Generation Errors
Troubleshoot common video generation errors and failures.
Generation Error Types
The error banner above your step cards shows scriptmotion's real, plain-English message — never a raw error code. Here are the messages you're most likely to see and what each one means.
"Insufficient credits to complete this generation."
Your credit balance is too low. Purchase a top-up pack or wait for your monthly allocation to refresh. Failed generations never consume credits — only completed ones do.
"This AI model is temporarily unavailable. Please pick another model or try again later."
The selected AI model is temporarily unavailable — scriptmotion's circuit breaker takes a model out of rotation after repeated failures rather than letting your request hang. Your model choice is never silently swapped — you'll see this message and can retry, or pick a different model via the Custom layout.
"Your prompt was flagged by the AI provider's safety filter..." / "...blocked by the AI provider's moderation system..."
The AI model flagged your script or configuration for a content policy violation. Review your script for potentially problematic content, rephrase, and generate again.
"Video generation timed out. No credits were charged. Please try again."
Generation took too long and timed out. This is rare but can happen with very complex configurations. Try simplifying (fewer products, simpler style) and re-generate. As the message states, you're never charged for a timed-out generation.
"Your video was generated but failed to save. No credits were charged. Please try again."
The video itself generated successfully, but scriptmotion couldn't save it. This is usually transient — try again, and you won't be charged twice.
Troubleshooting Steps
When Generation Fails
Check the error message
A red error banner appears above your step cards with the specific message — this tells you exactly what went wrong. (The Generations Rail only ever shows successful generations, so a failed attempt won't appear there — check the banner instead.)
Check your credit balance
Open the credit meter in the header. Make sure you have enough credits for the generation.
Simplify your configuration
Reduce complexity: try standard resolution, standard model, fewer features. Generate a simple version first.
Try again
Many errors are transient. Wait 30 seconds and click Generate again.
Contact support
If the error persists after 3 attempts, contact support with the error code and your video ID.
scriptmotion uses a circuit breaker pattern for AI model calls: if a model fails repeatedly, it's temporarily taken out of rotation so failures surface quickly instead of hanging. Your model choice is never silently swapped — if your model is unavailable, you'll be told so you can retry or pick another model.