, one object that changes: the drop. |
| Why does popcorn pop? | A cause the picture can show: water, steam, pressure, burst. |
| How does a vaccine teach your immune system? | A process with clear steps and characters. |
| Explain compound interest with a jar of coins, for teenagers | Names the metaphor and the audience. |

## What the director will not draw

No image or video model is used, so there are no photoreal people or famous faces. Every picture is drawn by code: shapes, light, paper, faces with expressions, and motion.

Canonical page: https://surfstudio.app/docs/writing-a-prompt