Why a video comes back shorter than asked, and what Spider Hub does
The minimum lengths the app accepts for 5, 10, 15 and 30 seconds, why a short video still costs credit, what happens next, and how to get fewer short videos.
You chose 30 seconds and Dola returned 12. It's the most frustrating thing about long videos, and it's why Spider Hub measures every video before saving it. This article explains what counts as "long enough", why a short video still costs credit, and what the app does so your shot still ends up with a full-length video.
What counts as long enough
The app downloads the video and measures the file's real length. A video is accepted when it reaches:
| Length you chose | Minimum to be saved |
|---|---|
| 5 seconds | 4.5 seconds |
| 10 seconds | 9.5 seconds |
| 15 seconds | 14.5 seconds |
| 30 seconds | 29.0 seconds |
Anything below is a short video: the app deletes it at once and it never reaches the Library.
Why a short video still costs credit
A short video is still a video Dola finished, so Dola spent that run. The app only learns it's short after downloading and measuring it. So the account is still charged 2 credits, and the card says so plainly, for example:
Dola returned a 12.0s video (30s requested) — not saved. Account 'acc-05' was charged 2 credits.
This is the one exception to "no video, credit refunded": there is a video, just the wrong length.
What the app does next
- The shot runs again by itself. An Auto shot moves to another account. A shot pinned to an account runs again on that account (straight away if it has credit, otherwise after 01:00).
- The account isn't rested. It stays READY while it has credit; only its health drops. With no credit left it waits for 01:00 as usual.
- There's a limit so it can't keep spending. After 3 charged runs without a full-length video, the shot stops as Dola made the wrong length, and the card says how many short videos came back. Press Run again and the count starts over.
If the same Dola chat has (or is still rendering) a full-length video, the app keeps that one. A short video only decides the outcome when there's no full-length video at all.
Not the same as "Dola only offered a shorter video"
Sometimes, before making anything, Dola asks whether to make a shorter video, or offers to split it up. There's no video yet, so nothing is charged:
- 30-second shot: the app never answers that question. Experience shows that accepting a shorter length usually gives about 12 seconds. The app leaves the chat and opens a new one or moves to another account, and the card says Dola only offered a shorter video in this chat — a 30s shot never answers that. There's no video, so no credit is used.
- 5, 10 and 15 second shots: the app answers once, confirming the exact length and a single video.
If Dola says it will make something shorter but then starts by itself, the app waits, because the result is often still full length.
How the app picks accounts to reduce short videos
For 15 and 30 second shots, the app prefers, in order:
- Accounts that already delivered a full-length video today.
- Accounts not yet tried today.
- Accounts Dola just refused a long video today.
So accounts that are "doing well" get the work first.
What you can do
- Give the prompt enough content for the length. A 30-second prompt should have 3–4 scenes and 1500–2000 characters; see A prompt formula for 30-second videos. A prompt that's too thin for a long video invites Dola to suggest a shorter one.
- Don't write "keep it short" or "around 15 seconds" in a 30-second shot's prompt.
- Leave shots on Auto. An Auto shot is re-run on another account, so re-runs have more options.
- Watch the Health column. Accounts that keep returning short videos drop to Fair or Weak and are ranked later.
Example
Shot #09, 30 seconds, Auto:
- Run 1 on acc-02: Dola returns 12.0 seconds. Deleted, acc-02 charged 2 credits, its health drops.
- Run 2 on acc-07 (which delivered a full 30 seconds this morning): Dola returns 30.08 seconds. Saved as
<Project>_09.mp4. - In total this shot cost 4 credits: 2 for the short video, 2 for the good one.
Summary
- Thresholds: 30 seconds needs at least 29.0; 15 needs 14.5; 5 and 10 allow half a second short.
- Short videos are deleted and never reach the Library, but the account is still charged.
- The shot runs again on another account; after 3 charged runs it stops.
- Dola only offering a shorter video costs nothing; a 30-second shot never accepts.
- A prompt with enough content and Auto mode mean fewer short videos.