How to generate videos with Wan 2.2
Wan 2.2 is one of the strongest open image-to-video (I2V) models available: you give it a still image and a short prompt describing the motion, and it animates the scene into a few seconds of coherent video. It is popular because it keeps the subject consistent, handles real motion (not just a slow zoom), and runs on accessible GPU hardware.
This guide is the version we wish we had when we started: the exact settings that change your results, how to write a prompt Wan actually listens to, and the failure modes that quietly ruin a render. It focuses on the image-to-video workflow, which is what most people want.
What you need before you start
A source image (the first frame of your video). Sharp, well-lit images with a clear subject animate far better than busy or low-resolution ones.
Access to Wan 2.2 I2V — either through a hosted service that offers it, or a local/cloud ComfyUI setup with the Wan 2.2 I2V model loaded. This guide is tool-agnostic: the settings below apply wherever you run the model.
A short, plain description of the motion you want. Not a full scene description — Wan already has the scene from your image. You are describing what should move.
Step-by-step
The whole flow is short. The quality comes from the settings and prompt, covered right after.
- 1
Pick and prepare your source image
Choose an image with one clear subject and some empty space for movement. Crop it to the aspect ratio you want the video in (portrait 9:16 for social, landscape 16:9 for wide). Wan animates what is in the frame — if a limb or object is cut off, motion there will look wrong.
- 2
Set the output dimensions
Match the model's supported resolution for your aspect ratio (see the settings table). Do not feed an arbitrary size — Wan expects dimensions that are multiples of the model's block size, and off-spec sizes cause stretching or failed renders.
- 3
Write the motion prompt
Describe the movement in one or two clear sentences using present-progressive verbs ("she is slowly turning her head, hair moving in the wind"). Describe the motion, not the scene. Keep it specific and physically plausible.
- 4
Set frames, steps, and guidance
Use the recommended values in the settings table as your baseline. These control how long the clip is, how much compute each render takes, and how closely Wan follows your prompt.
- 5
Generate, then iterate on the seed
Run it. If the motion is close but not perfect, change only the seed and re-run before you start changing everything else — Wan is stochastic, and a different seed often fixes an odd result with the same settings.
Recommended settings (baseline)
Start here, then adjust one variable at a time. These are sane defaults for Wan 2.2 I2V; your tool may expose more or fewer of them.
| Workflow | Image-to-video (I2V) |
|---|---|
| Resolution | Match aspect ratio to a supported size (e.g. 480p/720p class); keep dimensions on the model's required multiple |
| Clip length | ~5 seconds is the reliable sweet spot; longer clips drift |
| Frames | Set to your target seconds × the model's fps |
| Steps | Start moderate; more steps = cleaner but slower, with diminishing returns |
| Guidance / CFG | Moderate — too high over-bakes and adds artifacts; too low ignores your prompt |
| Seed | Fixed while tuning (so you compare like-for-like); randomize to explore variations |
How to write a Wan motion prompt that works
Lead with the subject's motion in present-progressive form: "is walking", "is turning", "is smiling". Wan responds to described continuous action.
Add secondary motion for realism: environmental movement like wind in hair, rising steam, flowing water, a flickering light. These small cues make a clip read as alive rather than a warped photo.
Keep it plausible and short. Asking for large, fast, or physically impossible motion in a few seconds is the fastest way to get distortion. Small, believable motion looks premium; big chaotic motion looks broken.
Common problems and fixes
Subject melts or warps: motion prompt is too ambitious, or guidance is too high. Simplify the motion and lower guidance.
Barely any movement: prompt is too vague or guidance too low. Use a concrete present-progressive verb and nudge guidance up.
Flicker or artifacts: raise steps a little, and make sure your source image is sharp — Wan amplifies input noise.
Wrong aspect / stretching: your dimensions are off-spec. Use a supported resolution for your aspect ratio.
Where to go from here
Once you can reliably get clean 5-second clips, the next skills are chaining clips for longer sequences and matching motion to audio. We will cover those in follow-up guides.