Read before this
Read these direct prerequisites in order. Each guide lists any earlier context it assumes.
Duration options
The Home composer currently offers 15, 30, 60, 90, and 120 seconds plus Auto, which can choose a longer length when available. Free accounts are limited to 15 or 30 seconds; longer choices and Auto require a paid plan.
Choose a useful length
- 15–30 seconds: one message, social teaser, or short product moment.
- 60–120 seconds: explainers, launch videos, and structured walkthroughs.
- Auto: source-led jobs where covering the material matters more than hitting a fixed runtime.
Aspect ratio
The standard Home composer currently exposes 16:9 landscape and 9:16 vertical. Choose 16:9 for product demos, presentations, YouTube, and embedded players. Choose 9:16 for phone-first social viewing.
Other surfaces or APIs may support additional ratios. Document and choose the ratio available in the surface you are actually using rather than assuming every ratio is available everywhere.
Duration affects production
Longer videos normally need more scenes, narration, generation time, and credits. If the source contains too much for the target length, tell ngram what to prioritize rather than expecting every detail to fit.
A safe first pass
- Open Home and add the prompt and approved sources.
- Choose the relevant creation setting and leave unrelated controls at their defaults.
- Review the mode, duration, aspect ratio, voice, models, and displayed credit estimate.
- Create a representative first version and verify the setting had the intended visible effect.
Keep going
Create a first ngram video from the current Home and agentic workflow.
Understand credit estimates, reservations, charges, plan grants, top-ups, and auto top-up.
Use the current Share control and understand the curated Made with Ngram gallery.