# Kling 4.0 prompt guide

URL: https://dreambench.ai/guides/kling-4-0-prompt-guide

To write a Kling 4.0 prompt, set the frame and length, then the overall settings (place, look, camera), then the events in time order (“0–10 s: …”), then the sound, with each spoken line in quotes in its own language. Write “one continuous take” if you want no cuts, and end with “no subtitles, no background music”.

Written and reviewed by the DreamBench team. Published 2026-11-01; updated 2026-11-01.

## Kling 4.0 prompts at a glance

- **The formula:** Frame and length, overall settings, timed events, sound; then “no subtitles, no background music”.
- **One generation:** 3 to 30 seconds, with two-channel stereo sound; 4 to 30 seconds on DreamBench’s Video page.
- **Shots:** Kling splits a clip into shots by itself unless you ask for one continuous take.
- **Dialogue:** Chinese, English, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, Portuguese, German, French and Hindi; not Indonesian.
- **Prompt length:** Up to 8,000 tokens in Kling’s app; up to 2,500 characters on DreamBench, about 400 words.

This guide covers what 4.0 changes. The basics carry over from the [Kling 3.0 prompt guide](https://dreambench.ai/guides/kling-3-0-prompt-guide); for the model itself, see the [Kling 4.0 page](https://dreambench.ai/models/kling-4.0).

## What changes in a Kling 4.0 prompt

Kling 4.0 doubles one generation and decides its own cuts, so a prompt becomes a timeline. The numbers are from Kling’s [Kling 4.0](https://kling.ai/quickstart/kling-4-model-user-guide) and [Kling 3.0](https://kling.ai/quickstart/klingai-video-3-model-user-guide) user guides.

**Kling 3.0 and Kling 4.0 prompts side by side**

|  | Kling 3.0 | Kling 4.0 | What to write |
|---|---|---|---|
| One generation | 3 to 15 seconds | 3 to 30 seconds | Several beats, each in a timed block. |
| Cuts inside a clip | Only with the Multi-Shot switch on | On by default, with no switch | “One continuous take, no cuts”, or numbered shots. |
| Dialogue languages | 5 | 9: adds Portuguese, German, French and Hindi | The line in its own language, in quotes. |
| Pictures | Start and end frames; elements from 2 to 4 images | Up to 10 keyframes, or 15 references named @Image1, @Video1 | What each picture is for. |
| Sound | Sound on or off | Always on, in stereo | The sound you want, and what to leave out. |

## The Kling 4.0 prompt formula: settings, timeline, sound

Kling’s guide gives one structure: the role of each picture you upload, the overall settings, the sequence of events with times, then the audio. Its rule is to describe what can be seen and to drop abstract words: “premium look” becomes side backlight outlining the edges and fine matte grain.

**Frame and length → settings → timed events → sound → exclusions**

|  | What it does | Strong | Weak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frame and length | Sets how much happens. | Widescreen 16:9, one 20-second take. | A long cinematic video. |
| Overall settings | Place, look and camera for the whole clip. | A tiled fish market at dawn, wet floors, cold strip lights; handheld at eye level. | A vintage feel. |
| Timed events | The order and the seconds each beat gets. | 0–8 s: she guts a mackerel in three cuts. 8–20 s: she wraps it and hands it over. | She works, then sells fish. |
| Sound | Lines, ambience and effects, with who speaks. | Ice rattling, gulls; the buyer says (in French): “Parfait.” | Nice sounds. |
| Exclusions | Kling may add these unless told. | No subtitles, no background music. | No blur, no ugly hands, no bad faces. |

1. Open with the frame and length: “Vertical 9:16, one 15-second take.”
2. Write the overall settings as things to see: the place, the light, one look, the camera.
3. List the events in order, each with its seconds: “0–5 s: … 5–15 s: …”, one action per block.
4. End with the sound: each line in quotes after its speaker, then ambience and effects.
5. Close with “No subtitles, no background music” unless you want either.

A short prompt works too: Kling says 4.0 expands a simple idea and follows a clear one as written.

## How to time a 30-second Kling 4.0 prompt

The length is fixed before Kling reads the prompt, so give each beat its seconds. Blocks that meet end to end, “0–8 s”, “8–20 s”, “20–30 s”, keep the order clear.

**How much a Kling 4.0 clip holds**

|  | What fits | Prompt length |
|---|---|---|
| 4 to 8 seconds | One action and its result, or one short line. | 40 to 90 words |
| 10 to 15 seconds | Two or three timed beats, or a short exchange. | 90 to 200 words |
| 20 to 30 seconds | Three to five beats: a chase, a conversation, a reveal. | 200 to 400 words |

Allow a spoken line about 2 words a second, with a pause between speakers. DreamBench takes 2,500 characters, so spend them on the timeline, not on adjectives.

## Kling 4.0 shot splitting: one take or several shots

Kling 4.0 splits a clip into shots by itself: its Smart Storyboard is on by default, with no switch. That suits a story; a product turn can cut too soon.

- One shot: write “one continuous take, no cuts, fades or dissolves”, as Kling’s own example does, and keep one camera move.
- Several shots: number them with times and say how they join: “Shot 2 (8–15 s), hard cut, close-up …”.
- At each cut, change the framing; keep the light and the clothes.

## Kling 4.0 camera movement prompts

Kling says 4.0 handles tracking shots, orbits, push-ins and pull-backs that follow fast action. Name the move in plain words, with a speed, inside its timed block.

**Camera moves for Kling 4.0, and how to write them**

|  | What it does | How to write it |
|---|---|---|
| Locked-off | Holds still; the action carries the shot. | Locked-off camera at counter height. |
| Push in | Moves closer to build attention. | Slow push in from medium shot to close-up. |
| Pull back | Moves away to reveal the place. | 20–30 s: the camera pulls back and rises over the square. |
| Tracking | Travels beside the subject. | Tracking beside her at shoulder height. |
| Orbit | Circles the subject. | One slow half orbit around the bike. |
| Handheld | A human operator’s sway. | Handheld, slight breathing drift, small corrections. |
| Whip pan | A fast turn with motion blur. | Whip pan to the door as it opens. |
| Drone | Flies high over a place. | Drone shot rising from the beach to the cliffs. |

In a long take, give each block one move: track for the run, orbit for the stop. For lines and labels, hold still or push in slowly.

## Dialogue and sound in Kling 4.0: 9 languages

Kling 4.0 makes stereo sound with every clip: speech, ambience, effects and, unless told not to, music. Kling says to write each line in its own language, inside quotation marks. See [native audio](https://dreambench.ai/glossary/native-audio).

*Diagram: Picture and sound come from one generation: the prompt’s lines, ambience and effects are made with the frames.*

- Name the speaker and how they sound, then the line: The fisherman (gruff, in Portuguese): “Hoje o mar está calmo.”
- Ask for a dialect or an accent Kling lists: Cantonese, Sichuanese, Beijing or Taiwanese Mandarin; American, British or Indian English.
- One speaker at a time, as Kling’s own example asks: the others listen in silence.
- Indonesian isn’t one of the 9 languages, so an Indonesian line may not come out as written.
- Kling renders on-screen text in the same languages, and burns in subtitles if you describe their size and place.

For a score, describe it in the sound block: “a slow cello line under the dialogue”. Kling’s app takes a voice profile as audio, not music. See [lip sync](https://dreambench.ai/glossary/lip-sync).

## Kling 4.0 image to video and keyframes

In Kling’s app, the Keyframes entry fixes pictures at points on the timeline: a first frame, a last frame, both, or middle frames, up to 10. The prompt then describes what happens between them. See [first and last frame](https://dreambench.ai/glossary/first-and-last-frame).

*Diagram: A first and a last picture fix both ends; the prompt describes the change between them.*

1. Say which picture is which: “Use @Image1 as the first frame and @Image2 as the last frame.”
2. For middle frames, give each one a time block: “4–8 s | Keyframe 2: she reaches the door.”
3. Describe only what moves and how the camera gets from one picture to the next; the pictures already show the subject and the place.

The Keyframes entry takes no other references and can’t be combined with Omni Reference. See [image to video](https://dreambench.ai/glossary/image-to-video).

## Keeping characters the same in Kling 4.0

Kling’s Omni Reference takes up to 15 references, numbered by upload order: @Image1, @Image2, @Video1. Give each a role, or the model guesses.

- @Image1 defines the kitchen; keep its layout and light. @Image2 is the chef; keep her face, hair and apron.
- Without references, describe each character in the same words every time they appear.

On DreamBench, each character, place and prop you add is drawn once as a sheet, and every scene’s opening frame is made from the sheets it needs. See [character consistency](https://dreambench.ai/glossary/character-consistency).

## From one idea to a Kling 4.0 film

One Kling 4.0 generation can hold a 30-second scene, with Kling choosing the cuts. A film can also be several generations joined at hard cuts, each planned, and redone, by itself.

*Diagram: One idea, several clips: a scene plan, each clip its own generation, hard cuts at the joins, one clip redone while the rest are kept.*

**One idea, planned as Kling 4.0 clips**

|  | What the clip shows | Length | What carries over |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clip 1 | A courier collects a package at a busy depot | 8 s | Sets her red jacket, the bike, the morning light |
| Clip 2 | She weaves through traffic, the package strapped on | 12 s | The same jacket, bike and package |
| Clip 3 | She hands it over at a door; the customer laughs | 10 s | The package’s label, the same light |

In [Film Studio](https://dreambench.ai/), DreamBench plans the scenes, draws the cast and has Kling 4.0 animate each one, in clips of 3 to 12 seconds. For one long take, use the Video page. See [multi-shot video](https://dreambench.ai/glossary/multi-shot-video).

## Kling 4.0 prompt examples to copy

Each follows Kling’s order and fits in 2,500 characters. Change the subject; keep the shape.

#### A 30-second one-take chase

Widescreen 16:9, one continuous 30-second take, no cuts. A night market in Bangkok, steam and neon, wet tarmac, handheld at running pace. 0–10 s: a boy in a blue school shirt snatches a mango and runs. 10–20 s: the vendor, a woman in a straw hat, chases him past food carts; the camera tracks beside her. 20–30 s: she catches his collar, he holds out coins, and she laughs. Sizzling woks, flip-flops on wet ground, crowd noise. No subtitles, no background music.

#### Parkour on the rooftops

Cinematic 21:9, one 15-second take. Concrete rooftops at golden hour, long shadows, a realistic sports look; the camera tracks low beside the runner. 0–5 s: a traceur in a gray hoodie sprints and vaults an air vent. 5–10 s: he leaps a gap and lands in a roll. 10–15 s: he stands at the edge, breathing hard, as the camera orbits him once. Sneakers slapping concrete, wind, distant traffic. No subtitles, no background music.

#### Two languages at a station (German and English)

Widescreen 16:9, one 15-second take. A Munich station platform in the morning, a red regional train, soft overcast light; locked-off two-shot. 0–6 s: a conductor with a gray mustache checks a ticket and says (briskly, in German): “Der Zug nach Salzburg fährt von Gleis drei.” 6–11 s: the young backpacker frowns and asks (in English, with an Indian accent): “Platform three?” 11–15 s: the conductor points, smiling. Station announcements, rolling suitcases. No subtitles, no background music.

#### A line in Hindi: the tea stall

Vertical 9:16, one 10-second take. A roadside tea stall in Delhi at dawn, a brass kettle on a gas flame, warm light from one bulb; slow push in. 0–5 s: the tea seller pours chai from height into a small glass, a long amber stream. 5–10 s: he hands it to a taxi driver and says (warmly, in Hindi): “पहली चाय, मेरी तरफ़ से।” Pouring tea, the flame’s hiss, horns far off. No subtitles, no background music.

#### Product with a bilingual label

Square 1:1, one continuous 10-second take, no cuts. A bottle of yuzu soda on a stone counter, its label reading “柚子ソーダ” above “YUZU SODA” in white capitals; side backlight, condensation beads. 0–5 s: a hand twists the cap off and fizz rises. 5–10 s: the bottle turns slowly, the label sharp throughout. The cap’s hiss, bubbles, a glass set down. No subtitles, no background music.

#### Pixel-art animation

Widescreen 16:9, one 12-second take. 16-bit pixel-art animation, not photorealistic: a side-scrolling forest of chunky pixel trees, a purple dusk sky. 0–6 s: a small pixel fox in a red scarf runs right, hops two stumps and grabs a glowing acorn. 6–12 s: the acorn bursts into a four-frame sparkle and the fox does a happy spin. Chiptune-style jumps and a coin chime as effects. No subtitles, no background music.

#### Three shots with hard cuts

Widescreen 16:9, 15 seconds, three shots joined by hard cuts. A boxing gym at night, one hanging bulb, a gritty look. Shot 1 (0–5 s): close-up, a fighter in black gloves wraps her hands, jaw set. Shot 2 (5–10 s), hard cut: medium shot, she hits the heavy bag in fast combinations. Shot 3 (10–15 s), hard cut: wide shot, her coach in a gray tracksuit says (quietly, in English, with a British accent): “Again.” Gloves thudding, chains creaking. No subtitles, no background music.

#### First and last frame (Kling’s Keyframes entry)

Use @Image1 as the first frame (a block of clay on a wheel) and @Image2 as the last frame (a finished blue vase). 15 seconds, realistic documentary look, one continuous side shot, no cuts. 0–7 s: wet hands center the clay and draw it up into a tall cylinder. 7–15 s: the potter shapes the neck, and the clay turns into the glazed vase of @Image2. The wheel humming, wet clay. No subtitles, no background music.

#### Omni Reference with two pictures

@Image1 defines the café; keep its layout, plants and window light. @Image2 is the barista; keep her face, short black hair and green apron. Vertical 9:16, one 10-second take, handheld. 0–5 s: she pours a leaf pattern into a flat white. 5–10 s: she slides it across the counter and says (cheerfully, in English): “Your usual.” Milk steaming, cups clinking. No subtitles, no background music.

#### A clip with a score

Cinematic 21:9, one continuous 20-second take, no cuts. A lone sailing boat on a gray North Sea swell, low cloud, cold light; drone shot circling slowly, then rising. 0–10 s: a sailor in a yellow jacket hauls in the sail as spray breaks over the bow. 10–20 s: the cloud parts and sun falls on the water. Wind, rigging, waves; a slow string score that swells with the sun. No subtitles.

> The last prompt asks for music, so it drops “no background music”; the others keep both exclusions.

## Weak Kling 4.0 prompts, rewritten

Most weak prompts lack times, or use words a camera can’t film.

**Three weak prompts and their strong versions**

|  | Weak | Strong | What changed |
|---|---|---|---|
| A long scene | A 30-second epic story about a knight, cinematic, premium look. | Cinematic 21:9, one 30-second take. A misty castle courtyard at dawn. 0–10 s: a knight in dented armor kneels. 10–20 s: she stands and draws her sword. 20–30 s: the gate opens; the camera pulls back. Wind. No subtitles, no background music. | Times for each beat; things to see instead of “epic” and “premium”. |
| A product | Show my headphones, no cuts please, no weird text. | Square 1:1, one continuous 8-second take, no cuts. White headphones on black glass, side backlight; one slow orbit. Soft clicks as the cups fold. No subtitles, no background music. | One take asked for in Kling’s words; only the two exclusions Kling needs. |
| Two pictures | Use these pictures to make a video. | @Image1 is the shop; keep its shelves. @Image2 is the owner; keep his face and glasses. He unlocks the door and flips the sign to OPEN. | Each picture given a role. |

## Common Kling 4.0 prompt mistakes and how to fix them

**Kling 4.0 prompt mistakes and fixes**

|  | What goes wrong | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| No times in a long clip | Beats come out of order or rushed. | Give each beat a block: “0–10 s”. |
| Abstract words | “Premium” or “cinematic” is guessed. | Name the light, the materials and the framing. |
| A list of negatives | Kling says negatives raise the chance of errors. | Describe what you want; keep only “no subtitles, no background music”. |
| Unwanted cuts | Kling splits the shot by itself. | Write “one continuous take, no cuts”. |
| A translated line | The voice doesn’t match the language. | Write the line in its own language, in quotes. |
| Animation that turns real | The style drifts toward live action. | Add “not photorealistic” to the style. |

## What a Kling 4.0 prompt can’t fix

- One prompt run twice gives two clips.
- One generation stops at 30 seconds; Kling lists its extension to 2 minutes as coming soon.
- A real person or product can’t be known from words; it takes a picture you have the right to use.
- On DreamBench, Kling 4.0 always makes sound, and a Video page prompt past 2,500 characters is refused.

## Kling 4.0 prompts on DreamBench

- One clip: paste your prompt into the Video page and pick Kling 4.0, 4 to 30 seconds, 16:9, 9:16, 1:1 or 21:9, 720p or 1080p. It goes to Kling as written.
- A film: [describe it](https://dreambench.ai/), add up to 8 reference pictures and pick Kling 4.0. DreamBench writes each scene’s prompt, makes its opening frame and joins the clips; redo any scene with a note.
- Not offered with Kling 4.0: keyframes, Omni Reference, voice profiles, video editing or extension. Kling 4.0 Flash shows as Soon.

The [Kling prompt generator](https://dreambench.ai/tools/kling-prompt-generator) writes Kling 3.0 prompts; its order holds for 4.0, so add the times. The [AI video prompt generator](https://dreambench.ai/tools/ai-video-prompt-generator) writes for any model. The price in credits shows before you generate; the first time, create a free account and choose a plan. See also [text to video](https://dreambench.ai/glossary/text-to-video).

## Questions

- **How do you write a prompt for Kling 4.0?** To write a Kling 4.0 prompt, follow Kling’s order: the frame and length, the overall settings, the events in time order (“0–10 s: …”), then the sound, with each line in quotes after its speaker. Describe what can be seen, and end with “no subtitles, no background music” unless you want either.
- **What is a good Kling 4.0 prompt example?** Vertical 9:16, one 10-second take. A tea stall in Delhi at dawn, slow push in. 0–5 s: the seller pours chai from height. 5–10 s: he hands it to a driver. Pouring tea, a gas flame. No subtitles, no background music. That is a frame, settings, timed events and sound.
- **How long can a Kling 4.0 prompt be?** Kling’s app takes up to 8,000 tokens. On DreamBench, a Kling 4.0 prompt can run to 2,500 characters, about 400 words, and a longer one is refused on the Video page. Kling also says longer isn’t better: start with one sentence and add only what changes the result.
- **How long can a Kling 4.0 video be?** Kling 4.0 makes 3 to 30 seconds in one generation. On DreamBench’s Video page a clip runs 4 to 30 seconds; in Film Studio, a film is cut into clips of 3 to 12 seconds and joined.
- **How do I stop Kling 4.0 cutting between shots?** Kling 4.0 splits a clip into shots by default, with no switch to turn it off. Write “one continuous take, no cuts, fades or dissolves” near the start, keep one place and one camera move, and keep the action inside the clip’s length.
- **What languages can Kling 4.0 speak?** Kling 4.0 speaks Chinese, English, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, Portuguese, German, French and Hindi, with dialects such as Cantonese and accents such as British or Indian English. Indonesian isn’t on Kling’s list.
- **How do I write dialogue for Kling 4.0?** Name the speaker, say how they sound, then write the line in its own language inside quotation marks: The baker (gruffly, in German): “Finger weg!” Let one person speak at a time, and allow about 2 words a second.
- **Does Kling 4.0 have a negative prompt?** Kling says negative instructions in a Kling 4.0 prompt can raise the chance of errors, so describe what you want instead. The two it calls necessary are “no subtitles” and “no background music”, because the model may add both. DreamBench sends Kling 4.0 no negative prompt field.
- **How do keyframes work in Kling 4.0?** In Kling’s app, the Keyframes entry fixes up to 10 pictures on the timeline: a first frame, a last frame, both, or middle frames. Write “Use @Image1 as the first frame”, give each middle frame a time block, and describe the movement between them. DreamBench doesn’t offer keyframes.
- **What is the difference between Kling 4.0 and Kling 3.0 prompts?** A Kling 4.0 prompt can cover 30 seconds instead of 15, so it is written in timed blocks. Kling 4.0 also cuts between shots by default, speaks 9 languages instead of 5 and always makes sound.
- **Can I use Kling 4.0 on DreamBench?** Yes. On the Video page, your prompt goes to Kling 4.0 as written, as one clip of 4 to 30 seconds. In Film Studio, DreamBench plans the scenes and has Kling 4.0 animate each one. It is on every plan, at 720p or 1080p.

## Sources

- [Kling AI: Kling 4.0 User Guide](https://kling.ai/quickstart/kling-4-model-user-guide), Kling AI: read 2026-11-01
- [Kling AI: Kling 4.0](https://kling.ai/feature/kling-4-ai-video-generation), Kling AI: read 2026-11-01
- [Kling AI: Kling VIDEO 3.0 Model User Guide](https://kling.ai/quickstart/klingai-video-3-model-user-guide), Kling AI: read 2026-11-01

DreamBench is an independent platform and isn’t affiliated with or endorsed by the companies named on this page.