Many people would agree that the year 2020 was no picnic. Streets were emptied, smiles were swiped off from people’s faces all around the globe and the main duty was to, well, just “survive”. During this difficult time, what has caused quite a wave in the social media industry? It is clear as a crystal, and yes, the era of short-form video has risen.
People of this generation, with fast technology and busy life, are not pleased with the concept of slow time. They get distracted with such ease and do not spare mercy to boring, time-consuming content. What they are looking for is something that can fill their short breaks and entertain them in a short period. Something catchy and glamorous, far from forcing them to try hard and concentrate.
Thus, it is not at all surprising that short-form video has caught their attention, broadening its stage through the world of SNS and becoming a star of content marketing.
What is Short-Form Video?
Being a video with a running time of less than a minute, it captures the audience and the viewers with eye-catching content. It has the benefit of being easy to create, share and inspire whoever is watching. People can film anything they want and make a short-form video with a flick of their fingers. This mesmerizing advent of short-form video frees users and viewers from the traditional stereotype of how a film should look, and push the boundaries of film-making, making it possible to embrace a bigger group of users.
What are the top 3 platforms of Short Form Video?
1. TikTok
Source: Top 30 Dance Challenges TikTok Compilation 2020 by Best TikTok Compilations
The first one, as you’ve all guessed, is TikTok. This China-based platform is the biggest contributor to this new trend. TikTok went viral through dance challenges and memes that users created. Offering unique methods to express oneself, this platform now has over 1 billion users worldwide, undoubtedly taking a lead to several trends of 2020. Videos were fast to be uploaded on other SNS such as Instagram or Facebook, announcing its enthrone as the king of the trend.
2. Instagram
After going through domination of flooding TikTok videos, Instagram felt the need to hop on the ark to save itself from the torrent of trends. Thus came out Reels, an Instagram version of TikTok, which the users can edit their videos right after recording them. However, as everything in its early stage does, Reels also has flaws that the users have pointed out. In this case, it is its running time of 30 seconds which is pretty short compared to TikTok, where videos 1-minute long max can be uploaded.
3. Triller
Source: Triller 2020 Recap by Triller
The last platform to be introduced is Triller, a United States-based application, the first of its kind. Unlike TikTok and Reels, it does not provide in-app editing. Triller is an AI-powered music video streaming platform, meaning that AI does the editing for you. It gained most of its popularity in India since the government banned the use of TikTok along with other applications from China.
Why is it Trending?
2020 wasn’t the best year people could have hoped for. Stores were closed, jobs were lost, and deaths were reported on the news every day. People had to live in fear where their loved ones could die. People were robbed of their very basic life. They were thirsty to communicate, to share their days, and to see how others were holding up.
Here is where short-form video shines. Videos that are uploaded on this platform are very friendly and accessible. People can talk about their day, make memes, entertain others while being entertained at the same time. The fact that it doesn’t have to hold messages is the beauty of this platform. Despite its simplicity, short-form video is like Room of Requirement, offering people with pleasure they didn’t even realize they needed. They help people to be more engaged and bring color to their life. With this merit, it gives people joy in seconds like a speck of magical dust, and in return, the audience roared with enthusiasm.
Where will it be in 2021?
Source: Instagram Reels Compilation 2020 by Epic Reels
It is pretty clear where it is right now. Major SNS platforms are rushing to jump in this new trend, proving this form of video is the future. Apart from ‘Reels’ from Instagram, Facebook and Youtube are also testing short video features each called ‘Short videos’ and ‘Shorts’ in India. As people from diverse cultures, ages, and gender are uniting around this new form of a trend, I guess they are finally seeing its strengths and possibilities.
As simple “short-form video” may sound, it is clear that the system and its influence should not be looked down upon. Short-form video considers people’s mechanisms and supplements their unconscious damage as well as function as an excellent marketing strategy by seeing through the audience’s psychological state. To wrap up, the reign of short-form videos will continue in 2021. Let us all hope it lights up the darkest moments of our time and stabilizes its position, broadening the potentials of content making.
Source: Instagram, Youtube
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