Viral Hook — Scroll-Stopping Short-Form Video Prompts
Seedance 2.0 on Higgsfield — Input Specs
- Images: Up to 9 reference images (mood boards, product shots, brand assets)
- Videos: Up to 3 video clips (existing footage, motion references)
- Audio: Up to 3 audio files (trending sounds, voiceover, SFX)
- Text: Full prompt with timing, camera, lighting, sound
- Max Assets: 12 total combined
- Output: 4-15 seconds, 720p video with synchronized audio
- Reference Syntax:
@material[name] to reference uploaded assets
The Attention Economy: Why 2 Seconds
- 0-2s: The gate. If 50%+ bounce here, the video dies. If 90% stay, the algorithm promotes.
- 2-5s: Hook confirmation. Brain decides: worth my time or not.
- 5-15s: Engagement peak. Emotional beats, reveals, payoffs land here.
- 15s+: Retention cliff. Most viral videos are under 15 seconds.
Videos with 80%+ completion get 2-3x algorithmic reach. Your hook determines everything.
The Hook Arsenal: 12 Battle-Tested Patterns
1. Pattern Interrupt — Break Reality
| Technique | Mechanism | Prompt Template |
|---|
| Physics Break | Objects defy gravity, water flows up, time reverses | "Open with [object] defying physics — floating upward, sliding in reverse, freezing mid-air. Camera steady, treating impossible action as mundane. First 0.8s shows normal expectation, 0.8-2s breaks it. No music, only ambient sound emphasizing the wrongness." |
| Scale Warp | Familiar object at impossible size | "Extreme wide shot: [tiny object — coin, key, pen] scaled to building size in landscape. Human figure provides scale reference at base. Drone-style camera slowly pushing forward. Overcast lighting, photorealistic. Viewer spends 2s processing scale." |
| Color Bomb | Grayscale world gets sudden saturation | "Scene begins fully desaturated — gray, lifeless, muted. At 1.2s, single element ignites with saturated color [neon pink/electric blue/gold]. Color bleeds outward across frame over 0.8s. Hard bass hit synced to color moment." |
2. Curiosity Gap — Incomplete Information
| Technique | Mechanism | Prompt Template |
|---|
| Obscured Subject | Camera hides the reveal | "Tight framing shows only hands working on [something]. Close-up of concentrated facial expression. Sounds of creation — cutting, assembling, clicking. Camera never shows the full object. At 2s, slight pull-back hints at shape but doesn't reveal. Viewer must keep watching." |
| Reaction Before Action | Show the response, hide the cause | "Open on person's face — eyes widen, jaw drops, hand covers mouth. Camera captures pure shock reaction for 2s. No context, no environment shown. Sound: gasp, then silence. The question 'what are they looking at?' forces continued viewing." |
| Countdown Tension | Visual timer creates urgency | "Bold text '3' appears center-frame with bass hit. Cut to new angle, '2' with rising synth. Cut again, '1' with tension peak. Frame holds on black for 0.5s. The reveal never comes in the hook — it's downstream. Camera movements accelerate with countdown." |
3. Dopamine Trigger — Instant Reward
| Technique | Mechanism | Prompt Template |
|---|
| Satisfying Motion | ASMR-tier visual satisfaction | "Extreme close-up: [liquid pouring perfectly into glass / knife slicing through smooth surface / sand cascading in slow motion]. Macro lens, shallow depth of field. Sound design: crisp ASMR audio synced to motion. Slow motion at 0.5x speed. Warm golden lighting from side." |
| Before-After Flash | Instant transformation | "Split screen or quick cut: left/top shows 'before' state for 0.8s. Hard cut or wipe transition. Right/bottom shows transformed 'after' state. The contrast must be dramatic — ugly to beautiful, chaos to order, empty to full. Transition sound: whoosh + impact." |
| Kinetic Typography | Words that move with impact | "Bold white text on black background. Words slam into frame one at a time, synced to beat. Each word creates micro screen-shake. Text: [provocative statement — 3-5 words max]. Camera pushes in slightly with each word. Bass-heavy sound design." |
4. Primal Attention — Evolutionary Triggers
| Technique | Mechanism | Prompt Template |
|---|
| Eye Contact | Human eyes trigger social brain | "Extreme close-up of eyes in shadow. At 0.6s, eyes snap open and lock directly into camera. Pupil dilates. Subtle head tilt forward — predatory, intense. Single rim light catches iris detail. No blinking for 2s. Sound: heartbeat, low frequency." |
| Sudden Movement | Peripheral vision hijack | "Frame is static, calm, almost boring for 1s. Then — fast object enters frame from edge at high speed. Or person lunges toward camera. Movement creates motion blur trails. Camera flinches slightly in response. Sound: sharp whoosh or impact synced to movement." |
| Silence Then Sound | Audio contrast exploits neural adaptation | "First 1.5s: complete silence. Black screen or static wide shot. No sound at all — the absence itself is jarring on a platform of constant noise. At 1.5s: explosive audio — bass drop, scream, impact, alarm. Synced with hard visual cut to action." |
Camera Movement Library
Fast Hooks (0-2s)
| Move | Speed | Purpose | Prompt Phrasing |
|---|
| Snap Zoom | 0.3s | Instant focus, shock | "Snap zoom from wide to tight close-up in 0.3s. No easing — hard, mechanical zoom. Subject centered. Creates urgency and disorientation." |
| Whip Pan | 0.5s | Energy, transition | "Whip pan left-to-right in 0.5s. Motion blur trails. Camera settles on new subject with slight overshoot and bounce-back. Horizontal momentum." |
| Drop Shot | 0.4s | Falling sensation | "Camera drops vertically 6 feet in 0.4s. Creates stomach-drop sensation. Subject stays centered. Frame shakes slightly on landing. Vertigo trigger." |
| Dutch Snap | 0.3s | Unease, style | "Camera rotates 30 degrees clockwise in 0.3s. Horizon tilts. Creates instant visual tension. Hold the tilted frame — don't correct it." |
Reveal Hooks (1-3s)
| Move | Speed | Purpose | Prompt Phrasing |
|---|
| Pull-Back Reveal | 2s | Context expansion | "Tight close-up on detail. Camera pulls back steadily over 2s revealing the full scene. The context changes the meaning of what was shown initially. Smooth dolly movement, no jitter." |
| Orbit Reveal | 3s | 360 discovery | "Camera orbits 180 degrees around subject over 3s. Each 45 degrees reveals new environmental element. Consistent distance from subject. Reveals build narrative: what seemed simple becomes complex." |
| Rise Reveal | 2s | Scale, majesty | "Camera rises vertically 20 feet over 2s. Ground-level detail gives way to aerial perspective. Reveals scale of scene. Subject shrinks in frame. Slight tilt-down to maintain connection." |
Lighting Presets for Maximum Retention
High-Engagement Setups
Neon Contrast
"Dual-color neon lighting: [pink/cyan or orange/blue] from opposing sides.
Hard shadows where colors meet. Subject's face split between warm and cool.
Background dark, no ambient fill. Rim light separates from black background.
Colors at 80% saturation. Cinematic, moody, scroll-stopping."
Silhouette Pop — Maximizes curiosity (who is this?)
"Complete backlight silhouette. Strong light source directly behind subject
(window, LED panel, sunset). No fill light on face — pure black outline.
Shape and posture tell the story. Viewer cannot identify subject = curiosity.
Edge light catches hair/shoulder outline. Background blown out to white/gold."
Flash Strobe — Motion + light = primal attention
"Strobe lighting at 4Hz — rapid on-off creating freeze-frame effect.
Subject in motion but captured in staccato bursts. Dark between flashes.
Creates urgency, energy, nightclub intensity. Sound synced to strobe rate.
Background pure black between flashes."
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