Gen-4 Turbo is a sensible starting point for animating an approved game still: the image supplies the first frame, while the prompt can concentrate on movement. Use short takes to audition a camera move or a small character gesture before committing to a longer sequence. Its lower API rate than Gen-4.5 makes iteration attractive, but budget for discarded takes and cleanup; a cheap clip can become expensive if every frame needs repair. Compare a promising take with Gen-4.5 using the same brief, including the time needed to finish it. Runway's content restrictions confine its usefulness here to non-explicit material.
Commercial use & license
Proprietary hosted model. Access and use are governed by Runway's service terms and the selected plan; no downloadable weight license is established.
Adult content rules
Runway prohibits adult nudity and sexually explicit content on its hosted service. It also limits some sexually suggestive imagery, including lingerie.
What you need
For API use, create a Runway developer project with an API key and funded credits, then select gen4_turbo on the image-to-video endpoint and supply an input image. Text-only generation and Gen-4.5 professional output formats are outside this route.
Ranks are recommendations for the task described, based on reviewed documentation. Model ranks cover non-explicit development work. We have not run practical benchmarks. Check content policies and commercial terms separately. How the ranks work →
Sources & further reading +
Last checked 5 October 2026.