EP 042 · 73 MIN 40% OF MIDJOURNEY USERS PAY ANNUALLY

Can Midjourney Actually Compete in Video? +Sref & Monetization Talk

June 9, 202573 min Rory Flynn & Drew Brucker

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The short version

Episode 42 previews Midjourney's still-unannounced video model via office-hours notes: 24 candidate configurations, a likely budget vs. professional-tier split, and a surprising note that 40% of users hold annual subscriptions. Rory Flynn, back from Tribeca-week events where he met Kling's and Topaz's teams, argues Midjourney's real edge is community and 'magic,' not raw coherence, and wants a true video style-reference that pulls only color and mood, not structure, from a reference image.

Key takeaways

01
Midjourney's video model is weighing 24 configurations and may gate early access to annual subscribers first, since 40% of users already pay annually.
02
Rory's wishlist for Midjourney video: a Kling-style coherence-vs-creative slider, plus a true style-reference that pulls only color and mood, never structure.
03
To get natural expressions or actions out of any image or video model, describe the physical mechanics (hand position, head tilt), not the action itself.
04
To monetize Midjourney, pair it with a skill outside the tool itself: e-commerce and marketing for merch, or an existing audience for referrals, Rory argues.
05
AI-tool affiliate programs (Topaz confirmed, likely more) pay out even with 1,000-3,000 followers: post your own workflow, drop your link, get paid on sales.
06
Multi-Omni-Reference for Midjourney images is confirmed delayed until V8, per office-hours notes, as Runway References, Flux Kontext, GPT, and Gemini all ship similar features now.
07
Runway's Gen-3 reportedly handles its own generated images better than Midjourney's in video, per Rory, since intricate Midjourney detail often softens within a second of motion.

Receipts · said on the record

“I don't know, like a tenth of that cost, but it only cost me an hour to do. So I'm constantly thinking about how I stack the differences there. What are the things that are not worth entertaining?”

Drew Brucker Weighing project time-cost against passive-income work

“Runway Gen Three, just a conspiracy theory, works better with Runway-generated images than Midjourney images. I think it probably recognized the image architecture structure much better and was able to go with it.”

Rory Flynn Rory's theory on why video models treat Midjourney images differently

“I had a lot of people ask me on the F1 video how I got the guy to have such natural expressions. I said the guy turns his head down into the left, chuckles to himself, looks back up, and exhales out of the cigarette.”

Rory Flynn Rory's prompting trick for natural facial expressions in video

“I would like a style reference for video, but without having to use a frame, if that makes sense. If I was just like the same way you think about style reference in Mid Journey, like attach just random image.”

Rory Flynn Rory's wishlist: a true style-reference for Midjourney video

“It's almost like we're this sort of neglected dog. We're wagging our tail. We just want to be loved. We just want some TLC, attention, and it doesn't even take much, but it's like we're craving it.”

Drew Brucker Drew on Midjourney underusing its community as a differentiator

Chapters

Questions this episode answers

What do we know about Midjourney's upcoming video model from Episode 42?

Per office-hours notes discussed on the show, Midjourney was weighing 24 candidate configurations for its video model, split between a budget-friendly tier and a pricier professional tier, partly due to expected GPU shortages at launch. The team noted 40% of Midjourney users hold annual subscriptions, which Drew and Rory suggest could factor into who gets early access.

What does Rory want most from Midjourney's video model?

Rory's top wishlist item is a true style-reference for video: a way to pull only the color, mood, and lighting from a reference image, with zero structural influence, the way Midjourney's image style-reference already works. He also wants a Kling-style slider between strict prompt coherence and creative freedom.

How does Fast Hours suggest monetizing Midjourney?

Rory argues Midjourney alone isn't a business: creators need a separate skill, like e-commerce marketing to sell merch, or an existing audience for referrals. Both hosts point to affiliate programs (Topaz confirmed to have one) and 'clipper' content, using AI images inside retold stories, as underused, low-follower-count ways to earn from these tools.

Is Midjourney adding Multi-Omni-Reference soon?

No. Drew checked Midjourney's office-hours notes live on the show and confirmed Multi-Omni-Reference is not coming until V8, likely because Runway References, Flux Kontext, GPT Image, and Google Gemini already offer comparable multi-image consistency features.

Who did Rory meet during Tribeca Film Festival week?

Rory attended AI-focused satellite events around Tribeca and New York Tech Week, meeting Kling's U.S. representative Tony, the Freepik team (who told him Freepik began as a stock-photography site before pivoting into AI), and Xavier and Justin from the newly funded AI IP studio Wunder Studios.

Show notes

Fast Hours Podcast Ep.42—Can Midjourney Actually Compete in Video? +Sref & Monetization Talk

Drew forgot his hat. Rory got recognized by voice alone. And somehow, this spirals into one of the most insightful, chaotic, and weirdly therapeutic episodes of Midjourney Fast Hours yet.

This week, your two favorite Midjourney degenerates talk AI's messy evolution, why --sref still hits, and what to really expect from Midjourney’s upcoming video model (spoiler: temper your expectations, but get excited anyway).

They go deep on the “magic” Midjourney still has, how it’s quietly winning by being fun, and the lesser-known ways people are turning AI content into passive income.

There’s also a live yearbook unboxing, a nostalgic look at 8fps video from 2023, and at least three moments where someone says, “we’re not shills… but also, please sponsor us.”

Welcome to the pod that’s equal parts therapy session, product breakdown, and test lab.

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