How to Create a Video Overview in NotebookLM (Gemini Notebook)

Some topics are easier to understand when you can see them: processes, diagrams, timelines, comparisons. NotebookLM (now Gemini Notebook) can turn your sources into a narrated Video Overview, from a 60-second short to a detailed explainer or an immersive "cinematic" video. This guide explains each format, how to customize it, and how to download and share the result.

The three Video Overview formats

Step 1: Prepare your sources

As with every Studio output, quality in means quality out. Create a focused notebook (see our beginner's guide), add your PDFs, Docs, slides, web pages or YouTube links, and unselect anything that shouldn't be in the video.

Sources that work especially well for video: documents with diagrams, step-by-step processes, historical timelines, and reports with key numbers. Google's original announcement explained that Video Overviews can pull in images, diagrams, quotes and numbers from your documents.

Step 2: Open Video Overview in Studio

In the Studio panel, select Video Overview. You can generate with defaults or customize first.

Step 3: Customize the video

Format

Pick Explainer, Short or Cinematic based on the table above.

Language

Choose the narration language from the supported languages. Cinematic currently supports English only.

Visual style (Explainer)

Users 18+ can choose a look such as Classic, Whiteboard, Watercolor, Retro Print, Heritage, Paper-craft, Kawaii or Anime, let Gemini Notebook auto-select, or choose Custom and describe a style. Style selection isn't available for Cinematic and Short videos.

Steering prompt

Select a suggested topic or write your own focus. Examples:

Focus on the five steps of the process in chapter 2. Assume the viewer is a complete beginner.

Explain the main findings of this report for busy managers. Emphasize the three key numbers and what they mean.

Create a timeline-style explanation of the events in these sources, from earliest to latest.

Step 4: Generate and wait

Select Generate now or Generate later. Google says Video Overviews can take a while, sometimes more than 30 minutes, so start it and keep working on something else. The finished video appears in the Studio panel.

Step 5: Watch and check

Use the player controls: playback speed, rewind/skip forward, full screen, and feedback ("good video" / "bad video"). Google warns that Video Overviews, including voices and visuals, are AI-generated and may contain inaccuracies or audio glitches. Watch the whole video before sharing it, and compare key facts against your sources.

Step 6: Download or share

• Download: select Download to save the video file.
• Share a link: select Share in the player. The notebook must be shared with the recipient or public ("Anyone with a link") with access to the full notebook. Public sharing is only available on consumer accounts.
• Share the notebook: collaborators see the video in their Studio panel.

If you delete a video, its share link stops working.

Ideas for using Video Overviews

1. Students: a Short video per difficult concept, watched right before class.
2. Teachers: Explainer videos summarizing a unit, shared with the class notebook.
3. Teams: onboarding videos from internal documentation.
4. Researchers: a Cinematic overview of a paper to introduce it to non-experts.
5. Creators: a visual draft to plan your own video script (then record it in your own voice).

Video Overview vs. Slide Deck vs. Audio Overview

Choose video when visuals help understanding and you want something to watch. Choose a slide deck when you need to present live and edit content. Choose an Audio Overview when you want to learn while commuting or doing chores. Many people use all three on the same notebook.

Troubleshooting

I don't see Cinematic or visual styles

These require users aged 18+, and Cinematic is English only. The mobile app may have limitations. Try the web version.

Generation is taking forever

Long generation times are normal. Google mentions more than 30 minutes in some cases. Usage limits also apply, and paid plans have higher daily limits.

The video focuses on the wrong topic

Unselect unrelated sources and write a clearer steering prompt, then generate again.

Want to edit the downloaded video further? See Is there an AI that can edit videos for you?

Writing a great steering prompt: a simple template

Most disappointing videos come from vague instructions. Use this template in the steering prompt box:

Audience: [who will watch]. Goal: [what they should understand or do after watching]. Focus: [chapter, topic or question]. Tone: [friendly / formal / energetic]. Avoid: [details to skip].

For example: "Audience: new employees. Goal: understand our customer support process. Focus: the escalation steps in the handbook. Tone: friendly. Avoid: internal system names." Being explicit about the audience is especially important, because it changes the vocabulary, pace and examples the narration uses.

Choosing the right format for your goal

• You have one tricky concept to understand: make a Short. It's quick to watch and easy to share with a classmate.
• You need to learn a whole unit or report: make an Explainer and choose a style that suits the topic (Whiteboard works well for technical subjects, Classic for business).
• You want to introduce a complex story or research to non-experts: make a Cinematic video (English only, 18+).

Accessibility and learning benefits

Video Overviews can help visual learners and people who find long texts tiring. You can also slow down or speed up playback in the player. For important study material, combine the video with the original source: watch first to get the big picture, then read the source to fill in the details.

Summary

NotebookLM / Gemini Notebook Video Overviews turn your sources into narrated videos: a 60-second Short, a structured Explainer with your choice of visual style, or an immersive Cinematic video in English. Prepare focused sources, write a clear steering prompt, be patient during generation, check the facts, and download or share the result.

Frequently asked questions