Disclosure: I work on Vidlark. All prices and specs below are copied from the public model pages as of October 2026.
When people compare AI video models, they usually post three clips and a gut reaction. That is fun, but it skips the part that decides what you actually ship: what each model accepts, how long the clip can be, whether sound comes with it, and what one attempt costs. So I took a single prompt and planned it through three models on the Vidlark AI video generator, which runs Veo, Kling and Seedance from one credit balance.
The test prompt
Most Vidlark model pages share the same example prompt, which makes it a handy baseline:
A cyclist rides through a rainy neon street at night, puddles splashing
under the wheels. Slow tracking shot from the side, 35mm, reflections on
the wet asphalt. Sound: rain, tires on water, distant traffic.
It has one subject, one camera move, a lighting cue and a sound line. That is enough to see how each model reads instructions.
Veo 3.1 Lite: the cheap first pass
Veo 3.1 Lite renders a fixed 8-second clip in 16:9 or 9:16, at 720p for 75 credits or 1080p for 90. Sound is generated with the picture, and it can start from text or a photo with an optional end frame.
What I learned:
- The "Sound:" line matters. The page suggests ending the prompt with an audio line listing dialogue and background sounds. Our prompt already does this.
- Keep it to one subject and one action. The page says busy scenes are where Fast and Quality pull ahead.
- Free accounts can use it, so this is the one model of the three you can test with sign-up credits.
Kling 3.0: when the motion has weight
Kling 3.0 is listed for physical motion and for following camera directions. It makes 5, 10 or 15 second clips at 720p or 1080p in 16:9, 9:16 or 1:1. Sound is a per-run choice:
| Setting | Credits per second | 5 s clip |
|---|---|---|
| 720p | 35 | 175 |
| 720p + audio | 50 | 250 |
| 1080p | 45 | 225 |
| 1080p + audio | 60 | 300 |
What I learned:
-
Lead with camera language. The page recommends opening with "low tracking shot" or "slow dolly in" before the subject. I reordered the prompt:
Slow side tracking shot, 35mm: a cyclist rides through... - Draft silent, then add audio. At 35 credits a second silent versus 50 with audio, I would block the shot without sound and only turn audio on for the keeper.
- Speed words beat style words. "Steady pace" or "sudden" changes the result more than extra adjectives.
Seedance 2.0: one prompt, several shots
Seedance 2.0 is ByteDance's multi-shot model. One prompt can describe several cuts and keep people and props consistent between them. It runs 5 to 15 seconds, at 480p (25 credits/s), 720p (55) or 1080p (130), with sound, and supports 21:9.
For this model I rewrote the prompt into shots:
Shot 1: wide, the cyclist enters a rainy neon street, late light from the left.
Shot 2: low side tracking shot, puddles splash under the wheels.
Shot 3: close-up of the wet asphalt reflecting the neon as the bike passes.
Sound: rain, tires on water, distant traffic.
The page's tips: number your shots, keep two to four per clip, and name the same light source in every shot so the cuts feel like one scene. Block at 480p before paying for 1080p.
What the side-by-side taught me
- Compare cost per attempt, not per second. A 5-second Seedance 2.0 draft at 480p is 125 credits, a 5-second silent Kling 3.0 draft at 720p is 175, and an 8-second Veo 3.1 Lite clip is 75.
- The same idea needs a different prompt per model. Veo wants an audio line, Kling wants camera words first, and Seedance wants numbered shots.
- Pick the model by the job. One clean 8-second clip with sound: Veo 3.1 Lite. Action that has to look physical: Kling 3.0. A short sequence with cuts: Seedance 2.0.
If you want to repeat the exercise, open the Seedance 2.0 AI video generator page, paste the shot list, and check the credit total shown on the button before you generate.
