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Create a multi-shot sequence

Hook, development, payoff: how to get a full arc with continuity locks across every shot.

Last updated 2026-07-10

How arcs are built

Every generate_video call builds a full arc: a hook engineered to stop the scroll, escalating development beats that each change movement, emotion, or information, and a payoff that resolves the transformation. shot_count (3 to 5) controls the arc length.

request
{
  "raw_intent": "a barista's morning transformed by a silent espresso machine",
  "director_mode": "character_intimacy",
  "shot_count": 5,
  "duration_seconds": 20
}

What continuity does for you

One reference set is locked at sequence start and shared by every shot, and a good early render refreshes the references without changing their identity. You do not manage this; you just get shot five matching shot one. Details in continuity.

Single-generation encoding

For models with native multi-shot grammar, Cadenza can encode the whole sequence as one generation (timeline storyboards or timestamped prompts per model dialect), eliminating stitching drift entirely.

Next steps

Create a multi-shot sequence | Cadenza Docs