Today, I’m showing you how to recreate the viral trend of "moving murals" (like an octopus tentacle moving on a restaurant ceiling). We are going to take a static image and bring it to life using Midjourney and Google Flow.
Step 1: Get Your Prompt (ChatGPT) - SKIP TO STEP 2 IF YOU WANT TO FOLLOW MY PROMPTS
Find an inspiration image (like a whale mural on a ceiling).
Upload it to ChatGPT and ask it to "Analyze this image and write a text-to-image prompt for Midjourney."
Pro Tip: Ask ChatGPT to format the output as a JSON prompt if you want higher accuracy for video models later, though a standard descriptive prompt works fine for the image generation.
Step 2: Generate the Static Image (Midjourney) | PROMPT BELOW
Take the prompt from ChatGPT and paste it into Midjourney (or your preferred image generator).
Generate your image and choose the best one.
Here’s The MidJourney Prompt I Used (Copy/Paste This to Follow):
Interior shot of a high-ceilinged, vintage-style restaurant with a minimalist, blue ink-style mural of a large whale painted across the entire ceiling. The whale's body extends from the back, with its head and mouth appearing towards the foreground. Below the mural, a long dining area is visible, with several tables and chairs arranged, some occupied by patrons. Warm, ambient lighting comes from spherical, multi-bulb chandeliers hanging at various heights, creating soft glows. Large arched windows line one side of the room, letting in natural light. The architecture is classic and European, with arched walls and a sense of spaciousness. The overall atmosphere is sophisticated yet casual.
Step 3: Animate the Image (Google Flow) | PROMPT BELOW
Go to labs.google/flow and start a new project.
Select Frames to Video (using model v3 for best results).
Upload your Midjourney image as the first frame.
The Google Flow Prompt: { "prompt": "A cinematic interior shot of a high-ceilinged vintage restaurant with large arched windows and glowing chandeliers. The mural of the whale on the ceiling slowly comes to life, moving gracefully as if swimming across the ceiling, its fins and tail gliding with fluid, dreamlike motion. The restaurant patrons below are animated, casually eating, drinking, and conversing, behaving naturally as if everything is normal. Warm ambient lighting glows throughout the space, with reflections dancing on the glass chandeliers. The mood feels surreal yet calm, blending everyday dining with a magical touch.", "camera": { "movement": "static", "framing": "wide angle shot to capture whale mural and patrons together", "focus": "balance between ceiling mural and restaurant activity" }, "animation": { "whale": "slow, fluid swimming motion across the ceiling mural", "patrons": "subtle movements of eating, drinking, chatting", "lighting": "warm chandelier reflections flickering naturally" }, "duration": "10-12 seconds", "style": { "tone": "cinematic, surreal but grounded", "color": "warm ambient tones, soft contrast" } }
Step 4: Add Sound Design (ElevenLabs & CapCut)
The raw video might be silent or have generic audio.
Use ElevenLabs to generate specific sound effects (like "whale song" or "underwater ambiance").
Import your video and new sounds into CapCut.
Add background music (like Bossa Nova for a fancy restaurant vibe) and a film grain filter to tie it all together.
And there you have it—a "moving mural" that looks like a high-end art installation.
